Eternal Church of God: Eating Out On Sabbath Will Bring Death Just Like Eve Died For Eating That Apple

The Eternal Church of God is one of the many hundreds of little splinter personality cults that has popped up over the decades.   It is also one of the more uber-legalistc groups out there that seeks to control much of everything its members do, in much the same way that James Malm does with his Pharisaical lies.

One of the ECG biggest pet peeves is COG members who dare to eat out on the Sabbath.  This is utter blasphemy and is equivalent to jabbing the spear into Christ's side at the crucifixion.  Every time you eat out on Saturdays, God puts another black mark in your book of life. There can be no greater blasphemy.

Apparently Eve ate that apple on the Sabbath and when you eat out at Denny's on the Sabbath you too shall die.

Warning
Nearly 6,000 years ago Satan told Eve to disobey God and “you will not surely die” (Gen. 3:4). She ate the forbidden fruit and ultimately perished. Today there are some who teach God’s people that it is acceptable to go to restaurants on the Sabbath. In other words, eat and you won’t die. However, God clearly stated that if we choose to violate His Sabbath we will pay the ultimate consequence. 

Having a Big Mac is also condemned by Nehemiah:

Engaging in business with food services, as either the retailer or the consumer, is the very conduct that inspired Nehemiah’s righteous indignation. With this in mind, here is a question to consider. Would Nehemiah think differently about buying and selling today? 

Later this comment is made:

Those who dine out on the Sabbath are breaking every aspect of God’s command with respect to eating and resting on His sacred day. Consider what they do. They acquire food on the Sabbath. They have it prepared for them on the Sabbath. They go outside the community of faith to procure the food as well as to consume it. Then they engage in a business transaction by paying for the meal and tipping the server. Tragically, many of God’s people rationalize every one of these practices. Even more tragic is the fate that awaits them if they fail to repent of this sin. 

Yep, the lake of fire is ready to fry those poor hapless fools that stop by In-n-Out for a burger.

Those that dare to eat out are accepting the Mark of the Beast.

The question is which mark do we carry? One of the most obvious displays of God’s mark is our behavior on the Sabbath. The Church of God must realize that when people choose to frequent restaurants they are rejecting God’s authority, they are refusing to accept His mark, and giving way to the mark of the beast! 

Then they attempt to use Jesus, that most inconvenient man to ever confront the Church of God.  Jesus obviously would have cooked for his family, but the New testament never mentions that he did, therefore you should not cook for yours on Saturdays!   That is perfect Church of God logic for you!

Although Jesus undoubtedly provided meals for His family during His lifetime on earth, there is no example of Him doing so in the New Testament. However, one example does appear in the Old Covenant that speaks volumes about how God approaches that which is holy. 

Herbert Armstrong never considered eating out on Saturdays to be an issue.  Nor did he feel it was an issue to pay his cooks to cook him breakfast, lunch and dinner on Friday nights and Saturdays.  This is a major burr under the saddle of professional Judaizer's like James Malm and the ECG.  To get around that mess the ECG attempts to blame lazy ministers for starting the trend.

Members once knew that eating at a restaurant on the Sabbath was wrong, but many have compromised this truth. It occurred slowly at first. The ministry once suggested that there might be times when eating out on the Sabbath was appropriate. No doctrinal studies were done, no papers were produced, and no official changes were ever made. As time went on, more and more people began dining out with greater frequency. Men began to take their wives out to dinner Friday night. Eventually this practice became habitual. 

Then the ECG tries to explain how Herbert Armstrong was wrong and he had been "tripped up" by a question he had never had time to think about, take to the Council of Elders for advice, nor have time to study deeply into at home...or apparently at the library in Eugene, OR.

One large organization published an article stating that dining out on the Sabbath has always received a stamp of approval by the Church. They claim that the Church of God has “consistently taught that eating in a restaurant on the Sabbath was permissible.” In an attempt to justify this belief, they quote Mr. Armstrong who said the following prior to a Bible study. 

“Now if you go out to a restaurant on the Sabbath, that restaurant is going to be there and that food is going to be prepared whether you go or not and the other people are going to be working anyway. They don’t keep the Sabbath. They pay no attention to that. Now I had never thought until .this evening when the question was brought up to me about whether it’s wrong to go to a restaurant to eat. I know when I travel, I have to do it or do without. And so I do.” 

Before anyone can claim that Mr. Armstrong approved of this practice, we must first understand the context of his statement. When asked about this issue, it was five minutes prior to a Bible study he was to give on a separate subject. His reply came from an “off the cuff” perspective. He did not take the question home and study it before responding. He did not present it to the council of Elders and produce an article to the Church changing this doctrine. This fact is obvious from the words “I had never thought until this evening when the question was brought up...” 

In addition, Mr. Armstrong traveled the world visiting various leaders and dignitaries. In his case, he believed it was necessary to occasionally visit restaurants during the Sabbath or he would have to do without any food. Therefore, because he did it on occasion, he felt that it was probably permissible under certain circumstances. His unusual set of circumstances likely motivated his statement. However, over the years, these words led many brethren to believe that they can do business at a restaurant any time they want. This is simply human error. 

We must recognize that the only man who was ever perfect was Christ. While Mr. Armstrong was an apostle, he was not faultless. All of the apostles have made mistakes. 

God's apostle obviously made a mistake, even though Jesus personally worked through him 24/7.  The dance that COG member make to get around things and justify their stances are actually quit comical at times.

In like manner, the apostle of our age modified his teachings as he came to a more complete understanding. Over decades he made changes to the church position on the doctrines of government, the destiny of mankind, divorce, remarriage, and Pentecost.
The Church of God is one of the only churches that admits wrong and changes when it finds the truth. We are told to prove all things, and hold fast to what is true (1Ths. 5:21). Our process of growth and understanding was not meant to stop when a leader died. Therefore, we are convinced that if Mr. Armstrong would have lived to this day, he would have changed on this doctrine. Eternal Church of God: The Sabbath Test

No he would not have!  To say so is a lie!  Cooks, housekeepers, chauffeurs, secretaries, Auditorium stage crew, support staff on church jets, and those that travelled with him all did work on Saturdays, bought things whenever the boss said to and were paid.  Even his Doctor was paid to visit him on Saturdays! The Ambassador Auditorium was allowed to be built on Saturdays as were many other campus buildings.  Feast sites were also built on Saturdays.

Certain COG leaders have this same issue because they can't get past the physical etched stone 10 commandments.  Their entire emphasis is placed upon the law and obedience while they ignore everything about Jesus and the new covenant. Legalism puffs them up so they can feel superior to everyone else.  They are God's called out.  The Chosen.  Kings and Priests. Afterall, THEY have the "truth." Legalists are always looking at the outward visible signs of obedience.  It is important to be seen doing "right" so they can click their tongues at those stopping off at the DQ for some ice cream.

All of the Malm's, Thiel's, Meredith's, Pack's, Flurry's and others out there infecting COGland  with their needless rules and regulations need to do us all a favor and follow Paul's exhortation to emasculate themselves.  Maybe then they would shut up and stop lying.

Grumpy Legalists

Why Jesus Hates Legalism (Luke 11:37-54)

The Naked Gospel: The truth you may never hear in church 

The Sabbath in Crisis

Twisted Scriptures: Breaking free from churches that abuse

SaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSaveSave

Gerald Flurry, Hill Tara, and the Coronation Chair

Coronation chair, Westminster Abbey

Gerald Flurry is again promoting the "fact" that Jesus will return to earth to sit in this very chair.  Of course you will notice that the Stone of Scone is missing.  Not for long though.  The Philadelphia Church of God will take possession of the stone from Scotland and return it to its rightful place in Westminster Abbey so Jesus can sit on it.  This will happen around the same time that PCG will dig up the Ark of the Covenant buried in Hill Tara in Ireland.

Hannah knew about the prophecy later recorded in Luke 1: “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest [the Father]: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end” (verses 32-33). This is about an eternal family, and it has to do with David’s royal family throne. It is about a family forever—a royal God Family vision. 

Again, Samuel actually helped to originate this throne. That throne is still on this Earth as Hannah’s prophecy continues to be fulfilled—and you can see it with your own eyes! It is located in Westminster Abbey in London, England. It is the very throne which Jesus Christ, the Son of the Highest, will sit on at His return. He will rule with His bride to expand God’s Family over all this Earth, and He will restore all things. 

This is about you! God will exalt your horn in that day. We shall be His kings! He will give strength to His kings and priests! Jesus Christ soon will thunder out of the heavens to usher in His Kingdom to restore all things to the Earth! Hanna Explains: Why the Feast of Trumpets

Here is what Gerald Flurry has to say about Hill Tara:

Irish annals show that when Jeremiah migrated to Ireland, he brought with him more than just the princess of Judah who carried on David’s throne. “Besides the royal family, Jeremiah brought with them some remarkable things,” Mr. Armstrong continued, “including a harp, AN ARK, and a wonderful stone called ‘lia-fail,’ or ‘stone of destiny’” (op. cit., emphasis mine).

The “stone of destiny” is also called “Jacob’s pillar stone.” It is the stone the patriarch Jacob set up to memorialize the promise God made to him in Genesis 28—that his descendants would become as numerous as “the dust of the earth.” This stone remained with the nation of Israel throughout its history. And when Jeremiah fled Jerusalem, he took this stone with him.

We know where this stone is today: It is in Scotland, in Edinburgh Castle. In recent years, faithless critics have tried to discredit the origins of this stone—but for hundreds of years its true origins were widely accepted and understood. Queen Elizabeth was crowned over it, as was Tea-Tephi’s royal son anciently.

Notice that along with that stone, Jeremiah brought the ark of the covenant on his journey to Ireland! 

This knowledge, too, was not uncommon until relatively recently. F. R. A. Glover, who ascertained that the British monarchy was aware of its linkage to King David, wrote extensively about these objects having made their way to Ireland with Jeremiah. His book England the Remnant of Judah and the Israel of Ephraim records this history.

Glover stated that the grave of Queen Tea-Tephi lies in the Hill of Tara, the origin of Irish history. In his research, he found that she had been buried with the two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, along with the ark of the covenant. Finding the Ark of the Covenant 

Then, following in HWA's linguistic missteps he has this to say about the word Torah and Tara:

Note that! Tara comes from torah—God’s law! There is a well-known connection between the famous Tara Hill and the law of God! 

According to these archaeologists and historians, these tablets were buried with Tea-Tephi in Tara Hill! Why don’t we hear more about this history? It is clearly recorded in Ireland’s history books. This simply cannot be chalked up as a “legend” or “myth” of Irish history!

Don’t you think it might galvanize a lot of people if the ark were found, and the Ten Commandments on those two tables of stone were inside?  Finding the Ark of the Covenant

Flurry then says that scripture points to Hill Tara and the Ark of the Covenant as the focus that should be upon humanity.

Prophecy shows that God is going to do some dramatic things to warn this world of the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord just before His Second Coming. The period leading up to Christ’s return is going to be the worst suffering in human history. That is the horrifying end result of mankind’s vile sins! God wants to warn people in advance to help as many as possible to repent before that time comes so they don’t have to experience it.

If the ark were discovered, wouldn’t that be a powerful witness to the world? I believe it would be. Proof that the biblical chronicle is accurate could help lead some to repentance. The ark’s discovery would even point people to where God’s message was being proclaimed, and help them to realize that even though they heard it and didn’t act on it, that message was right and was from God. Finding the Ark of the Covenant

If you follow in the slightest Christian beliefs a person quickly sees that Flurry has placed the focus upon created physical things and not on Jesus.  Jesus be damned as they dig up Hill Tara in a few years. They need the physical things that the law condemns them with instead of the One that sets them free.

Philadelphia Church of God Says That Everyone Should Look To Headquarters For All Truth

Gerald Flurry's warrior God is alive and well in the latest article from the Philadelphia Church of God.  It is an article telling the story of the Zulu's and the British soldiers in South Africa.  The rise of Shaka Zulu and his warriors and the British soldiers holds as much significance to PCG elite as does the Bible. It is important for Flurry to have a warrior god that constantly is fighting.

Towards the end of the article, PCG members are reminded that they are to look to Edmond as the seat of all knowledge and leadership.  Edmond is the headquarters for the small remnant of true believers that posses all truth.  Bob Thiel does not have it.  James Malm does not. Dave Pack does not. UCG certainly does not.  All good PCG soldiers should look to the general at HQ for truth.  After all, they are too dumb to figure it out themselves.

This third point, then, is we must learn to keep our eyes on headquarters. Is Jesus Christ divided? Of course not (1 Corinthians 1:13). We have many proofs that He is only working through the small remnant of the Philadelphia Church of God; but even if we only had one proof, the Work would be enough. Christ said, “Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father” (John 14:11-12). 

A greater work was done through God’s Elijah, Herbert W. Armstrong. That great Work continues today through God’s prophet, Gerald Flurry. We must focus our attention on the Work and where it is being done. We must keep our eyes on headquarters—Edmond, Oklahoma. Losing sight of whom God has placed in charge of His Work will cause us to become battle casualties. The Soldiers of the King

Dingy Church of God False Prophet Says The Beast Power Will Soon Be Attacking Him

The false prophet from Arroyo Grande, CA is weighing in today on the ICANN internet issue that may happen this weekend.  Doomdayers are predicting all kinds of scenarios, but none are as absurd as Almost Arrested, Self-Appointed, Elisha, Elijah, Joshua, Famous Amos, Chief Overseer, Prophet, Apostle, 1/2 of Two Witnesses, Bob Thiel.  Only he is silly enough to think that this issue will have a direct impact upon his false ministry.  He thinks that Baron von Gutenberg, the Hadron Collider and the Catholic Church will join up together in a holy triumvirate to wage war on his pathetic little church.

The deliberate lies and self-deception of these false self appointed COG leaders is appalling.

You will notice that the lying false prophet now thinks he is one of the two witnesses. Thiel and Laura Weinland have a great work ahead of them!

One or more associated with the Continuing Church of God will be identifying that the European “prince” (Daniel 9:26-27) who is rising up to become a king, as not being able to truly bring peace, but instead will bring war and will be in league with the final Antichrist.

We will also be warning that the idea of a human-led utopia that the UN and others are pushing is false and that it is only through Jesus’ return and the gospel of the kingdom that such a utopian condition will happen.

This will likely trigger major media coverage.

Scrutiny of real, as well as claimed, COG literature will likely happen towards the end and various aspects of real and incorrect COG doctrines will likely be ridiculed. Media coverage would then be expected to cover more of the COG message (cf. The Gospel of the Kingdom of God) and this may be associated with the “short work” of Romans 9:28.

We in the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) are preparing for the ‘short work’ by establishing multiple websites in multiple languages, while researching and making available information on church history, doctrine, and prophecy, while also proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom of God to the world as a witness.

Since the true Church of God is so small, it is highly likely that it getting significant media coverage will help fulfill Matthew 24:14. Some of the Philadelphia remnant will be explaining that it is Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God and not the rise of a militaristic leader that the world needs. According to Daniel 11:32 it is “the people who know their God [that] shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.” Hundreds of millions, if not billions, will receive at least a partial witness. All of that will likely trigger the King of the North to take actions that lead to the end–this includes the persecutions, pre- (Daniel 7:25a, 11:29-36) and post-tribulation (Daniel 7:25b).

We Philadelphian Christians know there will be persecution and the work will be stopped and then the end will come, because of what Jesus taught:

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.  10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.  13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:9-14).

Notice the following which this ICANN move might impact:

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)

The above could only happen in the 21st century if the internet was down and/or internet content related to the truth of God was no longer permitted. Governments are taking steps which look to be able to bring this about–turning over the control of ICANN possibly may affect this.

ICANN is to be an international body starting tomorrow. This will tend to make its decisions out of the jurisdiction of American courts. This will allow it to be able to censor basically at will. Instead of first amendment protections, Americans will be subject to international whims and things like ‘community standards’–standards that already have been shown to be in conflict with scripture. If ICANN is pressured to pull some or all of our proclaiming Christ’s Gospel of the Kingdom of God message off the internet, this will cause a famine of the word, and perhaps the one prophesied in Amos 8. 

UCG Fails At Yet Another Media Campaign (Updated)

The poor old boys at UCG still don't get it.  No matter how hard they try they just CANNOT seem to draw in new members.

Vic Kubik writes about their latest campaign and blames poor attendance on lack of gas, weather and the Charlotte riots.  Whey these guys did not have the wherewithal to cancel the Charlotte campaign because of the riots shows how out of touch they really are.  300 signed up, 76, showed up, and of that 76 probably 40-50 were UCG members who attend to pad the audience.

On Monday, our Beyond Today Live team returned from North Carolina where we made the America: The Time is Now presentation in Raleigh, Greensboro and Charlotte. We reached a total of 76 people; however, more than 300 people registered to come. We had a few obstacles to our presentations. First, there was a gasoline shortage in the entire state. A gasoline pipeline had broken and gasoline stations did not have adequate fuel. As we traveled, we made certain that our fuel was always above a half tank. Also, there was stormy weather on the first part of the trip and, finally, street protests and unrest in Charlotte (after a black man was killed by police) affected attendance. One person called our pastor, Scott Hoefker, and told him that they really wanted to come, but they were fearful of getting out, not knowing how safe things were in the city. 

Church of God News reported this about three other UCG campaigns:

The three Beyond Today presentations, ‘America: The Time Is Now’ in North Carolina, drew only 27 new guests in Raleigh, 26 in Greensboro, and 23 in Charlotte (where several who registered did not attend owing to local unrest).

What has finally dawned on the old boys network is that people do not attend campaigns because of the speakers.  People attend church because of relationships built with members.  This is standard in most churches.  The problem in Armstrongism is that members were told to never discuss their faith with nonCOG members.  Examples work better at drawing members than does doom and gloom speeches and end of the word nonsense.

Or, UCG may be taking the usual route and blaming members for not being more involved.  This is probably more likely since the membership of the COG has never been able to do anything right over the last 8 decades.  It was always the members fault that prophecy never happened and Jesus had not returned.

It is becoming more apparent to us that local congregational involvement and engagement will be needed and expected to help increase our attendance. From the home office, we can do only so much to promote these events. Further publicity and encouragement will need to come from local pastors and their congregations. 

UCG member will soon start being "trained" on how to be proper examples. 20 years after the start of the most godly COG splinter group ever, it still has not been able to get cross to its members just what it is they are supposed to believe.

The personal appearance campaigns are making us more aware of the need to proclaim not only the gospel message, but also to “make disciples.” It is important to teach about the Kingdom of God from the Bible and to expound the scriptures that authoritatively explain God’s vision for the world. 

The problem with the COG view of a kingdom to come, which all Christians believe, is worthless in a troublesome world.  People need to know how to relate to daily struggles, not worry about some end time apocalypse or some idiotic final training in Petra.  Most Christians also know that UCG is full of hot air when it comes to perverted doctrines.  Until they clean up that mess they are not going to draw in many people.

A disciple develops a deep and secure understanding about the nature and authority of the Word of God. In any discussion with those outside of us you must speak up to establish the basis of your beliefs, which is the Bible. Are you able not only to defend your beliefs, but also defend the authenticity, genuineness and reliability of the Bible?

The church has always emphasized that everyone had to "prove" everything.  That is a load of garbage.  It is dwelling in the mystery and the unanswerable questions that have always inspired people through the centuries.  Living and believing in that tension is far more profitable than parked in front of some poorly researched correspondence course and proof texting scripture or reading legalistic web sites like James Malm and Dave Pack where they lie through their teeth.

The glory days of UCG are over.  It will NEVER be a great work.