COG Prophet Suffers Horrible 1st World Problem As His Kenyan Members Criticise His HQ Location

Life has been rather difficult for God's most important man in the 21st century.  Not-arrested, but almost arrested Bob Thiel, chief overseer of the improperly named "continuing" Church of God, has been dealing with major life crisis issues, though he is not without food or water, or electricity, or heat, or income, even though this was of BIBLICAL proportions!

So just what major life challenge has Satan thrown in his direction?

Due to the recent fires and the horrendous rain we had a couple weeks ago, there was a major landslide in the Montecito area outside Santa Barbara.  They had to close down parts of the 101 freeway.

Speaking of messages, when I was giving the sermon recommended for the week, I mentioned that there was only one main motorway to where we live. As it turns out, we found out later that when I was saying that, the main road (Highway 101) had been closed then due to flooding. It is still closed and did negatively impact our family (though it did not result in a lack of food or water). People must realize that problems can really happen–and biblically will (cf. Mark 13)–even in the USA!  Letter to the Brethren: January 18, 2018

Oh, the humanity!!!!!!!  The end is near!

Bitter Bob also has had to deal with another issue from his Kenyan followers.  There is a church in Kenyan that claims it is the Jerusalem 7th Day Church of God, the "mother" church of the COG's.  They have questioned Doubly-blessed Thiel for having his "world headquarters" in Grover Beach, CA and not in Jerusalem.  He has a produced a video to give his reasons why.

Would someone please drop Satan a line and tell him to PLEASE stop harassing Elijah Bob!

See how Satan attacked Bitter Bob here:

Cleanup continues in Montecito; Highway 101 closed through Monday, Caltrans says

Sardis COG vs Philadelphia COG. Which Is Doing A Better Work?

It is indeed fascinating that the so called "Sardis Church" aka The Church of God 7th Day, has more than 250k members, who meet in unity, peace and harmony, whereas the Philadelphian era COGs , with supposed "brotherly love" have as a combined total, no more than 25k persons between them all, and who are at each others throats with splits, controversy and chicanery. Hierarchical church government, with centralized control, centralized money gathering, and unelected ministry and leadership is the main reason for the disparity IMHO. ht:Connie

The Church of God has a rich history of maligning other Church of God movements, particularly those that Herbert Armstrong stabbed in the back decades ago.  They were labelled as Sardis churches.  One of the more self-righteous splinter groups has this to say about Sardis:

If we consider only the Church of God, Seventh Day that Herbert Armstrong affiliated with, nothing in its name or reputation indicates life. Herbert Armstrong saw it had most of the basic doctrines correct, but judged the organization as not really doing a work. Hence, he called it dead, not alive. Perhaps it did have a Sardis approach, but since neither its official name nor reputation indicates life, we must look elsewhere for a larger fulfillment of Christ's words.

Somewhere within the church of God are people who—either by name or reputation—appear to be living, yet whom God judges essentially spiritually dead, save a few names. How easy it is to deceive ourselves about our true standing with God!

God first addresses their "works." While they may still have the truth, their dead works indicate a lack of living faith. This indicates a people who perceive themselves to be alive, but who apparently are basically standing still, spiritually catatonic and comatose. They may exist as stones in the Temple, but not as "living stones." Perhaps this is why Christ says "not one stone will be left upon another"! Church of the Great God

Living Church of God has to get in on the act too:

In contrast to the other churches on the mail route, Philadelphia was not a wealthy, sophisticated or influential city. Located on an easily defended hill beside a major highway, it functioned as an outpost for spreading Greek and Roman culture (and later Christianity) to the surrounding region. The city was destroyed several times by earthquakes, but each time was rebuilt. It still exists today. Its name means "brotherly love." The Philadelphia era appears to have begun in the 1930s—about the time radio became popular and just before the age of television. In the last 75 years, the Church of God has used mass media to reach millions of people—proclaiming the Gospel of the coming Kingdom of God, and warning the world to watch for the signs of the end of this age and the return of Jesus Christ. This was the mission Jesus gave to His Church (Matthew 4:23; 10:6–7). This message was to be prominent at the end of the age (Matthew 24:14). Understanding the identity of modern Israelite nations—a key to understanding Bible prophecy—was restored to the Church of God during the modern Philadelphia era.

God promised to provide the Philadelphia era with an open door—a door no man could shut—for preaching the Gospel. God commends this small church for its persistence in fulfilling its mission, and for holding on, without compromise, to His precious Truth (Revelation 3:7–8). For faithfully doing a Work and holding onto the Truth, not just attending a church of their choice, Philadelphian Christians are promised protection from the coming Tribulation (Revelation 3:10). The lesson of Philadelphia is simple: Remain faithful to Truth—do the work of preaching the Gospel, love the brethren and let no one take your crown. We cannot afford to "drop the ball" at this vital moment of history! Our salvation and our reward are at stake if we do! Living Church of God

UCG has this to say, which they surprisingly do not realize is an exact description of their very own church!  COG7 is growing a vibrant and UCG is stagnate and starting to putrefy.

The people in a dying church begin to imitate society around them so much that they look just like them, the society around them. If you were to have gone to Sardis they would not have been worshipping Zeus. I am not saying that. But it wouldn’t have been that much different in terms of personal conduct than some of the pagans around them. I am saying that these people would have promoted adultery but they would have accepted adultery. They would not have promoted idolatry. But they wouldn’t have really been against it, either. They exist and they have a name and they appear to be a live church. But they are really not. And so what happens is that they simply begin to decay. Remember, it is a decaying city, a decaying church. Everything inside is stuck somehow. There is no growth. There is no vibrancy. They get together every Sabbath and they hear the same sermon they have heard for 25years. And they say the same things to each other that they have said for 25 years and they sit down and have the same pot luck that they have had for 25 years and then they say good bye and they all go home and live the same way they have. In this sort of dead emptiness for maybe 15 years. Somewhere along the way, you remember, he says you are ready to die. You are a decaying place. 

You want to know some of the problems that the Roman church had. Well, let’s see. Revelry and drunkenness. Partying spirits. Lewdness and lust. Sexual sins. Strife and Envy. Some of the problem that they had was drunkenness, sexual problems, strife between members, and people being envious. Yeah, sort of like church today. And some of the same problems. “ But put on the Lord and make no provisions for the flesh to fulfill its lust.” You know what he was telling these people? They weren’t dead. The church at Rome had problems but it wasn’t dead. It was a live church. What he tells them to do is strengthen what you have. The problem with looking like the world is that you forget to strengthen what God has given you. When you start looking like the world start doing what God says to do. Strengthen what you have.

So, a dying church is not aware of Christ’s return, they are not preparing for Christ’s return. So, watch. I dying church is sliding into the world. So, what do you do? Well, just what Christ told them to do. You strengthen what you do have. Take what you do have and work off of that. Work off of what you have. 

Decades ago when Herbert Armstrong and others smeared the COG7, it all sounded logical and accurate to us.  Then the one true church imploded and fractured into hundreds and hundreds of irrelevant little groups who are next to dead, while the COG7 grows and is alive and vibrant preaching the gospel.

Why Church Leaders Need Their Own Private Jets

Dave Pack's Christ Creature Is Returning Multiple Times So It Can Walk With The Sprout

After Dave Pack spent the last several years preaching 130+ sermons and posting them he faced a huge dilemma.  A lot of the stuff he posted never came to pass and was blatantly wrong.  Pack quickly started editing those posts until it got so bad that he removed all 130+ of them.  Tens of thousands of COG members never left their churches and flocked in mass to his personality cult with all of their tithe money.

After deleting all of the 130 some sermons from his website, Dave was left with another dilemma, how would all of the lost COG members ever know about his plan for his Christ to return multiple times?  He solved that issue be writing a new booklet about the Kingdom of God and its imminent return.

The booklet is still just as crazy as his 130+ sermons:

Multiple “Comings”

Let’s ask a surprising question, one that no one seems to consider. How many comings of Jesus does the Bible describe? Contrasting verses hold the surprising answer. The prophet Haggai wrote of Jesus’ Return, “Thus says the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all nations [long understood to be Jesus Christ] shall come…” (2:6-7). Vast numbers today are looking for and desiring Christ’s coming. While most understand little about His arrival, the Christian masses do desire it, with greater reason every day to hope for it more than the day before because of worldwide character breakdown!

Here’s the problem—and it’s big! The book of Revelation speaks of a very different reaction to Jesus’ appearance: “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our LORD, and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever…the nations were angry, and Your wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged…and [You] should destroy them which destroy the earth” (11:15, 18). A picture of angry nations is incompatible with Haggai.

These passages cannot refer to the same time!

Lacking knowledge of Christ’s multiple comings, many assert He comes and immediately vanquishes all enemies, establishing His Kingdom. Revelation appears to say this, but consider I Corinthians 15:25, which shows something entirely different, saying Christ “must reign, till He has put all enemies under His feet.” Those who would suggest He arrives, reigns for a split second, then annihilates all enemies are simply ignoring this verse, with many others.

When the kingdom comes it will be filled with wicked people who have to be purged.

A fifth parable shows expansion of God’s Kingdom from a small beginning, as well as something else no one seems to notice: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea…” (vs. 47). The net starts out empty. Over time it fills with fish of “every kind”—people from all nations. But not all “fish” belong: “When it was full, they drew to shore, sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world [or age, when Christ moves to Jerusalem]: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just [note this!], and shall cast them into the furnace [or oven] of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (vs. 48-50). (The end of the wicked is incompatible with an ever-burning afterlife. For more on this, the reader will want to read our booklet The Truth About Hell.) 

Abandon any notion that the Kingdom of God begins with only divine spirit beings. This parable dispels that misconception. The wicked can get into the Kingdom and must at a point be removed!

Jesus is going to return and will look exactly like he did in 1st century Palestine.

Jesus Christ, as King of the mustard seed Kingdom, also Himself starts “small” in how He manifests Himself and in the initial scope of His rule. The account of Christ’s ascension to heaven holds an eye-opening clue that no one ever notices. Recall the apostles’ question: “LORD, will You at this time restore again the Kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). After His answer it adds, “While they beheld, He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel” (vs. 9-10). These two men, actually angels, asked, “…Why stand you gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus [a man, not a Spirit Being in glorified form], which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen Him go into heaven” (vs. 11). 

The phrase “this same” in reference to Jesus is an all-important KEY. The angels were emphasizing that Jesus would return in the identical human form He had when He ascended. 

It is not surprising then that Christ is so often called “the Son of Man.” This is because He intends to continue (initially) His first-century form when He returns.

When Jesus returns to see Dave, he will have a new name...The Sprout.

The prophet Jeremiah described Christ in His expanding Kingdom by an unusual name, while also calling Him its King: “Behold, the days come, says the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days [at a point, but not right away] Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” (23:5-6). The Hebrew for “Branch” is sprout. Like mustard seeds, sprouts are also tiny to begin. This “sprout” depiction is completely incompatible with an all-powerful Jesus Christ returning in glorified form.

Ten chapters later Jeremiah adds more, confirming something crucial about sprouts: “I [will] cause the Branch [sprout] of righteousness to grow up unto David; and He shall execute judgment and righteousness…” (33:15). The Hebrew “grow up” is simply the verb form of sprout. God is saying, literally, He will cause the sprout to sprout. Ponder the enormity of what we are being told. Jesus’ role will grow from small to large. 

The Sprout is never going to accomplish anything.  Dave is just another loud mouth COG leader who is full of hot air and no substance.

SaveSave

PCG Struggling With Finances After Buying 13 Million Dollar Jet

The latest Royal Vision is out and features on its front cover the new play toy that Philadelphia Church of God bought for their taskmaster, Gerald Flurry. PCG has photographed the jet out to be a subliminally seductive in order to bamboozle members at is magnificence and importance.

Things are not as rosy as PCG initially conned the members into believing. This is what they initially heard:

In February 2017, Mr. Flurry wrote a co-worker letter introducing an “aircraft fund” and soliciting pledges from those who were able to contribute to it. 

“We were overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of the brethren for this fund,” Mr. Locher said. “Not only did the members and even the youth respond, but we had a stron- ger-than-expected level of support from co-workers. To date, actual donations have kept up with the pledged amount, making it easier for us to take on this additional expense.” 

Now move forward to 2018 and it is a different story:

PCG members have not been sending as much money as the initially did and Andrew Lochner wants them to "sacrifice and respond to His direction," after they pray about how they can send in more money. Gerald's play toy is creating a heavy burden for the PCG and thus needs members to step up to the plate and give more money, and for their god to inspire more coworkers to be added to the rolls.

The PCG had to reexamine their finances and their hoped-for new directions for their work.

About midway through 2017, Pastor General Gerald Flurry took a more aggressive approach to God’s finances to make sure we are putting to use the money God has provided to do the Work. That act of faith caused us to more closely monitor expenses, measure our results from various advertising and promotional campaigns, and to really work more efficiently to accomplish more with the money we spend. 

There are plans in the works to expand our efforts to reach the cities of Judah (Isaiah 40). That will require additional resources, but God will provide. His response in 2017 has been very inspiring. God wants us to be active and aggressive. He wants us to continue to sacrifice and respond to His direction as we finish this Work.