But Its Always Been This Way!

 

Thoughts.......?

Are LCG Members Who Want To Do Good In The World Trying To Change Satan's World?

 More words of wisdom from the big boss of Living Church of God:

Don’t Let Satan Distract You

Dear brethren, let us never forget whose world this is. The old hymn “This Is My Father’s World” may sound good on the surface, but it is a deception—with a bit of truth to disguise the lie. Yes, God did create our world “of rocks and trees, of skies and seas.” But this hymn also subtly implies that God is the current ruler of this world. We know that God the Father and Jesus the Christ are all-powerful and rule over Satan, but they established Lucifer’s throne on earth in the distant past and will allow him to remain on it until a future time (Isaiah 14:13). On the night when He was betrayed, Jesus reminded His disciples that this evil spirit being is still the ruler of this age (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). Paul also reminds us that this being is the “god” of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2). God even gave us a Holy Day devoted to the fact that the Devil is real and must be removed from power upon Christ’s return (Leviticus 23:26–32; Revelation 20:1–3). 

 

Some Church members are tempted to try to change Satan’s world now. But while we are certainly called to “shine our light” as Christians—being honest, caring, and polite; being good neighbors; setting righteous examples; and doing good works when we have the opportunity—it is notappropriate for God’s people to advocate or vote for a human savior or to march and demonstrate for one worldly cause or another. Our responsibility is to proclaim to this world the better way of life that will come with the Kingdom of God, and to warn mankind of what will surely happen to those who do not turn in a different direction. Only when Christ returns will we have the opportunity and the power to change the world! That must always be our focus. 

 

Satan is a master of distraction. He cares little which distraction you fall for—only that you get your mind off the great commission to which you are called (Matthew 28:18–20; Mark 16:15–16). Remember, when God explained to Ezekiel that He was setting him as a watchman for the house of Israel, He made it abundantly clear that this was a serious matter—he would be held accountable (Ezekiel 3:17–21). As we know, the house of Israel had gone into captivity more than a century earlier. The commission was for a future Work to carry Ezekiel’s message: Repent of your sins or go into captivity! 

 

May we not become distracted by rumors, conspiracies, or divisive worldly issues. We have a great Work to do!

 

Gerald Weston Claims LCG Members Are Being Titillated By QAnon And Conspiracy Theories

 

LCG has a long history of focusing on "disaster" in order to prop up its doctrinal stances and to keep its members in a constant state of fear. Nothing makes for a better prophecy cover story than for some natural disaster or a man-made event that shocks the world. This is titillating stuff for the prophecy keepers of the church. 

LCG also has a long history of delivering "fake news" when it comes to prophetic predictions, bible interpretations, and absurd proof-texting by the ministry. The end product is always a fake news story. No one needs to worry about fake news in the world when one's own church is filled to the brim with it!

I recently recorded a telecast titled “2022 in Bible Prophecy,” giving Bible-based predictions for the year ahead and elaborating on Ezekiel 7:26. That verse tells us that disaster upon disaster will come on the house of Israel, but there is another prediction in the verse: “and rumor will be upon rumor.”

It is easy to focus on the “disaster” part of the sentence and not consider the part about rumors. Was there ever a time when rumors were more prolific than they are in our day? Rumors thrive in times of instability, and social media is a rumor mill on steroids, spreading false information among countless millions. “Fake news” was a political slogan used against the news media, and not without justification, even though the man who made the mantra famous had his own problems propagating fake news. Conspiracy theories have been exacerbated by the politics of the pandemic. Foreign governments and unprincipled individuals routinely post made-up stories for the gullible on Facebook and Twitter, creating confusion and division. Our angry, divided world has become angrier and more divided as a result of the pandemic—all fueled by worldwide electronic media.

This is a challenge for us. As God’s elect, we must strive not to be taken in by rumors. We must not allow ourselves to become polarized over political issues. We must remain objective, not mind-made-up ideologues who take sides, favoring one worldly evil over another. Being convicted about the truth of Scripture is a good thing, but polarization over worldly issues creates an atmosphere where one rashly judges some individuals as evil and always wrong, and others as good and always right. If we do not remain objective, we may immediately latch onto reports that reflect our worldview and tune out those with which we disagree—one political party becomes good, the other bad.

No matter how sketchy the source, anti-vaxxers are quick to spread dubious reports on the evils of vaccines, while those in favor spread flowery reports promoting the jabs. Conspiracy theories thrive in this atmosphere, and objectivity is a casualty. In fact, every side deals in lies and fabrications. The same is true in discussions regarding gun rights, protests and riots, border policies, the efficacy of masking, and the lives of politicians and celebrities.

Sadly, this worldliness even seeps into the Church. Some members are little different from their neighbors in this regard. We all have our personal opinions, which is not inherently wrong, and I am happy to say that the overwhelming majority among us are fair-minded, accepting that a brother or sister in Christ may have a different opinion and still be our beloved brother or sister. Sadly, though, in our current atmosphere of division, some forget who is behind the anger, lies, and divisiveness (John 8:44). Truth really has fallen in our streets, just as the Bible foretold (Isaiah 59:14).

Some rumors seek to titillate, tempting us with juicy tidbits about people, and we are drawn to tales that bolster our world-view over someone else’s. Other rumors are based on fear or a lack of sound-mindedness. Paul’s statement to Timothy can be instructive: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). We are to insulate ourselves with God’s Spirit against shadowy and outrageous conspiracy theories, such as those of QAnon. Those of us who have been around for many years have seen such conspiracies come and go—even among members of God’s Church.

Our blue-tasseled buddy Zerubbabel has had a 'change of raiment'

Before

The Church of God at its finest!

God has apparently sent his angels down from heaven to knit together holy garments for Bob Thiel's companion on the journey to lead the Church of God into truth. 

Zerubbabel has been so zealous in his witnessing that he never washed his clothing for the last several years until it started falling apart on his body. This displeased God so much that he sent his angels with new garments as the end times rapidly falls down around us. God's prophets have to look their best when they walk the streets of Jerusalem bearing witness for 3 1/2 years. We look forward to seeing Bob Thiel don his filthy rags to preach to the world!

After

Looks like our blue-tasseled buddy Zerubbabel has had a 'change of raiment'.

“And he answered and spoke unto those that stood before him, saying, ‘Take away the filthy garments from him.’ And unto him he said, ’Behold, I have caused your iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.’” (Zechariah 3:4, 21st Century King James Version).

You too can listen to the worlds most amazing prophet preach here:

Before:

LET’S GO ELIJAH!!!

After:

GUARANTEED PROPHECY

Commercial Break: Them Not Us

 

One of the great theological mistakes and teachings of Christian Fundamentalism and HWA/WCG in our own experience was "reading the Book of Revelation like a newspaper".  How often, as students, did we hear Roderick Meredith affirm,  "we have 3-5, 10 at the most, 20 tops" years left before Jesus comes.  Conveniently, this range of possibilities generally fits the expected lifetime of all concerned.  Gerald Waterhouse spent his entire life promoting the Book of Revelation to the churches as occurring within the boundaries of the life of HWA. When I, to his face, asked Gerald what he would think WHEN not IF, HWA would die.  He simply replied, "I'll believe it after three days and three nights". 

...and too...all these men have since died 

A book that begins with...

1The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

And ends with...

 20He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 

Is not talking to us today

"Digging through the pages of history of the early church fathers, citing excellent commentaries from the late 19th and early 20th century, and taking Scripture with the seriousness that any scholar should, Gentry gives overwhelming evidence that Revelation was written prior to A.D. 70 and also gives us answers into some of the mysteries such as
Who is the Beast?
What is 666?
Is the tribulation past or still to come?
as well as demonstrating that the majority of Revelation, all of the Olivet Discourse and the 70 weeks passage in Daniel was fulfilled in the destruction of the Temple by the Romans. Dr. Gentry shows that, as should always be the case, that prophecy is easier to understand after it has been fulfilled than before. If you are into any view that calls for a tribulation of any kind, should you decide to read this book, you will definitely be affected and challenge to make a change of such a view."

---------------------------------

In short, The Book of Revelation was written in or around the summer of 69 CE (65 according to this study)  and certainly BEFORE not after the Fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE. It was written to encourage the Jewish Christians in harm's way under the siege of Rome on the city. Revelation is a Jewish Christian Book. The 144,000 are Jewish Christians and the "innumerable multitude" are Jewish Christians who were not as righteous as the 144,000 but to be regathered nonetheless, not of the nations as gentiles, but "out of them" as Jewish.

Rome had grown weary of militant Jews and Zealots and militant Jewish Christians and with Judea under Roman control, was not going to put up with it anymore. 

(I personally believe the Gospels and Paul's book of Romans reflect the fact that Rome had a great deal of input in the writing of the NT to pacify the militant Jewish Messiah and Jesus resulting in the Orthodox Judaism of today and a "turn the other cheek", "render unto Caesar..." and "Obey those that have rule over you (Rom. 13), pacifistic Jesus of the NT.  Vespasian may have been the "Beast" and the Apostle Paul the "False Prophet" to Jewish Christians,  but that's another story)

For a personal view of "Them not US" see:

The Second Coming-The Eternal Carrot

"But back to the original question. To whom was Jesus speaking when he said the words and to whom did he mean for it to apply? The answer is within the context, plain and simple.

"Take heed that no man deceive you." (Matt 24:4)
"...ye shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars..." (Matt 24:6)
"Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted..." (Matt 24:9)
"When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation..." (Matt 24:15)
"But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter..." (Matt 24:20)
"Behold, I have told you before." (Matt 24:25)

The context in which Jesus spoke was his own. The "you" that he was addressing was the group he was addressing then and the group to which all these things would happen for, and soon. Jesus was telling those disciples that these things would happen in their time. Jesus made a mistake in his perceptions.

In our time, Christians read the same words and see the "ye" and "you" as "me" and "us" just as the original disciples would have. The only difference is that the disciples actually were disappointed and this generation has yet to realize their own disappointment to come.

The proof that Jesus himself meant the people he was talking to is found in the fact that the "this generation" comment is actually the tail end of a much larger, often overlooked quote taken in its entirety.

"So likewise YE when YE shall SEE ALL these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto YOU, THIS generation shall not pass, till ALL these things be fulfilled." (Matt 24:33-24 emphasis mine)

There is no reason to twist the words of Jesus to mean more than they were ever intended to mean. A scripture can never mean what it never meant. The early disciples and infant Church knew it meant them and we see the gradual deterioration of their personal confidence in the immediacy of the Second Coming promise throughout the NT.

I Thessalonians 4:15-17 "...For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout...Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air..." Meaning...some would die, but not us who tell you this. Jesus still means us.

I Corinthians 15:51,52 "...We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump..." Meaning...you will die, but we won't but it all works out...Jesus still meant us.

Romans 13:11-12 "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand..." Meaning...we had some doubts, but now we know it's almost here. Jesus still meant us.

James 5:8 "Be ye also patient; establish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." Meaning...impatience was growing, hang in there. Jesus still meant us.

I John 2:18 "Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time." Meaning...Jesus still meant us.

I Peter 4:7 "But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer."

Revelation 22:20 "He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly...." Meaning...ok, it's been over 30 years, but Jesus still means us.

Obviously, every one of these quoted hopes and statements was wrong. Jesus did not return for them and to date has not returned for anyone. Paul and the early church who wrote in his name was just as wrong as the many COG prophetic types are wrong in this time. And it is based on the fact that Jesus himself was wrong which I know most Christians can never come to admit. For Paul it becomes....

" I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing." Meaning...Ok, I give up, Jesus didn't mean us, or at least not me. I was wrong. 2 Timothy 4:8-9

...and at best, this will also become the reality for those alive today seeing the imminent return of Jesus in every newspaper and on every turn of the dial in this dangerous and contentious world of ours."

I'm not scoffing. Being accused of scoffing was a label for those in the early Church who were really beginning to doubt the "soon" and "shortly" of it all.  Rather than admit "Yeah, we get it", the powers that were simply blamed the "observer of reality", mocked them and said they didn't understand that "with God, a day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as a day! Duh!"  Of course, this little bit of information was not taught back in the day when it was obvious no Jesus was returning soon.

The disciples expected Jesus to return within days of his death and when they met him in Galilee, even doubted that. It's what you say to those that are becoming disillusioned but the others know that the return is still in their lifetime for sure.

Scoffers, i.e. "Noticers",  were undermining the confidence of the early followers and disciples of Jesus. An observation is not scoffing. Observations are based on the passage of millennia. It's a 2000-year-old observation. To motivate with fear, false prophetic fulfillment's of non-prophecies and imagined prophetic accuracy on topics anyone could speculate somewhat accurately about, is simply foolishness and makes the Church, in any form, look stupid and ignorant. Jesus said his generation would not pass until the Son of Man be come. He was wrong too.

Revelation is a failed first-century prophecy. The Romans won again. 

For an impressive recreation of The Fall of Jerusalem see: