Church of the Eternal God (San Diego) How Do You Keep The Sabbath In Space?

 

The church has always been in a quandary about people who live in the far northern and southern hemispheres when it comes to Sabbath-keeping. From Herbert Armstrong to all of the splinters, the speculations vary by group, with most trying to use the International Dateline as a guidepost. That by itself presents a huge issue because the Jewish nation never has used the international dateline as a standard since it did not exist when Isreal was forming out nations around them.

I remember in the Dayton area people being whipped into a frenzy about the end times when the church speculated that the U.S. and other countries would put COG members on spaceships and shoot them into space in order to get rid of them. Church members wanted to know how they would be able to keep the Sabbath. Can the church get any crazier?

...how then would someone keep the Sabbath in areas of the world where there wouldn’t be a sunset-to-sunset time period during certain times of the year? For example, certain places in Alaska, Norway, Sweden, and other far northern or even southern areas would fall into that category. How is the Sabbath to be kept there? 

 

Bibleask.org has this to say: 

 

“Modern living provides some unique situations where keeping the Sabbath might have some questions. For example, keeping the Sabbath in space and the polar regions of the Earth like Alaska presents unique issues for Sabbath keepers. In the north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle, a single period of daylight can last for a month or more during the summer, and the night lasts for a similar length of time in the winter. 

 

“The Bible says, ‘It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest… from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath (Lev. 23:32).’ This means that the Sabbath should be kept from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset. 

 

“Therefore, in the further regions of the earth and in countries where the sun doesn’t go down like the Polar zone, the timing of the Sabbath should be adjusted to the International Date Line. Example: permitting local rest-day adjustment, And believers may determine the Sabbath by the longitude that are further south or further north depending on which Polar zone they are in. 

 

Therefore, for those who live in Alaska, they can follow the time zone of Portland, Oregon. Thus, Sabbath keepers living in those areas can rely on the cycle of day and night in 24-hour periods. These periods are commonplace in most of the world.” 

 

“Modern living provides some unique situations where keeping the Sabbath might have some questions. For example, keeping the Sabbath in space and the polar regions of the Earth like Alaska presents unique issues for Sabbath keepers. In the north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle, a single period of daylight can last for a month or more during the summer, and the night lasts for a similar length of time in the winter.

They also have this:

A letter was written back in the Worldwide Church of God days asking the question about keeping the Sabbath in the arctic. This is what was answered by the Personal Correspondence Department, Letter L163, which was included in a collection of the letters written under Herbert W. Armstrong, dated August 1, 1988: 

“God has not made it impossible for His people to obey His laws. God’s law is spiritual and is intended for all people, wherever they live on earth. But His law is also practical and workable.

“In the far northern latitudes, the days are divided in the following manner: About the beginning of summer, the sun almost touches the horizon once every 24 hours. When it reaches its lowest point, one day ends and another begins. About the beginning of winter, the sun comes up to, or almost up to, the horizon once every 24 hours. This also divides the days. The effect is that near the beginning of summer the seventh day is from midnight to midnight. Over the next six months, the beginning of the days drops back rapidly until near the beginning of winter the seventh day is from noon until noon. The sun touching, or almost touching, the horizon corresponds to sunset in both cases.

“It should be noted, then, that God revealed the Sabbath commandment to people living in the temperate zone, where He defined the proper observance as being from evening to evening. But in extreme latitudes where farming is not a factor and thus daylight is not associated with work, this rule is not practical or reasonable. Jesus said, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath’ (Mark 2:27). For this reason, the Church has made a judgment based on the spirit of the law. Brethren living in areas crossed by or above the 60th parallel (parts of Alaska, Canada, and Sweden are examples) have been advised that it is proper to begin observance of the Sabbath at 6pm in cases where actual sunset time varies extremely.”

Thankfully Christians are not bound by laws made specifically for the nation of Israel. There is no record of the Sabbath being kept before Moses nor were there any commands to keep it. When the Apostles met in Jerusalem the Sabbath was never imposed upon Gentiles. In fact, Paul rebuked the Galatians for trying to impose the law upon the gentiles in Galatians 4:10 -11.

LCG:Yes, we know this the 500th time we have told you we live in uncertain times, so be prepared for the worst!

Where would the Church of God be without some good scare scenario to whip up the members into a frenzy? Drought, tornadoes, the war in Ukraine, supply chain shortages, batshit crazy Putin, the gays, the Chinese, the gays, Bob Thiel, and sex. The world is filled with evil out there that is trying to destroy the true COG.

While it is never a bad idea to have an emergency kit ready, particularly if you live in earthquake country and tornado alley, you need to understand that the church will not help you. 

Be Prepared! We are living in an increasingly uncertain world today that is seeing serious disruptions in the daily activities of life: from travel to food shortages to soaring prices—and increasing violence in many places. All this points to the need to plan ahead for unexpected emergencies—advice that is also found in the Scriptures. Solomon advised, “Ponder the path of your feet” (Proverbs 4:26). He also observed, “A prudent man foresees evil [danger] and hides himself [he takes precautions], but the simple pass on and are punished [they face consequences]” (Proverbs 22:3). God’s Church has long encouraged members to prepare for unexpected emergencies—keep a supply of bottled water, non-perishable food items, batteries for flashlights and a radio, extra vitamins, prescribed medications, a camp cooking stove or heating device—things that may be needed if public services are disrupted. While we look to God for our ultimate protection, we must also do our part to be prepared. 

 

Have a profitable Sabbath, 

Douglas S. Winnail

COVID Hits LCG Leadership: LCG's Upcoming Council of Elders Meeting Now Online

God's most highly favored church in these perilous end times has been hit by COVID once more. This time it is several Council of Elders members. LCG had planned to have a face-to-face meeting next week with the Council. Now it's back to ZOOM. 

Where was God's protection of these highly favored men? Gone are the days of old in the WCG when church leadership bragged about how its members and ministers were immune to so many health issues that the world suffered with.

The in-person Council of Elders meetings scheduled for this coming week have been postponed due to several recent COVID cases among Council members. We will instead hold online meetings this coming week and plan to have in-person meetings June 20–22. 

Upcoming Council of Elders Meetings

As Mr. Weston mentions in his opening comments, the in-person Council of Elders meetings next week will be held online. Meetings will be conducted on Monday and Tuesday, May 2 and 3. Mr. Weston plans to hear reports from the International Directors as well as guide discussions on needs in the Work, growth in the Church, and other matters. Plans are being made for the next in-person meetings. Your prayers for next week’s meetings would be much appreciated. For your information, here are the current Council members:

Mr. Gerald Weston 

 

Mr. Richard Ames 

 

Dr. Douglas Winnail 

 

Dr. Jeffrey Fall 

 

Mr. Lambert Greer 

 

Mr. Mario Hernandez

Mr. Jonathan McNair 

 

Mr. Rod McNair 

 

Mr. Rand Millich 

 

Mr. Peter Nathan 

 

Mr. Wallace Smith 

 

Mr. Rick Stafford 

 

Mr. John Strain 

 

Mr. Rob Tyler 

 

Mr. Stuart Wachowicz 

 

Mr. Dexter Wakefield

 

Did Church of God International Give Up In Defeat Over Bill Watson?

 

Bill Watson’s Corrupt Leadership

By

Lonnie Hendrix

Apparently, the leadership of the Church of God International has thrown up their hands in defeat and surrendered in the battle that has been raging over that organization’s messaging. As regular readers here know, CGI headquarters has been trying to rein in the overt and highly partisan political messaging of rogue Pastor Bill Watson and his allies for some time. Indeed, the Executive Committee of that church even voted to remove some of Bill Watson’s and Adrian Davis’ controversial messaging on Covid-19 from their platforms! Last month, the church held a ministerial meeting to confront and address the problem, but Bill and his allies were having none of it. Watson insisted that his remarks were completely appropriate – that he was only talking about “policy.”

What makes this writer think that CGI leadership has surrendered to Bill and company? The appearance of Pastor Watson’s latest sermon on their website! In his latest political diatribe, The Leaven of Corrupt Leadership, Watson talks about how the Democrats have caused the soaring inflation currently being experienced by most Americans (no mention of the former Republican Administration’s handling of the pandemic and the current war in Ukraine in this connection). Did you notice that very ACOG theology sounding title for his sermon? I bet some of you are wondering what in the world that has to do with politics. You should never underestimate Bill’s capacity to weave politics into his message!

He begins by stating that Christ’s work isn’t just about salvation and that the first chapter of Acts proves that he was busily telling his disciples about the Kingdom of God before his ascension to heaven! And, yes, in case some of you were wondering, for Bill, the Kingdom of God suggests a political entity or “polity.” Indeed, Bill went on to mock the notion that Christ was dwelling on what he had done for his disciples – making salvation possible for them and the rest of the world. For Bill, the Christian message is inherently political – it’s all about overthrowing this world’s governments and resurrecting the defunct Kingdom of Israel under Christ and his disciples.

From there, Watson launched into another diatribe about how Christ handled the religious leaders of his day – the Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, and lawyers. He talked about the contempt that Christ had for them, and how boldly he challenged their teachings and authority (there is no mention of the fact that he told the people that they occupied Moses’ seat and that they should follow their teachings, not their hypocritical behavior). For Bill, both secular and religious leadership in 2022 are full of corruption and incompetence, and it all tends toward authoritarianism.

Need examples? Bill has got plenty of them. He went on to talk about the Durham investigation of the Clinton campaign in 2016, and the indictment of one of her campaign’s lawyers. Next, he mentioned the controversy surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop. Watson went on to assert that the content of Hunter’s laptop is demonic. He talked about politicians and members of Hollywood’s elite taking advantage of Epstein’s pleasure island. Once again, no mention of the fact that Trump was an associate of Jeffrey Epstein or any of the current investigations surrounding Republican politicians. Are we beginning to discern a pattern in Bill’s remarks?

How on earth does all of this relate to the Days of Unleavened Bread? He says that it’s time for all of us to wake up and not tolerate “the leaven of corrupt leadership” in our society! Bill says that this is all “very appropriate” for him to be talking about because this is “some of the sin we’re swimming in” and “we’re being effected [sic] by it!” Never mind, that these are the very kinds of issues that Bill’s Kingdom of God is supposed to address! For Bill, we (Christians) need to be confronting and addressing this behavior NOW. And, according to Bill, those of us who think it’s inappropriate for Christians to engage in this world’s polity, we are busily burying our heads in the sand. He went on to say that pastors should be condemning abortion, gay marriage, and gender confusion – implying that this should be the focus of Christian pastors, not Christ’s message of salvation!

He said that ignoring all of these reprehensible behaviors is leading to the “reprobate of judgement” – that the ability to discern the difference between “right and wrong is lost in the confusion.” He claimed that ignoring this “leaven” is tantamount to discarding the Bible – the foundation of morality! Of course, Bill means HIS interpretation of what that book defines as right and wrong; and if your understanding differs from his, you’re just plain wrong!

Next, Bill turned his attention to religious leadership, and I must say that I found myself to be in complete agreement with his criticism of the wealth of folks like Kenneth Copeland, Pat Robertson, Benny Hinn, Joel Osteen, and Creflo Dollar. In fairness, unless it has changed, we should also note that Bill Watson is one of the few ministers of CGI who is actually on that organization’s payroll (said to be a modest stipend). He also decried the homosexuality and pedophilia extant within the Catholic priesthood.

Even so, Pastor Watson does not seem to comprehend that God will ultimately address these flagrant departures from the teachings of Jesus Christ – not us. Sure, we should all be spiritually alert and astute enough to not be patronizing these folks, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with pointing out their abuse. However, as in all of the other examples which Bill mentions, God is their ultimate judge – NOT me, you, or Bill!

From there, Bill returned to his theme that pastors have a responsibility to root out all of this leaven and confront it. You see, for Bill, the Church has been commissioned to warn Israel (America) away from their sins. Like the leaders of many of the other ACOGs, he sees himself as the spiritual successor of Herbert and Garner Ted Armstrong. He even concluded his message with a reference to that passage from Isaiah that is very familiar to all Armstrongites – you remember the vision of the “wonderful world tomorrow” with the wolf dwelling with the lamb, the leopard lying down with the kid, the calf and the lion together, and a little child leading them. In other words, the establishment of the physical Kingdom and restoration of Israel is the end game for Bill – not the salvation of humankind.

Finally, although Pastor Watson did reference Christ’s remarks about servant leadership found in the twentieth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, one can’t help but suspect that Tyler’s recent attempts to rein in his messaging were uppermost in his mind. In that passage, we read that Christ told his disciples: “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Verses 25-28) For Bill, the clear implication is that the leavened leadership of the CGI shouldn’t be trying to shape his message or use their leverage to prevent him from talking about political topics!

And by publishing his sermon on their platform, we have to conclude that CGI’s leadership has ceded this ground to Mr. Watson. Bill should be allowed to preach his political message and warn Israel, and everybody in CGI should get on his boat! Never mind that CGI’s has clearly stated on their website that “Our mission is to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world (Matthew 28:19).” – [See their Mission Statement] Never mind that their “Statement of Beliefs” contains this bullet point: “The gospel is the message preached by Christ and by His church about God’s coming Kingdom, the restoration of His government on earth, and how mankind can enter that Kingdom and government. It includes the message of what Jesus has done, is doing, and shall do—and ultimately is the message of the entire Old and New Testaments. The primary purpose and commission of the church is to ‘Go ye therefore, and teach [make disciples of] all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.’” I guess they’ve decided that since Bill is preaching part of the gospel (as they define it) that that is good enough!

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