Crazy About Christmas

My heart is racing. My palms are sweating. This is way more intimidating than any public speaking assignment I've ever had. I don't think I've been this nervous since childbirth.

What am I doing? Making plans to attend my first Christmas Eve service since leaving the Churches of God. 

Whether you've been out of the COGs for a while and wonder what's the big deal, or are in the COGs and are disgusted by the previous sentence, I am pretty sure almost every reader out there is silently wondering, "Are you crazy?". 

Yes. Absolutely. Making peace with decades of COG programming and learning to see Christianity through a new lens is driving me totally mad, especially this time of year. Ironically, several friends and family members who ridiculed my decision to leave the COGs hinted that a desire to fit in during Christmas factored into my thinking. 

Nothing could be further from the truth. I don't fit in, and, frankly, I just wish December were over. This first Christmas season out of the COGs has caused me more anxiety than my family and friends will ever know. They would say it is because, deep down, I know Christmas is wrong. I would counter that it's the stress of coming face-to-face with decades of programming and cognitive dissonance about Jesus Christ in the COGs.

I've heard the first Christmas sermons and sang the first carols of my life in the last few weeks. You know what's been unbiblical about them? 

Nothing. 

The worst I can say about my church experience so far is that I'm not a fan of all the Christmas trees, although many claim that the symbolism has its roots in Christianity, not paganism. And, to be totally Biblically accurate, they need to remove the wise men from nativity depictions and songs, since they didn't arrive on scene until much later. But I don't expect evangelicals will scrub their cherished music any more than the COGs will eliminate their teachings on the modern identity of the tribes of Israel, even though genetic research has totally debunked the theory. To each his own spurious tradition, I guess.

A funny little story about altering songs. We were singing a Christmas hymn at church the other week about the angels who sang over Bethlehem, and I couldn't shake the feeling that I already knew the melody. Turns out that UCG borrowed the tune and completely rewrote the lyrics. If you're curious and have a UCG hymnal, turn to hymn 161, "From the Realms of Unseen Glory,", then look up "Angels from the Realms of Glory" on YouTube. It's the same, note for note. I've known the COGs to change a few words from time to time, but never an entire song. I thought it was wrong to Christianize anything with potentially pagan roots! Especially anything to do with Christmas. But I digress.

Every COG article criticizing Christmas focuses heavily on the holiday's materialism and on parents who lie to their children about Santa. Well, there has been no mention of Santa at my church. I'm not saying there aren't parents there who perpetuate the myth, but the church certainly isn't propping it up. Materialism has been discouraged from the pulpit, unlike at the Feast of Tabernacles. And increased discussion of the Biblically factual account of Jesus Christ's birth has not distracted from His death. Every message leads back to the sacrifice He made for each and every one of us.

But the Bible doesn't tell us to celebrate Christ's birth, you say. Well, no one would need to tell you to celebrate if you won the lottery. Receiving the gift of eternal life by grace through faith in Jesus is much, much better than winning the lottery, and the Bible does tell us to give thanks for that (1 Corinthians 15:57). There cannot be a death of our Savior without His corresponding birth. 

And it's not like the COGs don't have extra-biblical traditions. I'll bypass discussion of the man-made practice of taking up an offering on all seven holy days (instead of three times a year as the Bible states) in favor of something a little more touchy-feely. Where is the Blessing of Little Children mentioned in the Bible? It's loosely based on the scriptural account where parents brought their children to Jesus, but Mark 10 doesn't mention a date or occasion on which children should be blessed. The COGs have established this tradition on the second Sabbath after the end of the Feast of Tabernacles (except for the those COG groups that hold their blessing during the Feast so rogue grandparents can't bring non-member grandkids). Church leaders have done nothing wrong in creating this man-made tradition. Besides, of course, the COG leaders who have used it to further divide families, an increasing by-product of life in this religious community. Their actions are shameful.

But blessing children is not a man-made worship tradition, you say. Ok, what about holding opening night church services at the Feast of Tabernacles? That's a worship tradition. As are the multiple services some COG groups hold on other annual holy days. Where is that mentioned in the Bible? Only one holy convocation is prescribed per sunset-to-sunset time period. No extra worshiping God beyond what Sinai commands, or you are in big trouble! 

I've always wondered how the Jews got a pass for creating worship traditions at Hanukkah since it's nowhere to be found in the law. COG pastors have told me Hanukkah is kosher for Christians (pun intended), yet it's not commanded anywhere in the Bible. Still, we know Jesus was at the temple during the Feast of the Dedication, another name for Hanukkah (John 10:22-23). If extra-biblical traditions are wrong, then Jesus should have been nowhere near the temple at that time. Well duh, you say. The Jews created the celebration to commemorate a miracle God performed for His people centuries earlier. 

Ahem. Was Jesus' conception and birth a miracle that would bring great joy to all people (Luke 2:10-11)? Has there been any greater miracle in the history of, well, history? And Who do you think put Him there? If that wasn't God's intervention in human affairs, then I don't know what is. 

I suspect the main reason we in the COGs rarely discuss Jesus Christ's birth, besides anti-Christmas programming, is that He does not play a very prominent role in our theology. Yes, His sacrifice made our forgiveness and salvation possible. But in COG theology, our actions going forward from that initial point of forgiveness are the means by which we maintain our salvation.  As a result, we focus on our works, and Jesus Christ becomes like a spiritual debit card we swipe when we slip up and sin. He becomes the gate code we enter to have our prayers accepted by the Father. We take him off the shelf at Passover, then more or less put Him back and leave Him there until the Feast of Trumpets. This marginalization of Jesus is alarming when you consider He Himself said He was the way, the truth, the life, and the only way to the Father (John 14:6). That He is the door to salvation (John 10:9). The Vine to which we must be actively connected to grow (John 15:5-6). 

In contrast, evangelical Christians believe the Bible teaches salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9). That they are saved by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross (John 19:30, Hebrews 10:10). That the debt of their sin - past, present and future - is cancelled at the moment God justifies them, declaring them righteous in His sight (Colossians 2:13-15). That the righteousness of Jesus Christ is credited to them when they renounce any faith their own goodness and place their full faith for salvation in Jesus (Romans 4:4-5, 2 Corinthians 5:21). Good works and a transformation of the heart should increase as evidence of justification, but this is not linked to our justification, that we might boast (Ephesians 2:9). Understanding the magnitude of our debt that has been forgiven through Jesus Christ's sacrifice naturally results in placing a higher value on the praise and worship of our Savior (Luke 7:47), something the COGs neglect, I fear, to their peril. 

I'm not trying to convince you to keep Christmas. I am only trying to show you that rehearsing a Biblically accurate account of the birth of our Savior is appropriate for Christians. Angels rejoiced on that night, and they had no skin in the game. How much more should we, the redeemed, join the angels and shepherds in praising God and giving thanks that He entered the world?

Uncomfortable with focusing on Jesus' birth in December? I totally understand. I'm not super warm and fuzzy on that point either. Still, people who are a lot smarter than me believe the date has merit. I know it's pretty close to the winter solstice, although it's not on the solstice itself. The COGs have emotionally linked solstice worship to anything that goes on in December and early in January, even though there's only one actual solstice day. If proximity to the solstice taints any gathering where family and friends share meals, fellowship and offer extra praises to God, then the COG splinters have some explaining to do about their various Winter Family Weekends. On the other hand, maybe they've read Romans 14:14 and know that nothing is inherently unclean. Yes, the verses that immediately follow it discuss food, but the ones that precede it specifically mention esteeming specific days.  

If December freaks you out, pick another time to to read about Jesus' birth and give thanks for that miracle. Or don't pick a day at all - instead, do it every day (Romans 14:5-12). Thankfully, our salvation doesn't depend on determining proper dates for Jesus' birth. It doesn't even hinge on whether Pentecost was on Sunday or Monday, or Passover is on the 14th or 15th of Nisan. Good thing, since the Jews have changed their calendar a bit since Sinai. We are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8), not through keeping holy days on the right day, or keeping them at all.

There is no day of the year on which it is inappropriate to read the Bible, praise Jesus Christ, or give thanks for the birth that made His sacrifice possible. It is programming and false guilt, not logic, that make contemplating Christmas so nerve-wracking for me. If God has declared me to be righteous in His sight (Romans 3:21-22), whom shall I fear?  I am grateful beyond words for what Jesus did for me every day of the year, whether that day is February 21, July 18 or December 25, and there is no wrong day to express that. 

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It is important that you understand; Everything on this blog is based on the current understanding of each author. Never take anyone's word for it, always prove it for yourself, it is your responsibility. You cannot ride someone else's coattail into the Kingdom. ; ) Acts 17:11
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Gracefully Free!

Here is a heart-warming story from a friend of ours here at ABD; this person goes by the name Gracefully Free. In an effort to reach out to those who are in need (believe me, we here at ABD understand what an emotional roller-coaster ride you are going through when you leave Armstrongism and our hearts go out to you), when we can we would like to share the stories of the people we have met who have stepped into the New Covenant. We've already shared our own stories, which you will find links to on the Categories page. Hopefully someone out there will be able to relate, and will find strength and peace in these stories.
And we just want to add - praise God you're free, Gracefully!

My story is not all that different than others. My mother died when I was young and my relationship with my father was never a close one and needless to say, his behavior made my ability to love and acknowledge love (by men in particular) less than optimum. But on the positive side, I grew up with siblings that have always been supportive and loving. I am very thankful for my brothers and sisters. I have decided long ago that I am not going to place blame on anyone other than myself for my mistakes and sins, and oh are there many! It would be very easy to say that I've done bad things because of how I was raised, because of my father's actions or because of the church I was raised in. But ultimately, it comes down to me being weak...full of pride...sinful, yes- just a woman in need of God's grace.

As far as having a relationship with God while growing up? It was nonexistent. Yes, I knew of God, but I did not have a real relationship with Him until literally just a few months ago, despite reading the bible and going to church all my life. The church I attended, along with my family, was by no means traditional. Most of the emphasis was placed on keeping the laws and holy days of the old testament while prohibiting any association with traditional holidays and observances, such as Christmas and Easter. Yes, the new testament was included in their teaching, but the belief was that the new testament and Jesus Christ came so that we can be forgiven when we mess up in regards to trying to observe the old testament laws, because as we all know, we're only human and we're most definitely going to mess up and sin. I grew up observing the 7th day Sabbath. But what's interesting is that even though we said we observed the Sabbath, it was not kept the way the Hebrews did in bible, it was kept the way Herbert W. Armstrong interpreted it to be kept and that goes along with all the teachings we were being taught. I've recently been learning that most of those beliefs were actually made up by Herbert W. Armstrong as his interpretation of scripture, as well as a combination of Seventh-day Adventism, Jehovah Witness and Mormon influences. The beliefs were not from or of God and certainly did not follow what the bible teaches. My belief system was pharisaical to say the least. I never really shared my beliefs with anyone, because of my fear of being made fun of when I was younger. Then, as I grew into an adult, I actually pitied people outside of the church because they didn't know the "biblical truths" that we knew, they weren't special like we were. We were led to believe we were a chosen people who were the only ones to know God's truth, we were His saints. I had no love for others, for myself, or for God and ultimately, I walked away from it all.

I ran as fast as I could in the opposite direction. I didn't want anything to do with God. To me, God represented nothing but rules, laws and fear. So, I thought by going in the opposite direction of ALL religion, I would be able to be free of the fear, I thought I would be free to live a good life without God in the way. I was going to finally have fun!

So after a few years of trying to run away and do my own thing, I knew something was missing. Many times, I thought of going back. It was what I knew and understood, but something held me back from actually stepping foot back in that church. I felt myself falling into a deep depression over the confusion I was going through. I had a hard time finding a reason to keep going. I knew my health was not good, I received a diagnosis of having an autoimmune disease (possibly lupus) and I just wanted to let go of everything. My physical body was run down and tired of the battle. I thought to myself, well "this is not the good life I anticipated." My family was not aware of my feelings for the most part, there were a few cries for help, but mostly, I tried to keep my weaknesses hidden. Even my husband was not aware of my inner distress. Looking back, I realize that my spiritual turmoil was causing my body to fall apart. I'm an RN and tend to view health with a more medical perspective, but I can say in my case, lack of God in my life was slowly killing me.

I knew something had to change or my life would end, both physically and spiritually. I began to read and study like my life depended on it (which it did). And I truly believe that my broken self cried out for a lifeline and God heard my silent prayers for help. In my darkness, my heart knew I needed God in my life. I had a God shaped hole in me. It came down to me believing that our great God has a great love for me. For me, a sinner! Who would have thought it was possible? For Him being as magnificent as He is.... to love little ol' me! What was so hard to believe before suddenly came into clear focus. God heard me and had compassion on me. I finally believed Him and gave my struggles over to Him. I am the adopted daughter of the most high King, it exhilarated me and filled me with wonder and the desire to seek Him in all aspects of my life. I decided I was no longer going to TRY to love Him out of fear. I love Him because He loved me first, after all, He died for me.

I read an analogy recently regarding someone trying to keep the old testament laws. Imagine Jesus Christ is sitting in a boat and we're in the water, picture the water as being the law. We're in the water trying to stay afloat, swimming, treading water, eventually tiring to the point where we're about to drown. Now imagine Christ pulling us into the boat with him, safe. Why would we want to jump back into the water? But that's what we're doing by trying to keep laws and observances that were established before Christ came to save us.

This last Sunday, at the awesome church I now attend, people got up with cardboard testimonies. It was very moving and inspiring to see how God has transformed people's lives. Some may say that God does not perform miracles today and I say they're wrong. There has been a miracle in my life, which is the change of my heart. It has not come from my doing, I give all credit to Him. I was lost, but am now found. I was initially shocked at the degree that I've found myself searching and reaching for Him. I'm completely thirsty for His ways. He is now and will forever be my compass. I find myself running towards Him in all that I do, the bible is my guidebook. I want nothing more than to live my life according to His desire. I know without a doubt that the Holy Spirit is working within me and helping me, guiding me. His love for us (me) is perfect and beautiful. I am sharing my story because I want others to know of Him and His great love as well. It's completely life changing. I want to shout from the rooftops how amazing it is.

I want to thank those who have been supportive of me throughout these last few years. First and foremost, My husband, who must have seen something good in me despite my inability to see it. I know he's been pulling for me through his own prayers for quite a while. He remained strong and convicted in his faith while I struggled with doubts and fears. I want to thank the pastors and staff at [the community church were I attend], without a doubt, they are being used by God to spread His gospel through teachings that are sound and biblical. I want to thank [a very close friend], I shared my story and tears with her a few weeks ago, I believe that telling her and others my past is helping me to heal. And I would also like to thank my brothers and sisters, not all of them will be able to see this note because I do not wish to offend them (since they're still attending the church I grew up in). Every single one of them have beautiful hearts and have taught me that family really does stick together. Someday, I hope we're all able to celebrate God's love together. I also need to mention a certain source in my thanks that has been a huge help through my journey of learning the truth about my past beliefs. The website/blog is called "AS BEREANS DID" The writers on this site are insightful and are a huge support for those leaving this particular religion- (any of the Church of God organizations/splinters). Tons of information, I have visited the site almost daily for the past month.

Happy Easter everyone!

One of my favorite songs these days is by Francesca Battistelli, called Beautiful, Beautiful. The words depict my thoughts and feelings almost exactly.

Don’t know how it is You looked at me
And saw the person that I could be
Awakening my heart
Breaking through the dark
Suddenly Your grace

(Chorus)
Like sunlight burning at midnight
Making my life something so
Beautiful, beautiful
Mercy reaching to save me
All that I need
You are so
Beautiful, beautiful

Now there’s a joy inside I can’t contain
But even perfect days can end in rain
And though it’s pouring down
I see You through the clouds
Shining on my face

(Chorus)

I have come undone
But I have just begun
Changing by Your grace

How Is The Sabbath Fulfilled?

Very high on the list of things that trips up people and directs them towards law-keeping, I would say, is a deep misunderstanding of the 4th Commandment.

Herbert Armstrong used to say the only Commandment the world has a problem with is the 4th. I say the only Commandment Herbert Armstrong had a problem with is the 4th.

If all the law was magnified, then the 4th Commandment is no exception. Even so, Sabbatarians treat it as an exception. I would like to go into this 4th Commandment and explore how it was magnified.

But I'm going to do that in a round-about way. I'm going to build a case. If you will be so kind to bear with my rambling, we will get there together eventually.

God prophesied that Old Covenant would not be kept (DEU. 31: 16-22). He knew the people of the Covenant would fail to keep their side of the bargain. I would go so far as to say that in our time the Old Covenant cannot be kept by man... and God knew it before He instituted it. He designed it that way.

See how Hebrews says it was only a shadow of things to come (HEB. 10: 1); even the Sabbath and Holy days were but shadows of things to come (COL. 2: 16-17). See how II COR. 3: 7-8 claims the glory of the Old Covenant was passing away even as Moses descended Mt. Sinai with the tablets in hand. See how even Deuteronomy 30: 1-6 preaches the New Covenant while it prophecies the failure of the Old. See how even Genesis itself is packed with prophecies of Christ, starting with 3: 15. None of these things came as a surprise to God. The Old was destined to fail - it was designed to be temporary!

We are always taught, "the Lord changes not, and therefore the law is not changed." But here's the thing about that.... since the Lord's plan was the New Covenant all along, it isn't the Old law that changes not. It's God who changes now. One reason why people think the law is unchanged is because they perceive it to have come first. But that is simply not the case, as we can see God's intention all along was the New Covenant.

To follow up on a few details in this regard, if the Lord changes not, then the Logos could not divest Himself of divine privilege and possession of all things, change to become a man with no place to rest His head, change to become a dead man, and finally change to become a resurrected man who now possesses all things through inheritance. Even if you don't believe Jesus is the Logos and eternally existed, the Father was once not a Father and now has Jesus as His only begotten Son. But even still this is not really a direct answer to how the Lord changes not. Let's look at what is.

Malachi 3: 6 actually says this, "For I am the LORD, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob." This verse has been abducted from its context and abused by many groups. It regards the hope of the Jews, not some eternal continuation of the Old Covenant law.
It is evident that it is the Lord's eternal nature that does not change. And by that I mean His eternal loving nature which includes His patience. Read Malachi 3: 1-6, these are verses about the coming of the Messiah. Who could stand His refinement? We know now the only ones who could were the ones who poured out their trust into Jesus the Christ. Yet even those Jews who rejected Him will not be utterly consumed. As we see to this day there are still Jews; religious and racial. There is still immense love from God towards the Jews. There is still coming much more prophetically to be fulfilled regarding the Jews. Since we have these promises from Him, and since He is love and His patience is beyond our understanding, God will not change His mind regarding the Jews, He will never relent, therefore they are not altogether consumed, nor will they ever be. This is the meaning of Malachi 3: 6 - in its proper context!

Perhaps the unchanging nature of God is not what we should focus on right now. Perhaps I should address this supposed unchanging nature of the law instead. I have heard from so very many seventh-day Sabbath keepers that the God's law is unchanging. Let's focus on that a bit.

If the law is unchanging, what about circumcision? Circumcision is the gateway to entering into the Covenant and thus was mandatory before entering into the law. Circumcision was given to Abraham (GEN. 17: 10) four hundred and thirty years before the law was given to Moses (GAL. 3: 17), Paul even had Timothy circumcised to avoid offending the Jewish converts (ACT. 16: 3), yet circumcision is not at all commanded for us, especially the Gentile converts (ROM. 2: 28-29; ROM. 4: 9-12; GAL. 5: 2-6; GAL. 6: 12-15). This is but one example yet it proves the law is changeable after all and has been changed.

"But the 10 Commandments are different. The Sabbath was from creation, and it also appears in prophecy," I am told. Thus, all Armstrongists that I speak with will have qualified what law they believe by saying something like, "At least we should be keeping the 10 Commandments."
I remind the reader that meats laws, tithes, and Holy Days are not of the 10 Commandments. So, even if the weekly Sabbath law was from creation - which it is not - none of those other things are implied. And thus, all Armstrongists that I speak with then begin once again to expand upon the law beyond the 10 Commandments to include these other items, thus proving statements like "At least we should be keeping the 10 Commandments" carry no weight even within Armstrongism.
The inconsistency in Armstrongism never ceases to amaze me.

Let's get a real good look at the root argument that if something predates the Exodus then it is in force today. Let's look at animal sacrifice.

God "sacrificed" a couple of animals to make clothes for Adam and Eve (GEN. 3: 21). This foreshadowed the blood of animals being unable to properly cover mankind's sin. Abel sacrificed animals (GEN. 4: 4; HEB. 11: 4). Noah sacrificed animals (GEN. 8: 20). Abraham sacrificed animals (GEN. 22: 13). Israel practiced animal sacrifice prior to the Exodus (EXO. 5: 3). Ergo, animal sacrifice was from the beginning. But is it still commanded today? No.
Now, let’s go farther.

Read Ezekiel 40-46 and see the description of a future temple in prophecy. See all of the places where animal sacrifice, and sacrifices of other kinds, will again occur. I’ll give you a few specific verses (EZE. 40: 38-43; EZE. 44: 10-11, 30; EZE. 46: 19-24). According to Armstrongist interpretation of prophecy, animal sacrifice has a place in out future. But is animal sacrifice commanded for us today? No.

What have we demonstrated, then? If something predates the Exodus, even if it also appears in prophecy, it does not necessarily mean it is in force for us today. And therefore that root argument is wiped out. To say, "the Sabbath was from the beginning" (even though it was not) proves nothing.

We are always taught Jesus promised us the law cannot change until the New Heaven and New Earth. We got that from misreading two verses:

(MATT. 5: 17-18) 17 Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

Now, what do these verses say? "One jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled." Right? Nothing may change from the law until all are fulfilled, right? Not so much as one jot or tittle, not one iota or keraia; not the slightest stroke of the pen. Right?

Here is where we missed the mark: "till heaven and earth pass away." We concluded that this is not an idiomatic expression at all, but a direct statement of time - in other words, we said, "Heaven and Earth have not passed, so the law is not fulfilled." We followed that up with, "Tithing, meats laws, the 10 Commandments, and the Holy Days will not be changed in the least until the New Heaven and the New Earth." But it doesn't say just those things, it says not one jot or one tittle of the entire law. Not one thing! Now look:

(HEB. 7: 12) For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.

A change in the law? But I was under the impression that not one jot or tittle could in any way pass from the law. Not one jot or one tittle! 

But the law was changed, ergo, all must already be fulfilled. And most assuredly, if all was not fulfilled, not one jot or one tittle would in any way be changed in the law until literally Heaven and Earth pass away. But there it is, right there in Hebrews 7: 12. There is no other conclusion possible but that all were fulfilled - even the laws regarding meats, tithes, Holy Days, and the 10 Commandments... including the weekly Sabbath.

We do not have the luxury of saying "the law was changed," and also saying "the law was not changed!" If the law was not changed, then Jesus Christ is not our High Priest and we are still dead in our sins. Then the laws mandating three pilgrimages to the place where the Lord places His name are still 100% binding, as is building booths at the Feast of Booths (though few reading this, who bound themselves to the law, have ever kept these mandates.) Also, the laws regarding animal sacrifices and circumcision are still binding. As well as other such laws, like cleanliness regulations, New Moons, land Sabbaths, Jubilee Years, separation of Jew and Gentile, Levitical and Aaronic Priesthoods and the Temple regulations, even not suffering a witch to live - all 613 laws in the Torah - are still very much binding.
If the law was not changed, then our righteousness is in our own efforts at law-keeping and not in the righteousness of Christ attributed to us by faith, the law is still our only route to a relationship with God which defies Christ's as that route, and thus we have all fallen from grace and made His sacrifice of no effect!

God forbid!!

We are always taught Jesus only came to preach against the man-made additions to the law - in other words, we said He came to remove the Talmud - but by this point you should be abundantly aware that Jesus changed much more than just the Talmud. Circumcision is not Talmud. The Levitical Priesthood is not Talmud. Tearing down the wall of separation between Jew and Gentile is not Talmud.
Please look with me at the whole evidence.

The people to whom the law was given didn't keep it in the raw state when it was first given, and Saul was blameless in the keeping of it when towards the end they had heaped and piled regulation upon regulation onto it - yet neither way was acceptable to God. Why didn't God correct people immediately? Ah!

Because they were doing what He intended them to do all along.

And He intended them to fail so that we could learn a lesson that no man can possibly match God's righteousness, so that in the failure of the Old Covenant people others could be grafted in (ROM. 11: 18-24), to show a pattern for all to follow (I TIM. 1: 16), so that no man could boast in His presence except about Christ (ROM. 4: 2; EPH. 2: 9; GAL. 6: 14), and so that He could have mercy on us all (ROM. 11: 30-32; TIT. 2: 14; I TIM. 4: 10) according to the promise given to Abraham (ROM. 4: 16) that we inherit through faith in Christ (HEB. 6: 13-18; GAL. 3: 14, 22; EPH. 3: 6; 2 TIM. 1: 1).

The Jews were not destroyed in spite of the law because the Lord changes not (MAL. 3: 6). The Gentiles are saved apart from the law because law cannot nullify the promise (GAL. 3: 17-19), as the promise is not of the law (ROM. 4: 13-16).

You see, the New Covenant was always intended. In order to understand anything at all we must first and foremost realize that this is all for God's glory (ROM. 11: 36). Not ours! And this leads us farther into the substance of how the Sabbath was fulfilled.

Ask yourself, what is the substance that cast the Sabbath shadow (COL. 2: 16-17)? Jesus Christ! And He has been glorified, and He will glorify Himself again. The whole law and prophets were fulfilled in Christ Jesus!

I still believe what I wrote in an earlier post titled "Common Legalist Arguments part IV":

(MATT. 17: 1-8) 1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. 4 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.” 8 When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

Why do I quote these verses? Well, you may not have had these verses explained to you in quite this way before (and why would you; these verses were always read as part of a prescribed manner of prophetic interpretation as taught by HWA), but in tradition, Moses represents the law and Elijah represents the prophets. Here we have a vision of Jesus being glorified greatly beyond the law and the prophets. Our Lord speaks with them, and the scene is covered up by a cloud. From that cloud comes a powerful and commanding voice from the Father who says, "This is My beloved Son... Hear Him!" Not, "Hear the law". Not, "Hear the prophets". But hear Christ! When the cloud dissipated, there was Jesus standing alone; the law and the prophets gone. They were a shadow of Him. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets!

He filled the law and the prophets up to the full. Even the Sabbath.

(MATT. 11: 28-29) 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

(COL. 2: 10) and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

To further fill in how the weekly Sabbath was magnified, let us read a quote from Justin Martyr's Dialogue with Trypho [emphasis mine]:

“The new law requires you to keep perpetual sabbath, and you [Jews], because you are idle for one day, suppose you are pious, not discerning why this has been commanded you: and if you eat unleavened bread, you say the will of God has been fulfilled. The Lord our God does not take pleasure in such observances: if there is any perjured person or a thief among you, let him cease to be so; if any adulterer, let him repent; then he has kept the sweet and true sabbaths of God.”

From the very beginning this was understood, but we have lost it because of error stemming from lack of faith. Don't you see what Jesus did? Don't you see how He fulfills the weekly Sabbath of temporary physical rest (if physical exercise avails only a little, then what of physical rest?) with a perpetual Sabbath of true, lasting, beneficial spiritual rest?
He finished the work of salvation, then He sat down [on His throne].
He sat down.
We can sit down with Him. We can rest in Him from working to earn salvation.

The argument that the weekly Sabbath was from creation is false. But on the seventh day there was a rest, hallowed and sanctified, and until sin entered in that rest was perpetual! If Jesus brought us back to creation, it was not to the weekly Sabbath that we come, but to a perpetual rest - with and in Him -- by faith.

Genesis 1 ends like this: "So the evening and the morning were the sixth day." But Genesis 2 does not! There is no such statement for the seventh day. The rest outlasted merely one day of the week. There was no sin yet to rest from, there was no curse of hard labor as of yet to rest from... this is true and perpetual spiritual rest. Man walked with God daily and talked with God and learned from God in beautiful, perpetual communion. Not even clothes separated man from God. It was interrupted by the first Adam, but restored again in the second Adam. Paul confirms this in Romans:

(ROM. 5: 18-21) 18 Therefore, as through one man’s offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. 19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous. 20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

And this is precisely how God knew it would be! These things were finished before the foundation of the world (HEB 4: 3). If we go back to the beginning, we only arrive again at Christ. It was interrupted, but it has again returned full circle to Christ. All things find their fullness in Christ Jesus.

The creation rest, our "Promised Land", remains for us to enter into, as we see in Hebrews 3 & 4. The anonymous author of Hebrews tells us when we should rest:

(HEB. 3: 13) but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

(HEB. 4: 6-7) 6 Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience, 7 again He designates a certain day, saying in David, “Today,” after such a long time, as it has been said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.”

This is the day that the Lord has made (PSA 118: 24). Today! Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Now. Always.

Therefore, Paul says this:

(COL. 2: 16-17) 16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

So, long story short, God planned the New Covenant all along. The seventh day of creation began a perpetual rest in a "Promised Land" paradise of Eden. Man ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, so God implemented a system based on that. He implemented the Old Covenant, a system of discerning good from evil, as a tutor to point to Christ until the time for fulfillment came. He overlooked in times past because it was time to overlook. He was making a point. Christ the Fulfillment had to come before there could be fulfillment. Those things of the Old Covenant were true at that time, but only as true as a shadow is true. So, the prophets of old did not lie when they preached. Each one of them expected a fulfillment, so they did not lie and then learn the truth, rather they spoke as they understood and they knew that things were incomplete. Just as incomplete as expecting a temporary, physical salvation at the time of the first coming is incomplete when compared to the eternal, spiritual salvation we receive through faith in Christ. Just as incomplete as a weekly physical rest is incomplete when compared to a perpetual spiritual rest in Christ. When Christ came, a system based on the Tree of Life was implemented. It was planned this way. And it is all to His glory.

...If you will accept it.

I pray God blesses you with a heart to accept it, and speeds you into His New Covenant in Christ.

In closing, I want to give you a short, real-life story about the difference between grace and the law. This is a true story.

This past weekend at the church I attend, the Pastor brought an older woman and her adult son on stage. She had spent years of her life with kidney disease and had to suffer through dialysis 3 times a week. It is painful. It is repetitive. But when the kidneys cannot filter the blood, there is no alternative; even with dialysis the end is early death. The Pastor asked her to describe the process. She said the day of dialysis she would be exhausted to uselessness. The day after dialysis, she would feel like she was going to be alright. The third day, it started again. But without it she would die painfully.

The Pastor turned to her son. Earlier last year he donated one of his kidneys to his mother so she could live and spend her golden years in hope without dialysis. It was a hard decision. He faced death; he faced complications from the procedure; he faced a change of life from having only one kidney. He did it anyway. She was worth it. No greater love could he find in himself than to give part of his life for the woman that gave him that life. It worked. She no longer needs dialysis. Both of them are now healthy.

The woman, smiling from ear to ear, related how, for the first time in her life, she had the time and energy to go and participate in Christian missionary work. She broke into tears speaking about it. The freedom which that one act of kindness from her son afforded her had changed every single aspect of her life. One donation, once, changed everything and freed her from that repetitive process that could never bring her real health. Her thankfulness was without question.

There was not a dry eye in the audience. The Pastor, barely able to contain his own flood of emotion, turned to the congregation and explained that this is a metaphor for the grace we receive from God's giving of His only begotten Son for us. The Pastor then asked, how can we possibly believe that after all He has done for us, God still demands we return to dialysis [the law]?

He does not.

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It is important that you understand; Everything on this blog is based on the current understanding of each author. Never take anyone's word for it, always prove it for yourself, it is your responsibility. You cannot ride someone else's coattail into the Kingdom.

Acts 17:11

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“Case Dismissed!”

I’m sure everyone has had this pass through their e-mail inbox, but I think it makes clear the simplicity of salvation that legalists have such difficulty grasping. Read it and see if you don’t agree:

After living what I felt was a 'decent' life, my time on earth came to the end.

The first thing I remember is sitting on a bench in the waiting room of what I thought to be a court house.

The doors opened and I was instructed to come in and have a seat by the defense table.

As I looked around I saw the 'prosecutor.'

He was a villainous looking gent who snarled as he stared at me. He definitely was the most evil person I have ever seen.

I sat down and looked to my left and there sat My Attorney, a kind and gentle looking man whose appearance seemed so familiar to me, I felt I knew Him.

The corner door flew open and there appeared the Judge in full flowing robes.

He commanded an awesome presence as He moved across the room I couldn't take my eyes off of Him.

As He took His seat behind the bench, He said, 'Let us begin.'

The prosecutor rose and said,

'My name is Satan and I am here to show you why this woman belongs in hell.'

He proceeded to tell of lies that I told, things that I stole, and In the past when I cheated others Satan told of other horrible Perversions that were once in my life and the more he spoke, the further down in my seat I sank.

I was so embarrassed that I couldn't look at anyone, even my own Attorney, as the Devil told of sins that even I had completely forgotten about.

As upset as I was at Satan for telling all these things about me, I was equally upset at My Attorney who sat there silently not Offering any form of defense at all.

I know I had been guilty of those things, but I had done some good in my life - couldn't that at least equal out part of the harm I'd done?

Satan finished with a fury and said, 'This woman belongs in hell, she is guilty of all that I have charged and there is not a person who can prove otherwise.'

When it was His turn, My Attorney first asked if He might approach the bench. The Judge allowed this over the strong objection of Satan, and beckoned Him to come forward.

As He got up and started walking, I was able to see Him in His full splendor and majesty.

I realized why He seemed so familiar; this was Jesus representing me, my Lord and my Savior. He stopped at the bench and softly said to the Judge, 'Hi, Dad,' and then He turned to address the court.

'Satan was correct in saying that this woman had sinned, I won't deny any of these allegations. And, yes, the wage of sin is death, and this woman deserves to be punished.'

Jesus took a deep breath and turned to His Father with outstretched arms and proclaimed, 'However, I died on the cross so that this person might have eternal life and she has accepted Me as her Savior, so she is Mine.'

My Lord continued with, 'Her name is written in the Book of Life, and no one can snatch her from Me.

Satan still does not understand yet. This woman is not to be given justice, but rather mercy.'

As Jesus sat down,

He quietly paused, looked at His Father and said, 'There is nothing else that needs to be done.'

'I've done it all.'

The Judge lifted His mighty hand and slammed the gavel down. The following words bellowed from His lips..

'This woman is free.'

The penalty for her sins has already been paid in full.

'Case dismissed.'

As my Lord led me away, I could hear Satan ranting and raving, 'I won't give up, I will win the next one.' I asked Jesus as He gave me my instructions where to go next, 'Have you ever lost a case?'

Christ lovingly smiled and said,

'Everyone that has come to Me and asked Me to represent them has received the same verdict as you,

~Paid In Full~

On Bereans & Poem From Ex-Member

I wanted to post, here at ABD, this poem submitted to Mike at Don’t Drink the Flavor Aid (5.6.09), by Kirrily, who recently left Ron Weinland’s organization. I feel this poem can speak on a personal level to those still with Ron, and perhaps give them the strength to allow themselves to ‘dare to question’. Let me, if you will, repeat myself, yet again:

Act 17:11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

More noble character? You mean it’s noble to question the teacher!?! Well, the Bereans questioned Paul every day! They examined the Scriptures every day, to see if what Paul said was true! They weren’t chastised or cursed for this, they weren’t accused of questioning or doubting God… they were praised. Why? - Because it is our responsibility to make sure we have the truth. - Because we cannot ride someone else’s coattail into the kingdom. Of all the people to question… they questioned Paul! Is there someone whom we see as so high on the totem pole, that we dare not question? Even so, one of noble character… questions.

Following is Kirrily’s poem:

Poem to Ron Weinland

Your words full of wisdom
They made perfect sense
The warmth of your smile
The safety in participation with you

Growth in mind, in spirit
The reality of where we were headed
No fear, just anticipation
Our days were full of tomorrow, not today

Our loved ones feared
But we were not diffused
Tomorrow was what mattered
Most friendships passed away
New ones were forged

Our past was what shaped us
Our present was reforming us
Our future was set
If only we did not give up

To conform, to transform
To allow the change, to see the change
Our lives in the present, only to prepare
Prepare for the Kingdom of God

We were fed, we were clothed
Nakedness in mind and spirit was not experienced
Friendship and warmth in preparedness
We were not alone

We had each other
We were prepared, ever learning
Steadfast, immovable in our belief
We were special, we knew what was to come

Arrogance of mind, of attitude
Pride
We did not see it in ourselves, only others
It was all around us, never in us

Looking down upon others
Calling it something else
Knowing ‘The Call’ wasn’t theirs – yet
Hoping that day would come

Their eyes were shut
Ours were open
Their minds were closed
Ours were enlightened

They could not see
We saw clearly
They were in deception
We were in truth

Attitudes shifted, timelines changed
Things were suddenly unclear
Was this still the truth?
Did we fail to see?

We repented, we were wrong of course
We stood firm
We did not give up
We wanted, had to have, total resolve

Time went by
We adjusted our attitude
Looking forever inward
Knowing we must not doubt
Life went on

One day it hit
One day was all it took
To look into the eyes of others
The feeling of superiority suddenly recognized, obviously unfounded
It was shocking to see what we had become

Questions needed to be asked
Questions were not answered
We were told we could not longer see
That God was no longer with us

Friendships forged through separation from the world
Ended, were broken
No longer part of the truth, we were told
Suddenly, we were alone

We had the truth, we would not let go
It was only our leader
It was only our belief
He was not who he said he was

Looking for a teacher
Looking for food, finding none
The mess that was WCG
So many daughters, so who is really the whore?

The 10 is what we have now
The basic, the unchanging, Gods Law
The truth is what we seek
The truth is still not found

Time passed
Healing was slow
Time to recover
Time to awaken

The pain, the agony
True humbling took place
Brought to nought
The foundation was all that remained

A counterfeit is barely recognized from the true
First you must know what is true
Who is true
By what they say coming to pass, not failing
Twice

Acknowledging we believed a lie
Believed a witness, a prophet
Consumed with his own truth
A truth he believed was given, he was never giving up

A witness, a prophet
Believing his own self
Believing what was ‘given’
Until the end

We wish him no harm, no foul
Only wishing, hoping that no others are hurt
The hurt we carry with us,
The hurt we can hardly bear

What we saw in him as humility, became arrogance
What we saw as steadfast, became delusion
What we saw as the truth, was actually his own truth
What we saw as belonging, was actually being lost

Cursing who he believes as being the blind
To death
The mockers, the deceived
From his point of view, are not they too – potential Children of God under PKG?
Yet – they are cursed to die

True humility
Is admitting when you are wrong
Those of us who left, were humbled, we admitted our error
Those who remain, ignore their pride
Its harder to leave, than to stay
It’s harder to admit you are wrong, than stay in deception

We were taught pride is our ultimate enemy
We thought pride was far from us
Pride in fact, was what we lived, what we were, what we became
Leaving brought us true humility
True knowledge of Pride

Admission of being wrong
Not easy, not safe
Pride is what prevents
Acknowledgment of being wrong.

Pride is Ronald Weinland
We see you
We still love you
Just stop – let the people go

You are not the truth
You do not have the truth
You are wrong
You are false

The pain you have caused was not intentional
The agony you yourself bear is great
Just acknowledge you’re wrong
Don’t let your pride win.

Pride is what you are
Pride is what you became
Pride is you’re here and now
It will not be allowed to be your future

The End is nigh
That, we still believe
But yours must be closer

We forgive you
But this lie can not continue

Kirrily
May 6, 2009

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It is important that you understand; Everything on this blog is based on the current understanding of each author. Never take anyone's word for it, always prove it for yourself, it is your responsibility. You cannot ride someone else's coattail into the Kingdom.

Acts 17:11

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Poison Doctrine: the Dichotomy of Armstrongism

A philosophical set of ideas may appear incompatible with the resulting behavior at first glance. This is the idea I want to explore with a personal story that occurred after I was grown, and that, to be fully understood would need detailed dissection of the background.

It will have to suffice that I was grown, but a non-functioning member of society. The repetitive process over so many years of ingraining law, loyalty and the lines of authority of church, minister and mother (whom I’ll call RPS) into my head, was deeper than I could imagine. RPS’s techniques were encapsulated in humiliation and pain via the whipping of the bear ass of the child bent over a bed, in which crying would add more lashes until crying ceased; and the sessions would continue until all negative facial expressions were gone, and a state of complete submission and acceptance of guilt was achieved. My Dad said she was better at brainwashing than the Red Chinese. See; Thought Reform (Thanks to Weinland Watch). He was right; To this day, when I feel guilty about something, the warm sensation of the post beating endorphins clearly manifests itself in the appropriate location.

RPS was first married to RF; whom she had returned to, because church doctrine didn’t recognize the divorce, nor did it recognize her second marriage to my father. I was declared illegitimate, and accepted the classification as part of my identity, which was shame personified. RF had a daughter; D around my age from another relationship, and she had two children while yet in her teens. RPS considered D to be a lower form of life than a maggot, but always smiled and spoke sweetly to D’s face. RPS gained D’s confidence, and when D decided to spend some time with her children’s father to try to renew their relationship, RPS volunteered to take the kids for a few months but wanted D to sign a document that gave her temporary legal custody. After D left, RPS moved to another state for a number of years, and sent word to D that she had actually signed away her parental rights, period. According to RPS, D had huffed glue while pregnant with the second child (a boy I’ll call T) allegedly resulting in behavior abnormalities, but distrust of authorities wouldn’t allow her to seek any professional help.

The whole point of taking the kids was to ‘save’ them from the ‘evil druggy’; but RPS only understood the carrot and stick method of child rearing, and she would turn up the heat by degrees as she sensed rebellion. The older child (a girl) was sensitive and submissive so her treatment was not harsh, but RPS claimed the boy was obstinate and incorrigible. His self-professed ‘savior’ was determined to eradicate the roots of ill behavior; I learned to what degree RPS would go, when she returned approximately 6 yrs. later.

I had been floating between places I could crash, which included my grandmother’s; GM. I was taking another shot at school, and GM needing someone to be with her, had RPS move in. One would almost not know that T (now 8 yrs. old) was there. Except for periodical screaming and butt beating sessions, he’d be virtually invisible except on Sabbath, where he sat quietly, and was always known as a remarkably “good little boy.”

At home, RPS would keep T seated behind a table with chairs arranged in a semi circle around him to hang blankets over to keep him isolated; he would bite his finger nails down to the quick, and gnaw holes in the blankets, on bits of linoleum, molding, or anything else he could lay his hands on. T would find ingenuous ways of acquiring little tidbits of things he’d hide like inmates in prison hide their contraband, which showed evidence of intelligence incompatible with the kind of brain damage we were told he had. He would never cry when he got beat, his face would just grimace in a fashion that RPS took as defiance, and would net him more of the same. As I said, she would work on a child, until she extinguished any sign of defiance, but it seemed as if this kid was beyond breaking. I was all too familiar with what was happening to him, and I was having a running head-trip because of all the conflict it was stirring up. Just trying to recognize how wrong this was didn’t come easy. I had been in total denial of what had happened to me as a child, but now I was face to face with the evidence. I always accepted that I was punished because I deserved it. But I didn’t see how this kid did anything to warrant what he was getting.

I got an opportunity to make a few dollars driving a classic car to the port at Baltimore for shipment to Europe, but before I left, RPS asked me to help put together a storage closet with a bed on top, with the dimensions 4x4x7. I did what she asked. One entire side was open when I left for the East coast, but when I returned, it had been ply wooded closed, and T was now kept inside. I was told that he was destroying things in the house, and defecating in odd places. This was turning up the heat in my head, but what really woke me up was my future wife’s sister, JD, who was over for some reason when T was having a tantrum. No crying, just insane screaming. RPS yelled at me, “Grab him.” Instinctively, I immediately obeyed, as I always had, and she wailed the holy hell out of him. JD almost came unglued after we walked outside to go where we had been going before this incident, and in the car she demanded an explanation of how I could do such a thing, and I could only shake my head and say,”I don’t know.”

I was trying to fix myself, and deal with my own educational deficiencies. When I had been making progress in the past, it seemed that RPS would pull some stunt in her eternal battle with the ‘evil world,’ and I would be left emotionally messed up, and unable to deal with school work, and this was repeating itself. Now she was in control of the roof over my head, and I had no job qualifications; but I could no longer stand by and do nothing, so I made an appointment to see the minister; MD. I described to him everything that was happening, and when I had finished, I sat their expecting some guidance, but got only silence. After an uncomfortably long pause MD opened up both barrels, and among the crap he unloaded on me was the direct order to cease and desist bad mouthing my mother, and that he didn’t want to hear any echo of this coming back to him from any source.

MD had already put the screws to me. He had me reporting back to him on a specific quota of prayer, fasting and bible study as well as forced membership in spokesmen’s club. He had told me in no uncertain terms that when he spoke, I was to regard it as being spoken by Almighty God, so I complied, and more time passed. I was fighting depression of an order that barely allowed me to get through a day, and to try to ignore this barbarity was becoming impossible, so I fixed up a little room in the rafters of JD’s mother’s garage. If MD found out, the crap would hit the fan, so I had to park blocks away, and walk in by the cover of darkness.

So I began disobeying the minister, but it was either that or continue to see what was too sick to witness. Now I would just hide from it, and pretend it wasn’t happening. I was trying to deal with the authority issue, and my bible studies became self defense, as well as the start of a crack in my belief in Armstrongism. For the first time in my life, I began to think for myself, and to silence the endless loops of paranoiac sound-bites that had been infesting my brain. One act of disobedience, led to two which led to thinking that maybe the authorities weren’t synonymous with Satan, and maybe I should bite the bullet and finally do something about this abomination that was taking place.

I called CPS (Child Protective Services) and set up a meeting at a local fast food joint and spilled my guts, but I tried to extract, from the agent, a guarantee that they would simply go in and take the kids. The agent refused, and I chickened out, and told him I’d get back to him. Fortunately he took down my license plate number and soon after, they acted.

I wasn’t there, but I heard later that they came in with squad cars that blocked off every street for two blocks around, and went into the house in force and with weapons. But for some reason, they didn’t arrest RPS. They took photographs and statements and took the kids. There was no further action for several months.

Feast time came. I managed to get out of going, and I was asked to house sit at my Grandmother’s. No one seemed to guess that I had anything to do with what happened, so I was not yet the enemy. I continued to attend my classes, and the tension subsided to a reasonable degree. I came home one day to a circus in the front yard. I got out of my car, and had camera lenses and microphones shoved in my face, with a harangue of questions coming at me from all sides. They kept talking about a coffin sized box, and 6 or so years of imprisonment of a child. I told them there was no coffin sized box, but I had built a storage closet with a bed on top, and I didn’t know about six years of imprisonment.

The truth was bad enough, but these people were not even trying to be accurate. I was totally unprepared, and tired after a long day. I sat down on the porch and wiped my hand across my forehead and someone snapped a picture that, the next day, was on the front page of the local newspaper, and to my understanding was picked up by wire services and went worldwide. It was in papers in New York to various papers in Australia and Europe. The headline; “Son of women who kept a boy in a box defends mother.” When I went to school that day, all went silent when I walked into the room. Someone finally broke the silence and said; “hey, was that your picture in the paper this morning?” and; “I saw you on TV on the evening News.” This would not be the last time I made the news; it went on for the next 8 months.

I called legal services at headquarters, since there was no minister to talk to. I talked to a mister Helge, I believe his name was, and I told him my story, and that I had told MD all about it many months earlier. I might have heard a gasp on the other end of the line, they wasted no time. I think it was the next day they called me back and gave me instructions. I was to meet a lawyer in his office downtown, and I was to shut my mouth, and say not another word to the press. I kept my appointment, and the lawyer told me in no uncertain terms, that he was a lawyer for the church, and his job was to keep the name of the church out of the press etc. He made it clear that people like us couldn’t afford someone like him, and that the hundred thousand dollar retainer he received from the church meant that he would defend RPS, but he did this only to achieve what he was paid to accomplish, and that I “damn well better cooperate.”

Eventually the press found out about him, and no one could understand why such a high profile lawyer would take the case of such a ‘nobody.’ I never told anyone except my closest confidants, until now.

The lawyer succeeded in minimizing the headlines and plea bargained for a 30 day stint in jail for RPS. There was outrage among many people who were following the story. But it all eventually died out and is now forgotten, but the collateral damage and warped minds remain.

What is my point in all of this? To me it seems that every story has to have a lesson, and the lesson here is all about legalism. The church didn’t tell my mother to do what she did. They would not have sanctioned it. In fact my mother already had legalism down pretty good because she learned it from her father. See Granddad & the Old Testament Law. The WCG at the time attracted people of this persuasion, and maintained their view; strengthened it; kept the paranoia going, the ‘us against the world’ mentality; the ‘Satan is the god of the world, therefore the authorities are evil’ mindset; not to mention the overblown notion that a pot smoker is some kind of evil minion of a demon.

I think this story just illustrates that law, meant to create good, can in fact generate evil, as in Rom 7:10 “I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.” The best personalities I’ve seen, come from environments that concentrate on encouraging good, instead of harping endlessly on what’s perceived as evil. And I think this describes the Old vs. the New Covenant perspective. The creation of good can drown out the evil; it has in my personal experience. As long as I concentrated on how bad I was, I got worse. As soon as I just forgot about it and thought about good things, somehow everything I fretted about just seemed to melt away.

These types of parents create the evil they think they’re snuffing out.

A child loved, is child who loves back.

Crazy or Not, Here I Come

“There are crazies out there listening to me right now” Ron Weinland said, diverging momentarily from his regular pre-sermon patter. I was thinking, I guess I’m included in this indictment. I could just imagine the heads nodding in agreement right on cue, the people feeling a little ting of anger against the persecutors.

In church, years ago, the scene would have been powerful; an aura of sobriety; all eyes fixated on our leader. We knew that, for us, he was the mouth piece of God. When we were together, we knew we were among the only people for miles around, who perceived reality correctly. And all the people who knew this true reality were doing the same thing we were.

Yes indeed, the people of the world were insane, and we knew Jesus had predicted this very thing would happen. He said deceivers would come and deceive the many. Herbert Armstrong made this more clear. We knew it actually says, “The many,” or virtually everyone. So we understood why the world couldn’t see the true reality we saw. It’s because the god of this world had blinded them, and they were all his pawns.

Wherever I walked amongst people, as they were going to classes, gathering for an event or shopping at the mall, I knew that I was the only one present who was not under the spell of the great deceiver. My Granddad could see it. The eternal law of God commanded that we must keep the Sabbath on the seventh day, and we should keep holy days too. Without these, the key to turning off Satan’s broadcast, we could not know truth.

The Sabbath is the key. This we learned from Mr. Armstrong, the latter day Elijah. When the great man himself spoke, we were all children. “You just don’t get it,” he’d say in a mournful voice, shaking his head. The lessons of those two trees in the Garden of Eden had meaning beyond our comprehension; but our great leader saw deeper than we ever could. Afterword, people spoke softly, having been in the presence of one second only to God himself. People asked; “where would we be without Mr. Armstrong?”

I’d ask myself that question frequently. I think about everything I learned from HWA; and the things I didn’t. I learned, from Herbert, that the covenant from Sinai was to last forever. He’d virtually yell this, his finger stabbing at his open bible. “Why can’t people understand, it clearly says forever?”

What I didn’t learn, from Herbert, was that the word translated “forever”, doesn’t mean forever, or Jonah would still be in the belly of the fish. Jonah 2:6, the word more correctly means ‘ages’, which is what it probably felt like. Herbert didn’t tell anyone about this; most likely, he didn’t know. His ‘law’ orientation probably wouldn’t have allowed him to accept the truth.

Truth, his favorite word; Too bad he didn’t have it; but how well he could make himself sound like he knew so many things he didn’t. Because most everyone was disconnected from this “truth” that Herbert had revealed to me; and like he always said, “It’s so plainly evident, right there in black and white;” It only followed, in my young mind, that I could trust no one. Everything was corrupt. No institution of man was anything more than a tool of Satan. I turned my back on anyone who disagreed with Herbert, and that included my Dad. Somehow, “Honor your Father, “was overruled by the need to disassociate with the enemies of God.

It seems I was more radical in my beliefs than most. The fortunate ones, who didn’t care what God thought, were much less damaged. What an Irony. I cared enough about what God thought, that I accepted the Idea that my fate was “to be brought before magistrates and be martyred for Jesus’ sake, by the forces of the beast power after they destroyed our country.”

Some have asked me why I became so paranoid about the government. We were taught to be law abiding, but Herbert’s minions referred to our form of government as “demonocracy,” a government in league with the great whore, and shortly to be destroyed by the wrath of God; by the rod of Assyria. No minister told me to treat my Dad like I did. So now they’d say, “don’t blame me.” What I thought and did only followed the input. Since our government is demonocracy and protestant churches are daughters of the great whore, and my Dad believes in both, then he’s the enemy of God.

How can people, who preach such extremism, duck responsibility for the conclusions an impressionable kid comes to. Nothing matters anymore but the kingdom. I took this seriously. Frankly, I can relate to the Muslim suicide bombers. If I were asked to do something like this for God during my teenage years, I would have considered it to be an honor.

The years of seeing everyone as “the walking dead” only succeeded in creating a callous over my heart. In later years, I seriously considered myself to be a sociopath. If I asked myself, could I kill someone? I would have answered, “Without a doubt.” All that would have stopped me is, God said, “thou shall not.” I don’t think I felt anything the way most people do. I truly had to fake the emotions I thought I was supposed to be feeling I could only see irresolvable evil in myself, and eventually, trying to stick to the rules seemed to be pointless. “If I’m beyond salvaging, what does it matter what sin I add to the pile?” I found myself thinking such things, but couldn’t completely buy into it, fortunately. As it was, I adopted situation ethics, and what I did was bad enough, motivated mostly by the pain in my brain. But if I had totally let go, I could have been one of those sicko’s that kill a bunch of people, and then myself. The Old Covenant kept me guilty. The New Covenant gave me a solution for the sin within that I couldn’t overcome. Guilt lead to more guilt and it’s a slippery slope into insanity.

The guilt made me crazy, but freedom from guilt returned my sanity. What can I say Ron? I’m not crazy, but I used to be.

Response To: Galatians; Holy Days or Pagan Days?

This comment, regarding the 5/12/08 post, was left early this morning, and because this is such an important issue, I'm posting their comment along with my response (Seeker Of Truth also left a response in the comments section of the original post):

Anonymous said...

Its all fine to go pointing to other parts of the book to say that Gal 4:9 is not talking about Pagan days, but you only have to look at the preceding verse to see otherwise...8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.Sorry, but I'm afraid it is talking about going back to observing pagan gods.As for living only under faith, how do we show our faith?James 2:14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?James 2:17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works.20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

May 13, 2008 2:50 AM

My Response:

Gal 4:8 "Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods.

9 But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?

10 You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!

11 I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you."

(Quote; Jeremy Weaver doxoblogy.com)
Galatians 4:3, 9 “The elements refer both to pagan gods and their worship and the law. Paul compares the two in order to show the Galatians that when they had not formerly known the true God they were involved in a religion of works. Through faith, they had now come to know the true God and sought Him by grace. But now they were returning to a basic system of works salvation by allowing the Judaizers to turn them to the law.

Paul is talking about keeping days and season’s period, as if it will please God. Pagans kept days for their gods, and for a time Israel had the same requirement. God commanded Israel to do many things similar to the pagans; armies, kings, gave them rules for slavery, and detailed laws to cover everything. Legalism is a human invention, god gave man his own version of legalistic law to make a point, and to bring man to the only truly godly law which is Christ in you.

The entire context of Galatians is the law that; 1) had served its purpose, Gal 3:24 “So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ,” and

2) is no longer needed, 3:25 “we are no longer under the supervision of the law,” because Co l2:16…… a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” And this is certainly not referring to pagan days which could hardly have pertained to Jesus.

It’s clear that the Galatians are both familiar with the law, and are being pressured to keep it. Why would they be so familiar with a law they never kept? All one has to do is note the places Paul spoke at, and of who his audience consisted of, to gain a clue as to the likely background of the church in Galacia. Acts18:44 “Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.” The Greeks could only be converts to Judaism, or they wouldn’t have been there. The Jews were scattered, and more lived elsewhere than in Palestine. They kept their traditions and drew in local converts. In Acts Paul spoke at the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch 13:14-16; the synagogue in Iconium 13:42; the synagogue in Thessalonica 17:1-2; the synagogue in Berea 17:10-11; the synagogue in Athens 17:17 (which states God fearing Greeks were there along with the Jews); the synagogue in Corinth 18:1-4 (again, both Jews and Greeks in attendance).

The Jews were clearly living in every Greek city, and they and their local converts to Judaism were Paul’s usual soil in which to plant a new church. The Greeks would have been converted twice; from pagan beliefs they learned of the writings of the Old Testament that became a foundation for belief in He for whom they testified.

Acts3:23 “Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed.” This is speaking to both Jew and Greek. Some had once kept pagan days, others had not. And for both, keeping of a legalistic set of rules to try to please God, or a false god are equally an exercise in futility.

Faith by works

James 2:14 “ What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?” People see what this verse says and immediately;

1) get the cart before the horse. Eph2:10 ”For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”The question is; what comes first, good works or faith;

2) Default to the old covenant rules to define what those works should be. The New Covenant, like any contract spells out what is required.

The first step is; 1John 4:15 “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.” The second step: Rom 8:9 “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.” The third step is Gal5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

God does the work through you. He provides the faith, no less than he provides the mind by which you reason. God provides the natural affection by which any good is done without faith, but he provides what is so much greater in the fruits of his spirit which transcend the natural, which he originally provided. And the good works God does by his spirit through you is the proof of the faith God gives, he makes you a vessel of good works that brings glory to God. This is the reason you were born.