How to Identify a Hireling

A quick survey of the hundreds of churches of God that were formed since the break up of The Worldwide Church of God in 1995, will show that Jesus’ teaching on the nature and character of hirelings has been ignored: or what is more likely, not understood by the laity or the so-called ministers peddling their brand of Christianity in cog-land.

I take no credit for this, but I am the only former member of WCG, who have spent the last 15 years pointing out that the vast majority of WCG’s former ministers were actually hirelings. You see, the hireling can remain hidden among the flock for years! The hireling conceals his duplicity, treachery and ultimate betrayal of God’s elect under “good words and fair speeches”(Romans. 16:18). But when the wolf pack comes over the hill to attack the flock, the hireling’s pretense of love and concern for the flock are then exposed. Note what Jesus taught, “But he that is a hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees: and the wolf catches them, and scatters the sheep”(John 10:12). And then he added with emphasis, “The hireling flees, because he is hireling, and cares not for the sheep”(John 10:13).

The behaviour of the vast majority of the former WCG ministers fit into the description Christ gave on how a hireling behaves. When the wolf pack led by Mr.Tkach attacked the flock, the vast majority of WCG ministers fled, leaving the flock to fend for themselves. Not one single UK minister spoke out against the doctrinal changes, or warned the brethren that they were being fed spiritual poison. Yet, they now want sensible people to believe that they are faithful ministers of Christ, and that God is using them to preach the gospel. Nothing could be more blasphemous!

However, in contrast to the duplicity of the hireling, note how the good shepherd behaves thus, “The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep”(John 10:11). The good shepherd possesses the the nature and character of Christ, and as Christ was willing to lay down his life for the brethren, the love of God constrains his faithful ministers to do the same on behalf of his flock.

So none of God’s people have been deceived into following those who started UCG, LCG, PCG, RCG, COG/Hulme or any of other hundreds of COGs, masquerading as churches of God. For Jesus was very emphatic when said: “A stranger they will not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers”(John10:5). Have you fled from the voice of the hireling? If you haven’t it is because you are not one of Christ’s sheep!

The Mind of Christ

Some anonymous person wrote to me stating that I do not have the mind of Christ. The person did not say what led them to this conclusion, nor did he or she presented any evidence or advanced any argument in support of his or her assertion. Of course, these are often the type of unsupported assertions hurled at God’s people because their detractors don’t understand the values that true Christians are required to uphold as a way of life. In addition, the assertion that I don’t have the mind of Christ, presupposes that the person stating it understands what is the mind of Christ, and is able recognise it in those in whom it dwells.

However, instead of wasting time exposing the folly of my detractors, it might be helpful to genuine Christian to post something on the mind of Christ. In Paul’s inspired epistle to the Philippians, we read: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus”(Phil.2:5). If we put to ourselves the question, what was in Christ’s mind that made him beloved of the father? To answer this question we need to ponder the question posed by Micah thus: “Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God?”(Micah 6:6). Now many people who attend church on Sundays and on the Sabbaths think that they are appearing before the Lord, and that their presence is welcome by him. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Notice Micah’s inspired answer thus, “He has shown you, Oh man, what the Lord require of you,

1.to do justly

2.to love mercy

3.to walk humbly with your God

These virtue permeated the mind of Christ, and was manifested in the way he treated the people with whom he came into contact. Jesus treated all men justly, and taught his disciples that they should not respect persons judgment. He also extended mercy to many, by feeding thousands, healing the sick and casting out demons. And we are told, “He made himself of no reputation.”(Phil.2:7). the same could never be said of the hirelings leading UCG, LCG, PCG, RCG, COG/Hulme or any of the other divided COGs. Most of these men are arrogant, pompous and above all vain. So when these men and their gullible followers go to church, they certainly don’t appear before the Lord. For unless people have the mind of Christ developing in them, God will not invite them to appear before him.

Moreover notice what being humble did for Jesus, “Wherefore God has highly exalted him, and has given him a name that is above every name”(Phil. 2:9). And the apostle Peter was inspired to Write: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble”(1 Peter 5:5). So if we want to appear before the Lord, we need the mind of Christ. And if we want to reign with him, we need to be clothed with humility, and not with the garments of pride, which are so proudly worn by the hirelings in cog-land.

You Will Be Next

The 7.0 Haitian quake has provided an opportunity for mindless journalists to ask absurd questions, and make predictable, derogatory comments about the poverty and corruption in the country. It has also provided an opportunity for camera crews from around the world to photograph the dead and injured, and send the pictures back to gloating editors, whose motto is; “If it bleeds, it leads.” Of course, editors of the various media outlets are just happy to make money at anyone’s expense, even if it means degrading the subjects to do so.

But if a 7.0 quake should hit any major city in the world, it is bound to kill and injure thousands of people, whether the people are rich and there is no corruption in the city, which is highly unlikely. The dead and suffering of the injured are bound to leave survivors in a state of shock and disorientation, and their first priority would be to try and find the dead or surviving members of their own family. So I can’t see the relationship between poverty and a people’s ability to respond to the suffering of their neighbours.

However, in spite of the nonsensical, tectonic theories trotted out by seismologists, who, by the way, are unable to predict where and when a quake will occur: quakes can and will occur in places that are not located on the so-called “Ring of Fire.” Jesus prophesied that earthquakes will occur in “diverse places,” as a sign that we are approaching end of the world(Matt.24:7). So today it is Haiti, but tomorrow it could be any where.

But more importantly, when Jesus was told about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate mingled with his sacrifices, and of the 18 people on whom the temple of Siloam fell, he replied, “think you that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but except you repent, you shall all likewise perish”(Luke 13:1-5).

Now it is pretty clear that the former members of The Worldwide Church of God and the current members of all of the divided splinter groups, that came out of WCG, are beyond repentance. So when the overflowing scourge passes through, they will be swept away, especially the ministers who have spent a generation lying to the flock, and fleecing them to feed themselves(Isaiah 28:14-18).

God’s People Are Always Happy

Once again the world is celebrating the beginning of another pagan New Year. Most people are greeting one another with the phrase, “Happy New Year!” Of course, this greeting is only an insincere yearly ritual. For man, driven by innate selfishness, doesn’t want anyone to be happy but himself, and perhaps his so-called friends, provided they are not as happy as he is. Not that anyone who is separated from God is ever likely to be happy!

However, In contrast to man’s insincerity, genuine Christians do desire and pray for the peace and happiness of one another. They embraced the promise of Jesus, when he said: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you”(John 14:27). The world offers an empty wish, but Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to comfort his people, at a time that is described as perilous(2 Tim.3:1).

Of course, I have stated many times before, that there are no genuine Christians in any of the pagan, Protestants churches of this world, or in the current Worldwide Church of God, or any of the hundreds of splinter groups that have been formed sine the breakup WCG in 1995. All of these groups teach that Christ is divided and God in the author of confusion. Yet the Apostle was inspired to write the following text:(1 Cor.1:10).

Anyway, God sacred New Year begins on the 16 March this year, and 14 days later, after extensive fasting and prayer, the faithful people of God will be invited by him to take the Passover with Christ Jesus, who promised to take it new with them in his kingdom. This profound mystery cannot be understood by anyone who has not been clothed in humility, for God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble(1 Pet.5:5).

So, what ever happens in this godless world of duplicity, violence, injustice and betrayal, God’s people will always be happy, for they are comforted by his Holy Spirit of peace and joy.

2012, Reality or Fiction?

Much has been written about a supposed Mayan prophecy announcing the end of the world on 21 December 2012. The irrational sceptics posting ridicule and abuse on the various blogs, have dismissed the prophecy as “rubbish.” Many others believe that no one can foretell the future, so all prophecy, whether biblical or Mayan, must be rejected as the ranting either of Jewish “goat herders” or the insanity of “blood thirsty Mayans priests." But should the final date of the Mayan Calendar be dismissed as nonsense because some people are unable to separate fact from fiction? I don’t think so.

It has been reported and verified by the Spanish conquistadors, that the Mayans prophesied hundreds of years in advance, that their empire or civilisation would be overthrown on a specific date, which was fulfilled on the very date in 1533. This prophecy can’t be dismissed as the insane ranting of a “blood thirst Mayan priest,” or be compared with the vague and opaque prophecies of Nostradamus, which are interpreted after events have occurred.

Does the above mean that I believe that the world will end on 21 December 2012? No, I don’t. For Jesus said: "For of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels in heaven, but my Father only"(Matt.24:36). And there is no clear evidence that any Mayan has prophesied it will, either. But since the Mayan calendar doesn’t go beyond 21 December 2012, one has to ask oneself, why does it end on that date? And since they have prophesied at least one major event that has been fulfilled, I believe it would be very unwise not to expect some significant event to occur on that date or leading up to that date.

Furthermore, when Herbert W. Armstrong started preaching the gospel in South America, it was discovered that many of the people living there were already familiar with the Holy Days, the Sabbath and some other doctrines of the bible. This would indicate that at some time in the past, men of God were preaching and teaching the bible among these people. And these men were able to prophesy the destruction of the Mayan pagan society, which occurred in 1533. And these same Christians were responsible for passing on the knowledge of God’s calendar to the Mayans, which has been corrupted by dishonest men. Just as the wholesome teachings of Mr. Armstrong have been corrupted by misguided men, who have developed their own brand of religion for the sake of money.

So, will 2012 usher in a period of unprecedented misery? If the perilous times in which we live is a guide to the future, the answer has to be yes!

To Which Fable Have You Turned?

The Apostle Paul was inspired to write that in the last days some church members shall depart from “the faith,“ be seduced by “doctrines of devils” and living with destroyed consciences(1 Tim.4:1-2). Peter also added that many will turn to fables.

Even a quick examination of the doctrines and practices of the splinter groups that have been formed since the break up of The Worldwide Church of God, will reveal that most no longer understand, if they ever did, or teach “sound doctrine.” Sadly, many now teach that the bible and the theory of evolution are compatible! Even luminaries such as, the depressed Dennis, the deranged Douglas, the gibbering Gavin and many of the mindless cabal of scoffers that coalesce around AW blog have turned to fables.

Dennis is now a promoter of the idiotic ideas of astrology over the divine revelation of the bible. And of course, Douglas is an expert in psychological disorders, and is therefore able to reduce every complex problem to the mental disorder of incompetence. The rest of the cabal hold Mr. Herbert Armstrong personally responsible for every problem in the world, including their return to fables!

To be continued…

The Delusion of Universal Salvation

During the Feast of Tabernacles, which neither The Worldwide Church of God nor Grace Communion International no longer celebrate, I picked up a booklet by J. Michael Feazell entitled, Predestination – Does God Let You Choose your Own Fate?

Feazell erects a number of “straw men” arguments by quoting selected texts from Calvin and Aristotle and then proceeded to set fire to them, in a vain attempt to disprove the doctrine of predestination. Feazell glosses over Romans chapters 9-11 and Ephesians 1-3, but did not refer to the allegory of Galatians 4:21-31 or attempted to explain why God choose Jacob over Esau, before they were born, even though none had done any good or evil(Romans. 9:11).

Feazell concluded that because Christ died for the sin of the world salvation is available to everyone. All they have to do is believe in the atoning sacrifice of Christ. But even here, Feazell does not emphasise that belief or faith in Christ is demonstrated by obedience to the laws of God, including the fourth commandment, which says, remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy.

Of course, to genuine Christians, Feazell’s tendentious but flawed exegesis of Paul’s exposition of the doctrine of predestination is not surprising. For Feazell was one of the pirates who hijacked WCG and shipwrecked it on the rocks of Protestantism.

Nevertheless, the Lord knows those that are his, and none of them will ever be deceived by the subtle ranting of deluded men.