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Except you think only science says anything about the age of the universe.Of course! it's TRUE!
I speak from EXPERIENCE. Since the HOLY SPIRIT rescued me from that cult, I've seen it's become even more-insidious since Herbie died, and much-more subtle in its deception, being less-heterodox than before, but still false & cultic.
And I don't know how many small cults & cultettes have sprung from the original, under a wide assortment of names. Some still follow Herbie's stuff completely; others follow only some of it.
BUT ALL ARE FALSE CHURCHES ! !
The WWCOG near here stll keeps that name. My acquaintance said they ditched the Jewish feasts but still kewpt them under christian names such as Harvest Festival in the autumn. They still go to Torguay for a week for that and a rival group who still keep the Jewish Festivals go to the same town, but don't meet.
I asked if they still believed that the British and Americans were the lost 10 tribes and he said "NO" but after a pause added "But I do."
Their British Israelism is continued by some on this board who believe that there are ten lost tribes.
The only "Bro Campy " I knew of was the late Harold camping, a quack who predicted the returna Jesus for May 21, 2011. When that failed, he said a 'spiritual judgment' occurred on that day & Jesus was coming Oct. 21, 2011. When that failed as well, he admitted he goofed & slunk back into the shadows til his death.
"Bro. Stair" is currently facing several felony charges for sexual assaults. He's just another cult leader. His "Overcomer" ministry is as phony as a football bat. He once even said, "If Almighty God doesn't make a major move soon, I'm gonna tell Him to go to hell!"
I believe he's currently on shortwave radio; I don't know if he's back on regular AM radio or not in SC. (His broadcasts on AM were carried by Skipland across the USA at 500-mile intervals, like truckers' radio from Slidell, LA.)
Both camping and Stair are quax & apostates. If there's another "Bro. Campy" I don't know about, please clue us in!
Not wanting to derail the thread, but I believe God provided evidence for man's science to discover.Except you think only science says anything about the age of the universe.
The WWCOG near here stll keeps that name. My acquaintance said they ditched the Jewish feasts but still kewpt them under christian names such as Harvest Festival in the autumn. They still go to Torguay for a week for that and a rival group who still keep the Jewish Festivals go to the same town, but don't meet.
I asked if they still believed that the British and Americans were the lost 10 tribes and he said "NO" but after a pause added "But I do."
Their British Israelism is continued by some on this board who believe that there are ten lost tribes.
It would seem that each one of their 'churches' or 'fellowships' within the Grace Communion International umbrella has various holdover doctrines from Armstrongism as can be found in the closest 'assembly' of Grace Communion near to us. They still observe Jewish feasts and are Sabbotarian.
There is an elderly man on my mail route who for a while, kept trying to give me literature on the beliefs of his church and this man was continuously talking about the Sabbath day and even told me that I need to tell my employer that I cannot work on Saturday because it's the Sabbath day and implied that if I continue to work on Saturday that my salvation will be in jeopardy. Come to find out, this man attends Herbert Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God CULT.
Question: "What is Armstrongism? Is the Worldwide Church of God a cult?"
Answer: Armstongism refers to the teachings of Herbert W. Armstrong, which became the teaching of the Worldwide Church of God. These teachings were often at odds with traditional Christian beliefs and at times were explicitly in contradiction to the Bible. The most well-known of Armstrong’s teachings is that of Anglo-Israelism. This is the belief that modern-day Jews are not the true physical descendants of Israel. Armstrong believed the lost tribes of Israel had migrated to Western Europe and that the present-day British and Americans were actually the heirs to God’s covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Armstrong believed that this knowledge was the key factor in understanding the prophetic passages of Scripture and that it was his mission to proclaim this message in preparation for the end times.
These beliefs of the Worldwide Church of God were not new and were rooted in an anti-Semitic misinterpretation of Scripture. The Bible is clear that God has not replaced Israel with any other nation and that His plans for Israel are right on schedule and will come to pass after “the fullness of the Gentiles” have come into the Kingdom (Romans 11:25). We can be sure that all God has said is true and will take place, because of His character and consistency (Romans 3:3–4). To attempt to revise God’s plans for both Israel and the Church is to call into question His nature, His sovereignty, His omniscience, and His faithfulness.
In addition, Armstrong taught that at death one is in a sleep-like state until Jesus returns to earth. There would then be three resurrections. The first would be of the faithful Christians. Second would be the bulk of the population who would have a second chance to accept the gospel and be saved, despite the clear teaching of Scripture that there is no “second chance” for salvation after death (Hebrews 9:27). Third would be those that had acted in such a way as to be ineligible for the second chance. They, along with the group from the second resurrection that rejected the gospel, would then be punished. The Worldwide Church of God did not believe in eternal punishment in hell, but rather a complete destruction through fire, i.e., annihilationism. The Bible, however, is clear that there are two resurrections, one to eternal life in heaven for believers and one to eternal damnation for unbelievers (Revelation 20:4–14). Here again, the theories of Armstrongism and the Worldwide Church of God directly contradicted the Word of God.
Armstrong also taught that followers of Christ should remain true to all of the teachings in the Old Testament. Thus, he held the Sabbath to be holy, and in Jewish tradition the Sabbath was observed from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. He further believed that the Old Testament festivals such as Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles must be celebrated. The Worldwide Church of God taught that modern Christians should follow the dietary laws and tithe (up to 30 percent). Armstrongism was only one of many salvation-by-works philosophies that look to the keeping of the Old Testament laws as a means of salvation. But the Bible is clear that the opposite is true. Salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone, because the Law saves no one. “A man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified” (Galatians 2:16). Clearly, the philosophies of Armstrongism and the Worldwide Church of God were just that—worldly philosophies that seek to deny the only means of salvation, the exchange at the cross of our sin for the righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and replace it with the Old Testament Law, which Jesus came to fulfill because we could not.
After the death of Hebert W. Armstrong, the Worldwide Church of God began to embrace a more orthodox understanding of the Christian faith. Armstrong’s successors, Joseph Tkach, Sr., and Joseph Tkach, Jr., have led the Worldwide Church of God in a more orthodox direction, rejecting British Israelism, accepting the Trinity, etc. The organization/denomination now refers to itself as Grace Communion International. A brief history of the transition from Armstrongism to Grace Communion can be found at www.gci.org/aboutus/history. Although Grace Communion has come a long way toward biblical doctrine, there are still some serious errors in their theology, such as the teaching that everyone has been reconciled to God and forgiven of sin; that everyone, prior to repentance, possesses the Holy Spirit and is a child of God.
What is Armstrongism? Is the Worldwide Church of God a cult?
Quite the testimony, Brother. My dad was pretty wrapped up in Armstrong's WWCOG for many years as well. His testimony for leaving the cult is similar to your own. I am very thankful that he gave his heart to Christ a few years before he passed away. Before your post, I had not given this cult much thought for a long time. Do you know if they are still as active as they were back when Armstrong was still alive?Before I became an indie fundy Baptist, my first church was Herbie Armstrong's WWCOG. His messages seemed to be Biblical; even before I was saved, I believed ALL intel about God comes only from Scripture. (I simply paid it no mind in my BC days.) After salvation, I began looking for a local church, but was attracted to the WWCOG by its literature, passed out to me by a veteran member. I eagerly embraced its teachings.
Soon, I began attending a local indy fundy Baptist church, knowing it had a few doctrines different from Herbie's. I thought, "What the heck; there's only ONE God, who made many different peoples & cultures, each of which worships in its own way."
Then, one day, I picked up my NASV Bible & opened it, and it opened to the revelation, where I read the verses pertaining to the eternality of the lake of fire. I thought, "Hey, Herbie preaches Annihilationsim, that is, the souls of the wicked are destroyed when cast into the LOF! Sumpin' aint right here!" So, I checked out several other English BVs & the Greek from which those verses were translated, & saw they all agreed! My suspicions aroused, I began looking into more of Herbie's teachings. Soon, I realized I'd fallen headlong into a cultic trap!
After the false 'annihilation' teaching, I saw he held the same view of the Sabbath that the SDA does. I knew from Scripture & history that was false. And herbie also taught the keeping of all the OLD TESTAMENT feasts & rites, which I realized was totally WRONG! In Scripture & history, there were NO instances of new believers, especially gentiles, being required to observe those rites. BESIDES, ALMOST ALL OF THEM HAD BEEN GIVEN EXCLUSIVELY TO THE ISRAELIS, AND NNE ELSE! This included Sabbath & passover.
I remembered how Jesus had received me; BY HIS GRACE(UNMERITED FAVOR) AND FAITH ALONE! My only requirement afterward was to not do anything I knew was sinful, and to continue to worship God.
Jesus fulfilled ALL the sacrificial requirements of God's law by the sacrifice of HIMSELF, one time, for all. The old rites & observances had all pointed to HIM, and, once He'd fulfilled everything He came to do, they were all obsolete. Thus, Herbie was making light of Jesus' sacrifice by insisting on keeping those old rites!
My Bible study led me to this verse-2 Cor. 3:14 But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.
From this, and further study, I realized Jesus had FULFILLED the law. While it remains "on the boox", it's like the Selective Service Act as applying to me. It's on the boox, but doesn't apply to me, as I'm age 70 and an honorably-DC'd veteran. same for the 'feast' laws, as JESUS fulfilled all their requirements for me!
They also had prohibitions against the use of cosmetics, celebrating birthdays and holidays, seeking medical treatment, and interracial marriage. Those things, are, of course, man-made horse feathers. The only SCRIPTURAL admonitions against any of there is the manner and intent of why they may be done, especially pride and vanity. These things in themselves are NOT SINFUL!
Finally, for this post, there was another gross heresy I saw: that all who died in sin would be given a 2nd chance for salvation at the close of the millenium. This is taught NOWHERE in Scripture!
In summary, JESUS BE PRAISED, I realized that the WWCOG under Herbie was a mix of Old & New Covenant theology, "HAVING A FORM OF GODLINESS WHILE DENYING ITS POWER!
In other words, it's a CULT!
Quite the testimony, Brother. My dad was pretty wrapped up in Armstrong's WWCOG for many years as well. His testimony for leaving the cult is similar to your own. I am very thankful that he gave his heart to Christ a few years before he passed away. Before your post, I had not given this cult much thought for a long time. Do you know if they are still as active as they were back when Armstrong was still alive?
Quite the testimony, Brother. My dad was pretty wrapped up in Armstrong's WWCOG for many years as well. His testimony for leaving the cult is similar to your own. I am very thankful that he gave his heart to Christ a few years before he passed away. Before your post, I had not given this cult much thought for a long time. Do you know if they are still as active as they were back when Armstrong was still alive?