The watchmen/warning/prophecy-obsessed folks within the Church of God International refuse to be silenced by the folks who believe that the church's message should be focused on Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God! They insist that "the world is screaming lies, and the church is whispering truth." For these folks, the message is all about: "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." In other words, it's all about pointing out the collective and individual sins of Americans and insisting that they repent or face the consequences!
Instead of the message of forgiveness, reconciliation and grace that is available through Jesus Christ, they insist that UNDERSTANDING is preeminent. For these Armstrongites, their primary mission is to warn the English-speaking peoples of the earth about what is going to happen to them as a consequence of their failure to live up to the standards outlined in the Torah - to make them aware of what is prophesied to happen in the not-too-distant future. Sound familiar?
For Armstrongites, this is that old-time religion. This is the message which evokes nostalgia for bygone days - when Herbert Armstrong was pounding on his desk and flashing pictures of modern weaponry, protesting, world leaders, and current newspaper headlines. Their special, God-given knowledge and insight is their gift to humanity. For these folks, God has chosen them, given them his Holy Spirit and enabled them to understand prophecy. They have THE TRUTH, and everyone else is deceived! Those so-called Christians are preaching "a message about the messenger" and ignoring all of that important prophecy. Don't they know that one-third of the Bible is prophecy? According to them, those other "Christians" are too afraid that they might offend someone to preach the message which needs to be proclaimed to the world!
For these folks, the good news about Jesus Christ and salvation through him is a distraction. It's a sideshow compared to the main event - the Great Tribulation and the end times. They can't understand why everyone isn't focused on Matthew 24 and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. For them, this is the key reason that those other folks don't focus on the right message. After all, didn't Jesus say that the very first indication that the end times were approaching would be the promulgation of a whole host of false messaging from a bunch of false Christians? Doesn't the book of Revelation state that "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy?" they ask. Of course, they completely ignore Christ's statement that he came to this earth to FULFILL the Law and the PROPHETS! They ignore or overlook all of the quotations from Old Testament prophets scattered throughout the writings of the New Testament which were purposefully associated with Jesus Christ!
Sorry, it isn't that other Christians are ignoring prophecy. Unfortunately, these prophecy-obsessed folks simply cannot seem to comprehend that Jesus Christ is the focus of all of those prophecies. They seem unable or reluctant to follow Christ's instructions to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." Likewise, they ignore all of those instances in the writings of the New Testament which suggest that the apostles were always preaching about "Christ crucified" and "the forgiveness of sins" through his blood. Instead of being morally and spiritually prepared at all times, they are obsessed with keeping track of headlines and trying to relate them to Bible prophecy. No, I'm sorry to say that these folks aren't even whispering the truth! Instead, they are busy shouting a warning message to a bunch of Gentiles which God intended for the Israelites many years ago. Sad, so very sad!
You have given us an omnibus view of apocalyptic Millerism. My theory is that such Millerites have a distinct flaw – the inability to see themselves in context. In fact, carefully avoiding context is their means of survival, of holding their particular denomination together. They avoid context by withdrawing and nurturing an idiosyncratic view of theology and society. The fact is, Armstrongism, a variety of apocalyptic Millerism, is a collection of small, Millerite denominations with a high exceptional theology and praxis on the American religious landscape. The dynamic that drives their movement is division. Their membership does not increase but their number of denominations does. They maintain an ad hoc theology that happens to be whatever their recognized leader says it is at any given time but is mostly based on magazines and booklets published long ago by the now defunct Worldwide Church of God. Their hallmark is a preoccupation with prophecy, to the neglect of the larger Christian mission, and this is a feature passed down from their Millerite beginnings.
ReplyDeleteI am not a judge (nor am I a jury) of anyone but I do wonder about Armstrongists. Sometimes I believe that God must consider them to be within the Christian pale, maybe barely. Their beliefs are odd but so are the beliefs of Calvinists (Five-Pointers). And the Calvinist denominations are accepted by the Christian Movement, although I think with some heartburn. I think if Armstrongism is a cult I think one could make an argument that Calvinism is also a cult. At other times, I see Armstrongism as a latter day emergence of the First Century Circumcision Part that Paul energetically condemned. The jury is out.
Overall, I think Armstrongism occupies a very narrow location in the religious spectrum. It is a niche religion. But if you label that small space in the spectrum as “the one and only true church,” it suddenly becomes everything to its followers. It reminds me of that oxymoronic name used by Native Americans for some warriors: Little Big Man. My two cents…
Neo,
DeleteYour "two cents' is always appreciated here. You bring a unique perspective to the discussion and always remind us of where these crazy ideas fit on the Christian philosophical family tree - context. Thank you!