Clouds without rain
Special Report
Sister Forsakes Fellowship for Fellow.
Illustration of another unequally yoked marriage. Note the proudly bearded priest, the long
hair of the male, the short hair of the woman. The use of gender specific clothing. We can be thankful our own
faith has maintained it's high & holy standard throughout the ages.
Dark City, California--Bishop brother Fester Finagle has formally excommunicated sister Francis Phfehpfolfhpr
in accordance with proper church discipline during a closed member meeting last Wednesday. Fester shared with the
congregation of sister Francis' decision to forsake the fellowship. Francis is planning to marry a person of a
different denomination. She completely disregarding the member-only marriage doctrine required throughout the faith.
Fester shared scripture relevant to the case thus convincing the congregation of her grievous sin. "They
went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with
us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us" (1 John 2: 19).
"This doctrine is of the Holy Spirit and intended to prevent a potentially 'unequally yoked' matrimony. Marriage
is to be only in the Lord. That is the scripture speaking and it means within
our order," stated counseling bishop Marv Hammerman. "I fully support Bishop Fester, his accurate
use of scripture and his love of truth. I am very pleased Fester was able to put her out
quickly as he does God service. Her flagrant action reminds me of the scripture, "They
trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity" (Isaiah 59: 4). Somehow
I feel this grave disappointment will remind our single folk of their higher calling."
A single brother close by came forward, thumbed through a church writing and stated, "The Holy Spirit told
our church to give specific definition to the scripture passages on marriage. The divine revelation is interpreted
by these words, 'marriage of our members may occur only between brothers and sisters whose testimonies of conversion
have been heard and affirmed by one of our congregations'" (Light 27). Forbidding
marriage to other Christians proves to me our bishops are truly inspired by the blessed Holy
Spirit.
Francis attempted to explain her insidious action in this letter provided below.
| October 29, 1999 Dear Fester, I am sending you this letter in response to your request when we spoke on the phone earlier this week. I would like to inform you of my intent to have my membership in the Apostolic Christian Church removed. I feel that the Lord is leading me in a different direction at this time in my life. This has not been a rash decision. It has been in my mind and heart for many years. The main reason that the timing is to be now, is because I am engaged to be married to a Christian man who is not from the AC church. Also because for the past several years in Dark City, I felt spiritually stagnate in the AC church and have found another Christian fellowship to attend. I am very comfortable in this new church and feel at peace that this is where God intended me to be. I am sorry to hear that you feel disappointment about my decision. I can only tell you that my relationship with my Lord has grown stronger and I feel that he wants to move me into different directions that the AC church could not help me to do. I want to assure you that I am not leaving in anger or madness at the AC church. I would desire to be welcomed to come visit at any time as I still have many friends and family members within the church. May God bless you and the church richly. Forever your sister in Christ, Francis Phfehpfolfhpr |
Unmoved by her clever attempt to appease the righteous indignation directed toward her by removing her membership, the Bishop had the final word in his letter provided below.
| January 10, 2000 Dear Francis, I am writing to let you know of the action taken yesterday at our Dark City Church in regard to the matter of terminating your membership in the Apostolic Christian Church as indicated in your letter of October 29, 1999. As was mentioned when we spoke by telephone, I am sorry and disappointed in your decision. In a member meeting following our afternoon services I shared with the members present the essence of your letter to me and that I had also spoken with you and have concluded that you stand resolute in your decision to leave our church and to marry a man from a different faith and denomination. In the light of this I announced that you now stand as excommunicated (without the ban) from our faith and brotherhood, to be greeted as a friend and no longer as a Sister in the Lord. Francis, I regret that this has come to pass. We trust the Lord that He will guide you into the future and pray for your welfare both spiritually and in body. His needy servant, Fester Finagle |
In the light of church policy it is evident that had Francis kept herself "spiritually separated" from those other more nominalistic liberal thinking individuals, who consider themselves Christian, this whole fiasco could have been avoided (Light 37).
"Now the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving head
to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared
with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats" (1 Tim. 4: 1-3)
They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you
will think that he doeth God service (John 16: 2)
"Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the Lord"
(Prov. 18:22). The gift of true marriage in the Lord can be obtained only by following the precepts of the Word
of God. Unmarried brothers and sisters in Christ are encouraged to adhere diligently to the longstanding, scripturally
based practices of the church in this matter. The great benefits of this approach are quite evident when compared
with the disastrous results of man's methods. (27)
Light from the Word. IL. Apostolic Christian Publications 1990
One aspect of this need not even be brought to the Lord in prayer because the Word gives
an explicit answer: marriage of a believer is to be "only in the Lord" (I Cor. 7:39) and not an unequal
yoke (2 Cor. 3:14-18). The church has been directed of the Holy Spirit to give specific definition to these scriptural
teachings; namely, marriage of our members may occur only between brothers and sisters whose testimonies of conversion
have been heard and affirmed by one of our congregations. (27)
Light from the Word. IL. Apostolic Christian Publications 1990
| A close look at this official document of the Apostolic Christian Church shows how the anonymous author carefully
presents sincere Christians as false believers. The metamorphosis is subtle and instigated by our common foe to
divide the body of Christ. At the end he switches back to an all inclusive Christianity in the attempt to manipulate
the reader into thinking he is gracious. Several key words are highlighted in red. My annotations are in italics. Today there are vast numbers of churches, religious groupings, parachurch ministries, denominations, movements and persuasions which consider themselves as Christian. These groups include almost every conceivable variety of beliefs, with markedly different degrees of emphasis upon the Bible. Even among the groups known as evangelical or fundamentalist, who claim the Scriptures as the foundation for their beliefs, there are innumerable differences in doctrinal interpretations. The question arises as to how we should relate to other individuals who profess Christianity, particularly those who appear to be sincere in their love for the Lord (Note the emphasis on the sincere. The author wants no question to the fact he includes all Christians. He also suggests their sincere love is just an appearance). Although there were no apparent denominations in Bible times, perhaps it would be of benefit to carefully consider some of the scriptural teachings regarding the relationship of true believers (The author means AC's only) in Christ to individuals or groups of other spiritual orientations (The author considers ALL other Christians as 'other spiritual orientations'). The disciples of Christ had to be rebuked by Him because of their concerns with personal ambition and feelings of superiority. Following a discussion in which they had disputed who among them was the greatest, another issue was raised. "And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not. for he that is not against us is for us" (Luke 9:49-50). The point was clearly made that the disciples did not have a monopoly on the power of the Spirit. Likewise, no group or individual today has the right to claim the exclusive favor of the Lord. Even Elijah had to be chastised when he despaired and said "I, even I only, am left" (1 Kings 19:10). The Lord replied, "Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel the knees of which have not bowed unto Baal... " (1 Kings 19:18). The disciples had based their complaint upon the fact that these others were not following Christ and his group (The author changes 'followith not with us' to 'not following Christ'). In Christ's response he emphasized that their work should not be interfered with and that since they were not against Him there was benefit to their efforts (The author has intentionally de-emphasized the scripture here). However, He did not make any mention of forming an alliance or interacting with them in any way. (This paragraph is perfectly situated so the author can meekly conjoin the 'for us' workers with false teachers) The Apostle John was very strong in his warning to believers regarding the influence of any who did not abide in the doctrine of Jesus Christ (2 John 9-1 1). It is clear that John sounded this warning to help prevent deception by teachers of false doctrine. This warning was surely intended to include those teaching a perverted gospel or advancing beyond what the gospel says, as well as those who did not believe in Christ at all. He even went so far as to admonish that the believers should not wish these misguided teachers well or "bid them Godspeed, " and that those who did were partakers of their evil deeds. In this Scripture we can see a more defensive approach in dealing with individuals with variant beliefs. This position of separation was emphasized because of the danger of being deceived through close association with those of a different doctrine. It is scriptural to be tolerant of such at a distance, but it is also scriptural to exert very definite protective measures when the danger of spiritual deception approaches one's door. In an era when legitimacy is given to widely ranging forms of Christianity regardless of quality, it is evident that the doctrinal position of separation has been overlooked or ignored by many (The author also instills the idea, associating with other Christians will lead you into spiritual deception. The 'for us' workers have turned 'against us'). (He can now continue with his main premise. He explains how those other Christians have compromised their faith and are to be resisted with vengeance) Finally, the strongest warning found in the New Testament regarding teachers of a different doctrine was given by the Apostle Paul to the Galatians, who had initially embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ through his ministry. Later, others had arisen who taught that in addition to faith in Christ, the believers must practice certain rituals of the old law such as circumcision in order to obtain salvation. It is important to note that the deception presented to these believers was not a markedly different religion, but a modification of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The reaction of the Apostle was utter dismay as he wrote, "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel... " (Gal. 1:5). He then went on to prescribe drastic measures to eradicate this error: "If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed" (Gal. 1:9). How many true believers today are resisting altered Christian doctrines with that kind of vengeance? Instead, the prevalent trend is to welcome spiritual interaction with other professing Christians, many of whom have made numerous compromises in interpretation and application of the Scriptures. Misinterpretation has usually occurred because of a dependence upon the wisdom of man rather than staying with the Word and accepting all teachings of Christ and the Apostles as literal truths. (His case subtly prepared, and the spirit of division properly cloaked, the author is ready to indoctrinate the zealous convert and simple member. All other Christians are not the beloved church! We must refuse to call them brethren. AC's are the only true believers. We are the household of faith. We walk by the same rule, are of one mind, Christ's mind that is) The three scriptural teachings cited above (given by Christ and the Apostles John and Paul) are the foundation for our position regarding spiritual separation from other professing Christians. This is made explicit in our refraining from addressing them as our brothers and sisters, which are family titles. They denote a close kinship. The Word tells us to first do good to those who are of the "household of faith" (Gal. 6:10). We are also instructed to do good to all men and without question we should be kind, respectful and helpful toward our fellow men of all races and creeds. However, the word household is another family term. It denotes a structured, recognizable grouping of closely related people. We are taught to "walk by the same rule" (Phil. 3:16), "be of one mind" (2 Cor. 13:11) and to participate as a body in loving discipline of erring members (1 Cor. 5). These functions can occur in accordance with the scriptural pattern only within an organized, visible church, where believers are truly responsible to Christ as well as to each other. May God help us, by his grace, to focus on the spiritual edification and perfecting of this portion of the body of Christ, our beloved church, so that we can present a distinct example to the lost sinners of the world and serve effectively to point them to Christ. We can likewise look forward with great anticipation to the day when the entire body of Christ will be revealed at His coming, when true believers of all ages and all nations will be joined to be with Him in Heaven forever. (37) Read a rebuttal to this analysis and a reply |
Light from the Word. IL. Apostolic Christian Publications 1990
| I need to take issue with your analysis of the "OFFICIAL DOCUMENT" on Spiritual Separation. From the top: 1. true believers (The author means AC's only) <--Not so. The author stated "true believers", not Apostolic Christians. You are implying too much here. 2. other spiritual orientations (The author considers ALL other Christians as 'other spiritual orientations'). <--Again, wrong-O. You stated yourself that you don't even know who the author is. You cannot interpret this statement in this way without more information. 3. teachers of false doctrine. <--I believe you have misconstrued these words and they form the ENTIRE premise of your lambasting of the article. Basically, "teachers of false doctrine" does not refer to "other churches'" worship formats, traditions, etc. "Teachers of false doctrines" means people preaching that, for example "once saved, always saved - no matter what" or "do what is right in your own eyes" or "all religions (Buddhism, Islam, etc.) are equal and can get you to heaven". 4. (His case subtly prepared, and the spirit of division properly cloaked, the author is ready to indoctrinate the zealous convert and simple member. All other Christians are not the beloved church! We must refuse to call them brethren. AC's are the only true believers. We are the household of faith. We walk by the same rule, are of one mind, Christ's mind that is) <-- I agree that, if you mis-interpret the words in this tract as you have, this could occur. However, if you are reasonably intelligent and base your understanding of this article (without your comments) ONLY on what is ACTUALLY STATED - then it doesn't appear to be condemning of association with other denominations, calling another brother from a different denomination "brother", etc. I look forward to your response on my response to your analysis of the "OFFICIAL DOCUMENT". ------------ My Response Here is the premise of the document in its own words. Let "A" be the question, "B" the body of the argument or "scriptural teachings," and "C" the conclusion: A. "The question arises as to how we should relate to other individuals who profess Christianity" B. "scriptural teachings" [paragraph 3-5] C. "The three scriptural teachings... are the foundation for our position regarding spiritual separation from other professing Christians. This is made explicit in our refraining from addressing them as our brothers and sisters, which are family titles. They denote a close kinship... those who are of the "household of faith"" Conclusion: A (individuals who profess Christianity) + C (refraining from addressing them as our brothers and sisters) = AC (individuals who profess Christianity, refraining [refrain] from addressing them as our brothers and sisters) i.e Spiritual Separation The article's conclusion does not agree with your statement: However, if you are reasonably intelligent and base your understanding of this article (without your comments) ONLY on what is ACTUALLY STATED - then it doesn't appear to be condemning of association with other denominations, calling another brother from a different denomination "brother", etc. ------------ I agree with you, however, on this point; without the in-text analysis the document does "appear" to be credible, the spirit of division is properly cloaked. ------------ AC compared to scripture: "And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?" (Mat. 5:47). "For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother" (Mark 3:35). "For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren" (Heb. 2:11). ---------- The study of the document includes "implication, analysis, interpretation, and construction" based on an understanding that the leadership proclaimed they were the only one's saved (Marching to Zion pp. 12). The 5 current practices listed below silently proclaim this past tenet, "no one was considered saved unless belonging to their church," is still embraced. 1. Rebaptism for professed, converted, and baptized Christians 2. Not referring to professed Christians as brothers and sisters 3. No communion with AC and professed Christians 4. Marriage forbidden by AC to professed Christians 5. No spiritual fellowship between AC and professed Christians Therefore, in answer to your issue, I stand by what I've written. 1. The author means AC's only 2. The author considers ALL other Christians as 'other spiritual orientations' 3. "Teachers of false doctrine, perverted gospel, misguided teachers, evil deeds, variant beliefs, and spiritual deception" lumped with together with Luke 9:49-50 (the other professing Christians) form the premise of my argument. Simply stated, The 'for us' workers have turned 'against us.' 4. Conclusions are based on what is stated and current church customs, or contextualization, as it should be.... his case is subtly prepared. Peace, Chris |
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