When people leave Stanton, they are typically talked about bashed gossiped about slandered from the pulpits of Stanton churches. Preachers, teachers, and evangelists are all fond of characterizing these former members as “fallen away.” One phrase at least one preacher is fond of using is that leaving the church is like taking a “swan dive into hell.”
Have some people, upon leaving Stanton, truly taken a “swan dive into hell” and chosen to be separated from God? Oh yeah. No doubt about it. Stanton exudes overplayed confidence that it is the only receptacle for one to plug into God. So many who leave Stanton do so just to give up on God and dive headlong into darkness. And why not? In practical terms, their experience is that you can’t live WITH Stanton, but you are also made to believe that you can’t live forever WITHOUT them. So why not just give up and succumb to the world’s temptations?
People leave, often knowing deep in their heart that what they saw was wrong. But they were so convinced that God could not exist anywhere else that they quickly plunged into self-destructive beliefs and behavior. While some come back from that brink, others don’t.
Stanton, of course, blames the victim. Certainly, everyone is responsible for their own decisions. But a fair amount of blame lies in Stanton’s own narcissistic view of itself as the only group of humans through which one can “access the blood of Christ,” as they like to say. Pretty haughty, if you ask me, and certainly not scripturally defensible.
While the “swan dive into hell” is no doubt meant to be a motivating metaphor, evoking a powerful visual and emotional response of fear, it is also meant to reinforce that STANTON = HEAVEN, and ANYWHERE ELSE = HELL. As this blog has attempted to lay out clearly, scripturally, and factually, this does not comport with reality. Stanton has no monopoly on truth, as I’ve shown clearly here in these pages. In fact, Stanton has perfected the art of speaking Biblical UNTRUTH with such supreme confidence that they can really sound convincing.
In classic irony, it turns out the person leaving is not always the one taking the “swan dive into hell.” But the person staying can be. I’m not prejudging those who are still in Stanton’s grip, or even attending in a state of silent dissent. I do believe there are some true believers within Stanton’s midst, and it’s you I’m most concerned about.
But it’s the person who teaches what they know to be false that may very well be taking that swan dive into hell for deceiving people intentionally. Believe me, there are many intelligent and Biblically literate teachers, preachers, and evangelists in the church who know that what they are teaching is blatantly false.
But is God’s grace big enough to cover their sin? That’s the question. Of course, my answer is yes—if they choose to acknowledge it, and repent of it. I’d like to have a few more brothers and sisters in Christ who are willing to renounce the church’s “swan dive into hell.”
I nevered developed critical thinking skills as an oppressed member of the Stanton group, it was greatly discouraged. The statement by one of the leaders about “those trying to destroy the church” needs closer examination. The church in the new testament was not made by man and cannot be destroyed by man. If it were possible to destroy Christ’s church then surely the emperor Nero would have done so when he was feeding Christians to the lions. Persecution only makes an church grow, it does not destroy it. The statement is false and fearmongering to intimidate the simple minded into… Read more »
What you’re saying about Stanton stifling critical thinking is absolutely true. That’s the only way they can maintain their unbiblical and tyrannical definition of “unity” (and even that is only maintained in pretense, not in fact). You *must* give your right to think (not just to speak, but to think) over to the leadership to do your thinking for you.
@ Anon “The statement by one of the leaders about ‘those trying to destroy the church’ needs closer examination.” Well said. People who study cults often refer to this as “Persecution Complex”. A brief quote describing it: “Because abusive churches see themselves as elite, they expect persecution in the world and even feed on it. Criticism and exposure by the media are seen as proof that they are the true church being persecuted by Satan. However, the persecution received by abusive churches is different from the persecution received by Jesus and the Apostles. Jesus and the Apostles were persecuted for… Read more »
Advocate, I would like to hear more on their “unity” meeting! Are you saying that people in the group are actually calling the group out and that the response of the leaders was to threaten withdrawal? Was this in their talks at the meeting, or was it in some of the “questions” that were addressed in the meeting? Thank you,
Hello Debby. My apologies if I wasn’t clear, but my comment about the SCOC being called out for their errors, I mostly meant from the blog and not at the actual meeting. Also a few of my points come from a combination of different things that have come up over the past few years that isn’t just about this years meeting which I’ll do my best to clarify. The March week meeting this year wasn’t too much different than usual from what I can tell. There was just a little bit more attention being brought to division being caused not… Read more »
Thank you! You explained it beautifully and I appreciate it 🙂
I wish I knew what they said about me as I know they would be absolutely wrong about it. I have the feeling that they kept everything from the congregation and the Evangelists as to what what really happening. From what I was getting from other people it was that I was “refusing to take teaching and standoffish”. Teaching that I was given was wrong.
You might think that leadership doesn’t know about you but you would be wrong. Leadership is briefed on a regular basis by the local preachers and teachers and leadership gives instructions on what to do with each individual member. Leadership knows almost everything about you down to the most intimate detail. It is leadership that decides when a person is to be withdrawn from, sometimes after the first offense, sometimes after the second offense, sometimes only after a third offense. It is leadership that created the doctrine of mark and avoid and selectively applies it to members deemed undesirable. Leadership… Read more »
Terrible! Did you report the pedophile to the police? Bring it to the church? Your poor son. I hope he is doing okay!
The statute if limitations has passed so there is little law enforcement can do today, however pedophiles are prolific abusers and I bring this out now to open the door for other victims to come forward and hopefully stop the abuse by this one man. Wheat and chaff is a good analogy here: some things the SCOC taught were true like Jesus Christ is the son of God, you do recieve the Holy spirit in baptism, and one should study everyday. Some things the SCOC taught were chaff, that is, lies: like you should withdraw from them of corrupt minds,… Read more »
Who remembers the time when the children’s song was changed to “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the Church”?
Trust, but verify.
Just because you dislike Stanton does not mean you should accept every single unverified allegation of abuse.
Is that the Arizona congregation? What evidence do you have to support that the individual is a pedophile? I generally trust all allegations of abuse, but, this sounds like it was written by the disaffected member from Arizona, and while I entirely agree with your sentiments all the way through you calling for a reformation, I’d like to confirm the rest of the information. Thank you! I’m skeptical of this, because Stanton has NEVER protected the abuse of children, and if they erred, they erred on the side of caution. Were they too severe and harsh in trying to protect… Read more »
Curious, I disagree. I have heard of several instances in which there was abuse and it was not reported to authorities. It wasn’t but a handful of years ago in which a parent was found sexually abusing their own child. Said person was simply withdrawn from. Still living with family, including lots of kids. Having said, that, plenty of religious organizations do this. I don’t agree with it. I think once an organization knows they have an obligation to report it. When I was in, I too felt that they didn’t tolerate it. But because they think they can “judge”… Read more »
From the church I grew up in, I know of no one who was molested, and it wasn’t reported, and the responsible member immediately leaving the church when they faced punishment. In one instance, about 12 years ago, a member was allegedly accused of molestation, was confronted about it, and simply vanished. Not sure what the church knew and didn’t know. Never came back around the church again. Was recently arrested for child molestation and possessing child porn. Not one instance of a person molesting another and being permitted to remain around children or in the church, that I know… Read more »
The pedophile should be reported to the law and arrested. Why protect someone like this? It is so dysfunctional I cannot believe it. He will continue this behavior. Leadership is not God in this cult. The congregation lets them have the power and why? Don’t you have a mind of your own to know right from wrong? Of course if you are raised in this sick environment and still in it you may not have a mind of your own because you are brainwashed. If you are reading this blog I suggest you get as far away from this cult… Read more »
Everybody should be given a second chance, the man needs to repent and confess his sin to recieve the mercy of God.
Excuse me, JOC,
Many on here have an axe to grind, but there was zero tolerance of child molestation in Stanton.
There is no evidence that it was ever tolerated. Members who showed the faintest inclination in that direction were promptly corrected and/or separated.
Excuse you Curious Chris. First JOC never commented that child molestation was tolerated. How would you know that the faintest inclination of such was promptly corrected and/ or separated. Were you in the know. True or false Curious Chris, would the police been involved if child molestation did take place? Curious Chris why do you discount the Anon claim that this did take place? True or false Curious Chris, it is a dysfunctional church (cult)?
Not sure if JOC is related to you, Craig, and if she is your mother, my apologies, I don’t know who is who. There are plenty of Stanton churches who have zero tolerance for child abuse at all, and it’s unfair to say the entire church is full of it, when there is plenty of evidence suggesting many of the autonomous churches have no such problem. Since the churches are autonomous, unless the abuse has been brought to TC and GP’s attention, and nothing has been done, then it can’t be said that Stanton endorses this behavior at all. I… Read more »
Anon you said “at one time the Merie group was true and right but when they lost their natural affection as evidenced of their cruelty to the weak, mostly children but also single mothers and the handicap they were rejected as the people of God.” I completely disagree with this statement. Merie was never true and right. First of all, you must agree with the teachings that men preach and not women. We know Merie preached plenty and usurped men everywhere she went. That is a main reason she was withdrawn multiple times and stayed in that state. As for… Read more »
Well I was wondering about Ezekiel chapter one where he mentions a wheel within a wheel. It occurs to me that it is like a group within a group like the nation of Judah inside the nation of Israel or the righteous with a city of the wicked, or those who walk in white inside a larger church who walk in darkness. How does a smaller internal group, like oh lets say like a few apostates affect a much larger congregation of the dead? How does our attitudes reflect to others the spirit that dwells in our hearts? If you… Read more »
I am a non-member who grew up VERY adjacent to the church (had family members but not parents involved). I rode to school with high-up members of the church every day and attended non-member classes when I was younger and church services occasionally.I played with the children during meetings and knew a lot of the “rules” but was young at the time. I always knew something was off about this sect, in terms of how much control they had on their members. Any organization that controls your life wholly is scary. I am curious, and maybe have not found this… Read more »
Welcome Anon! Of course it it ok to ask questions here on this blog 🙂 ! That is one of the purposes of the blog, to try and get some answers on things. What Merie’s group calls “witihdrawal” is the “withdrawing of fellowship” from a “Christian”. What it means to anyone in the group is that you cannot eat or drink with this individual, or even talk to/with them. You are allowed to talk with them only if you have express permission from a teacher, and it is only for a specific purpose. The reason for withdrawal, according to the… Read more »
It is very regrettable and tragic that few in Stanton actually study the reason for why some of us disagree with them, and instead insist on constantly barraging us with messages that we are wrong due to circumstances, wrong choices we made afterwards, and because all the teachers don’t agree with us. Stanton has a very hard time with three logical fallacies, which they repeat all the time. 1) Appeal to anecdote 2) Appeal to popular 3) Appeal to expert Something can definitely be true because of a personal experience, because it’s popular, or because a teacher said it, but… Read more »
Ryan
Duplicity runs amuck in a totalitarian group. Any totalitarian group leader will seek to control the communications of its members but not follow the judgements themselves. An example of this is with no communication is allowed with the withdrawn from, to do so will bring the heavier discipline of mark and avoid, and certainly no communication with the marked and avoided. It is certainly curious to see one who has been placed under such a heavy judgement to recently start using the colloquialisms of the tow truck preacher and the aggressive questioning style of a law enforcement trainee again much… Read more »
Hello Arizona, It’s really not proper for you, after you have filled this blog with your lies, and retreated when you were confronted about them, to be questioning anyone on anything, until you at least correct the lies you constantly publicly told on here. Until you do, your judgement is suspect at best. You have severe issues with evil surmising, and making up nonsense out of pure thin air. You do have many good points, but they are overshadowed when you dive into conspiracy theories and leave the firm ground of reason and logic. Now, you have a problem with… Read more »
When you have the gall to besmirch the monumental congressman Elijah Cummings you should consider your own value to this nation. I doubt anyone on this blog would agree with you. Your mean spirit to attack someone who has died in service to the country, shows the arrogant nature you have. What have you ever done to honor your country which defends your right to believe and express delirious religious views. Tell me Curious Coward. Speak only for yourself or not at all. What have you done but chat, chat, chat. Well You’re Full of Chat Go get Curious somewhere… Read more »
Elijah Cummings, who quite possibly may be the most corrupt politician in American Congressional history, is definitely in hell, no doubt about it. I personally, in the last 10 years, watched his lies about Hillary’s 30,000 missing e-mails (bleach bit out of existence so well even God himself can’t find them), his lies about Lois Lerner’s missing e-mails, his lies about Benghazi, and now his lies about Trump, leading the coup impeachment attempt against him. That alone was enough to get him struck. The man was a pathological liar, just like every single other Democrat politician in Washington D.C. His… Read more »
As for what I’ve done for my country, I’ve learned it’s history, and follow the religion practiced by all 204 Christian Founders. If you want to honor your country, that’s the least you can do too. And learn the basic history of it, please. When you do, you’ll never dream of supporting a Democrat again. No one should be voting or discussing politics if they haven’t read at least 5 of the 204 biographies of the Founders of America, can’t name at least 10 generals from the Civil War, or 10 Generals from World War 2. And it’s easy to… Read more »
You think I am a liar? I count that as a badge of honor. Retreat is not correct for that implies you are someone to be afraid of which you are not, more correct would be repulsed by your vile arguments. Proving all things is not the same as being impudent and sticking your nose into matters that do not concern your salvation, leave the proving or disproving of the accusation of pedophilia to leadership and law enforcement. I never claimed the SCOC was a cult but rather that their are cults within the SCOC as certain narcissistic individuals seek… Read more »
I don’t think you are a liar, I know you’ve told numerous whoppers on here. Right before you left, we posted 10 of your biggest lies. Unable to refute any of them, you turned tail and ran. Not sure how to pull that up, but if I diligently searched, which I will if you deny your lies again, I’ll copy and paste the whole list again. One of the biggest was confidently hinting GP has homosexual ideations, without the remotest shred of proof. One of the grossest cases of evil surmising I’ve seen in my life. Don’t fear me, fear… Read more »
Well lets try a different approach. With metaphors you have two kinds: those that can be divided into their respective parts and those that can’t . The parable of the seed and sower can be divided into different parts such as what the seed represents, whom the sower is, and what the earth is, this is an external metaphor and application to the individual and then you have the parable of the eye and the body which cannot be divided this is an internal metaphor and application. In the parable of the eye being the light of the body it… Read more »
I’ll have to agree with Anon using the word narcissist when referring to members of Merie’s cult. Particularly GP the self professed control freak. I’ll add TC, KS and the tow truck preacher as Anon calls him as narcissist as well. Oops let’s not forget Merie who instilled the narcissistic way into the cult. Many many more narcissist within the group. It is who they are plain and simple. Curious Chris the track record of Merie’s cult is horrible. I’m hearing from others about them and trust me it’s ugly. It’s just not one now who has said child molestation… Read more »
We completely agree that organizations are defined by the leaders, however, there is not any indication that the leaders knowingly covered up sexual abuse at all. There are two considerations here. First, no one should be abused, and certainly not sexually abused by anyone. So, allegations need to be investigated, and PROVED, and necessary action taken. Secondly, it needs to be realized the Marxist left hates Christians, and though they have no sexual morals to speak of themselves, they will hide their sexual debauchery from the media, and come on and decry any moral wrongdoing of conservatives or Christians. That’s… Read more »
Amazing we finally agree on something. Using the claim of being subverted as grounds for rejection for any other sin than being a heretic is a slippery slope. In my childs case he is subverted, that is corrupted due to molestation by a sharing preacher in the SCOC, so who bears the responsibility for desexaulizing him from a church leader which corrupted him? I am currently encouraging him out his depression and drug and alcohol abuses as a result of his being abused. Can I declare the leadership subverted and reject them for their dereliction of duty in failing to… Read more »
Aversion therapy that is the pairing of an unpleasant experience with an undesirable behavior is older than most think. In the gospel there is an account of Christ meeting a man with many devils calling themselves “Legion” and the devils pleaded with Christ to let them go into a herd of swine, and the result was that both ran into the sea and were drown . If you look at Satan personified he can be an individual like Cain, or Pharaoh, or Judas but Satan can also he personified as a group of like minded individuals like a band of… Read more »
As far as using the word “Cult” and all of its negative connotations lets examine how religion operates. Most mainline religions are people pleasing organizations with little biblical teaching, they accept anyone good or bad into their membership. A cult goes to the other extreme demanding overbearing amounts of time a resources from its members, it is spiritual slavery. Cults will have similar requirements and behaviors but no connection to each other, by juxtaposing cult groups behaviors you can draw understanding from their similar behaviors. Cults start by introducing restrictions on a members behavior, usually the ten commandments and once… Read more »
Aversion therapy does not work with every individual. When I was in the military I saw many men become alcoholics and the military method of dealing with alcoholism was to prescribe a drug called “antabuse ” which caused nausea and vomiting if the person consumed alcohol. Some men tried to drink while on antabuse got sick and quit drinking but others would drink until they vomited then continue to drink because the antabuse was out of their system after two or three vomiting. They resisted the aversion therapy continued in their alcoholism and were given a “other than honorable ”… Read more »
2 Corinthians 2:11 says we should be ignorant of Satans devices which are lying, bribery, theft, violence, terror, and seduction to name but a few of his wicked devices which corrupt a man on the inside . Proverbs 16:32 tells us that he that controls his spirit is greater than he that takes a city and we can infer that the internal battles are more difficult than the external battles. The tenth commandment “thou shalt not covet” Exodus 20:17 requires an internal battle, a self discipline, a self restriction as all the commandments which say “thou shalt not” do as… Read more »
In identifying the behaviors of an abused individual it is the silent or muted behaviors that need to be identified and questioned. A normal child will display trust and reliance upon the parent( this is built when the parent feeds and cares for the child), a neglected or abused child will display distrust and avoidance of the neglectful or abusive authority figure. A normal child will display initiative and start doing things for themselves, an abused child will display guilt, that is fearfulness and not do things for themselves. A normal individual will become industrious and start building themselves up… Read more »
It would be nice, anonymous from Arizona, if you would stow the Marxist psychobabble, and apologize for the lies you’ve filled Kevin’s blog with. Everything you write about abused individuals going into isolation, is what happened to Godly Elijah, so there goes your narrative. It also closely mirrors Christ’s life. So, rather than rely on the psychiatric nonsense of the past two centuries, I’d recommend you go deeper into history. I recommend you read “The Dumbest Generation”, a brilliant overview of the intellectual sinkhole America is in, and “Deliberately Dumbing down America”, by Charlotte Iserbyt. These are brilliant exposes of… Read more »
Anyone who escaped the oppressive Phoenix/Prescott Valley congregations under the rule of DS the tow truck preacher, all I can say is good for you. I actually challenge the tow truck preacher to answer some questions from me. (360) 721-2352, craigcusick52@gmail.com
Proverbs 23:1-2 teaches us that we should be careful before eating with a ruler and we see in 1 Samuel 20:5-7 that David checked the geart of King Saul before eating with him and saw that his geart was not with David and he refused to eat and saved his own life. We see also i. Daniel 1:8-15 How Daniel proved the heart of his direct ruler and found that he was willing to allow Daniel not to eat the kings meat and that they were of the same heart. We see also in John 13:26 a man who did… Read more »
I never saw a lying heart approved by God, in the Bible, Arizona. Must have missed that one. Can you edify me where I might find that? In the past, tried to ignore the flagrant untruths you told, and simply state what truths I perceived, but alas, I soon joined the group that was being maligned. So, how about you repeat what the Bible has to say about hearing false witness. Telling an untruth publicly, requires a public retraction as well. This is part of why Stanton’s teachers have such a hard time, because admitting they are wrong, publicly, is… Read more »
It is quite disconcerting to see how feelings and emotions are such a massive part of Stanton. It’s womanish thinking. So many preachers preach on how we are to look happy in Stanton. Well, last I checked, people on television, and in Hollyweird, all look happy too, constantly, yet, few think they are really happy or righteous people. Further, there are plenty of people in false churches who look happy. But, that certainly is not a test of godliness. Catholics, Muslims, JW’s, and Mormons all look happy constantly, but that doesn’t mean anything, because all of their doctrines contradict the… Read more »
I curious what do you think about the woman mentioned in 2 Samuel 20:16-22?
I think she has a lot to teach Stanton. Sheba rebelled against God, and he had a nasty end.
Stanton rebel’s against Gods plan for salvation, and refuses to reconsider despite enduring massive chastisement.
Sheba’s rebellion led to the loss of his head, Stanton’s rebellion has resulted in severe chastisement to their leaders.
Let me ask you then about Matthew 7:21-27 how that many will try and justify themselves with external works but never mention any internal works and applying that to the vacuous teachings of today what do you practice yourself as far as identifying false beliefs in oneself(whether taught by others or concieved by self) , how do you cut off or circumcise those evil desires that come from false beliefs, and thus control your fountain of thoughts? For me the external works of attending bible studies and the doing of the personal work for years taught me little to nothing… Read more »
A very timely question. Just read, yesterday morning, John Owens ‘Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers’. The Puritans were brilliant. In the entire 14 chapters, he never detailed the church having a role to play. Of course, Stanton appears to more closely resemble the Catholic Church than it does the New Testament church, or even Alexander Campbell’s Church of Christ in 1809. Chapter 12, on humility began with, ‘We need to be exercised with such meditations as will fill us at all times with self-abasement and thoughts of our own vileness.’ Stanton largely does teach this. The past November… Read more »
To elaborate on the point on Abraham and Abimelech, I did not complete it, and was rushed. The point is, Abimelech was severely punished and plagued by God for daring to take what was not lawfully his, due to his ignorance. He didn’t know beautiful Sarai was Abraham’s wife, as Abraham, out of fear, advertised her as his sister. So too, Stanton, not realizing that God has the ability to heal at his time and using his methods, determines they alone can determine whether souls are healed or not. This attitude does more damage than good, and as Abimelech imposed… Read more »
I find that in learning the metaphorical language that new worlds open up before me. Water is a metaphor for knowledge and when applied I can see too much knowledge can drown a person and too little can create a desert. Where there is little knowledge of God, metaphorical no living waters, there is no kindness, no natural affection, as seen in many countries today. In Genesis it talks about four great rivers that created life and if you apply the metaphor of water as knowledge in the new testament you find four gospels of Christ that create a spiritual… Read more »
Guatama Buddha, is that you?
In Mark 8 we read of the healing of a blind man and when asked how he saw he said “I see men walking as trees” while I thought for a long time that this was the result of a partial healing I now understand that the man was seeing men metaphorically. Trees are helpers and as there are many different kinds of trees so there are many different kinds of men (and women). When I was in Amarillo Texas it was very flat and almost no trees at all and metaphorically I know from this that there are lands… Read more »
A great blog post from Lori Alexander at “The Transformed Wife.” The root of quite a few of Stanton’s problems. Stanton never would have come into existence were it not for Merie’s rebellion against Gods order. Hundreds of the women in Stanton are imitating her rebellious defiance of God. Is your husband truly the head of your family? There is a lot of contention among believers over many things. This should not be named among believers in Jesus Christ! “But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another” (Galatians 5:15). Yes,… Read more »
From the estimable Lori Alexander at ‘The Transformed Wife’. The problem with Stanton starts with it’s inception. Merie Weis had no mandate from God to go start another church. Stanton was doomed from the start. Like most ideas that have short term promise, but are flawed, Stanton started strong, but due to the lack of vision of Merie, it’s floundering now. If it doesn’t return to the vision of the First Century church which was ably propounded by Luther and Alexander Campbell, it simply will be over in a short while. It’s abysmal growth, which is a natural result of… Read more »
I have to ask your opinion again of the wise woman mentioned in 2 Samuel 20:14-22. When she said she was a mother in Israel does it mean she had physical children or does it mean she was a woman of spiritual authority with spiritual children? If she is a spiritual mother then is it not implied she was a eunuch and like the Ethopian eunuch mentioned in Acts 8 of great authority? Who was this wise woman to speak to Joab a man of great authority unless she was equal to, or as implied by Joabs submission to her,… Read more »
Thank you for that question, my friend. That was the Old Testament, Number one. Number two, the wise woman in 2 Samuel 20 was dealing with a corrupt Joab, who was later put to death by Solomon for spilling so much innocent blood, as he not only murdered Amasa and Abner, he also violated David’s orders and killed Absalom. So, it makes sense that Joab was out of line, and this woman was out of her place too. Amasa had been killed right before this by Joab, and should have been the one pursuing Sheba. Joab was a nephew of… Read more »
I do believe Merie went to heaven, and do not want to detract from the fact she had many wonderful qualities. However, God never instructed any woman in the past 2,000 years to go ahead and start a church. Had she started Stanton, and then had men lead the church, and chose not to teach classes to men, she would have been fine. But, it was under her leadership that some pretty uncriptural teachings got started. Since pornography was legalized in 1969, it is easy to see the men in America are the weakest they’ve ever been since 1960. So,… Read more »
Women only get out of line when men are weak and let them. That goes for Eve, Sarah, Merie, and all the women teachers in Stanton today. It also goes for today’s corrupt Democrat party, which is composed of majority women, and without women voting, it would collapse. Like the Democrat party, Stanton doesn’t tolerate dissent, emasculates men commonly, and due to domineering women, it leads to Satan getting an advantage with temptation, and pushing men into the uncleanness and pornography that Stanton professes to abhor, yet it encourages the roots in it’s midst. Merie did have a lot of… Read more »
Trust: firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. Draconian: (of laws or their application) excessively harsh and severe. Draconian comes from Draco, the name of a 7th-century B.C. Athenian legislator who created a written code of law. Draco’s code was intended to clarify preexistent laws, but its severity is what made it really memorable. In Draco’s code, even minor offenses were punishable by death, and failure to pay one’s debts could result in slavery. The Gospel is the Law and Love combining. The above definitions are included to highlight where Stanton fails in both… Read more »
What is your judgment on whether a leader is wise or foolish? I read in proverbs 8 the behavioral patterns of wise leaders. In 8:1 it asks a question that seems rhetorical at first but upon closer examination is the identifying behavior of the wise. If you substitute God for wisdom and understanding and in 8:5 Adam and Eve for simple and fools and look at 8:36 those that reject the wisdom die and Adam and Eve died spiritually when they sinned, then substitute Noah in 8:1 for wisdom and in 8:36 I find again that those who rejected Noah’s… Read more »
Wisdom comes from the Bible. Leaders behavior is key, but, by that logic, you could not have followed David (adulterer, murderer), Abraham (liar), Moses (murderer), Jacob (liar), or Isaac (liar). So there is righteousness to consider. Following a willful and impenitent sinner is a very bad idea, but, many, who have known Gods grace, are great leaders. Those who have been forgiven the most, love the most. Part of the problem with Stanton is they cannot understand how God can forgive a wretched sinner, and how it is his pleasure and glory to rescue the perishing, and to resurrect them… Read more »
I am curious about your opinion on split judgments. Solomon in rendering his judgment said cut the baby in half which revealed the true mother and gave us an example of how to reveal the heart and then make a proper judgment. Christ also gave a split judgment when asked if one should pay tribute to Ceasar or not and his answer was to meet both responsiblities pay Ceasar his portion and still pay their tithes as was required by the Jewish law, and Paul the apostle gave a split judgment when teaching about the difference between a wife and… Read more »
I am also curious about your opinion on making value judgments. In proverbs 10:20 it says the tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth from this I infer that the wise make value judgments about other individuals. In proverbs 9 it says that wisdom has gewn out her seven pillars and I infer that these would be wood pillars because wood was hewn into square beams, thus strong beams. If wisdom was going to build a city, and a church is a type of city, in that it is a place… Read more »
Certainly, I’d be glad to answer, and thank you for your question. Carnal and spiritual teaching is part of life. For the former we have schools, and for the latter we have churches, though our nations Ivy League universities, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, etc…were initially begun to raise ministers and to spread the truth of God’s word. Massachusetts passed the Old Deluder Satan Act in 1647, laying the basis for public schools in America. The Puritans valued literacy highly; they believed all individuals should be able to read and interpret the Bible for themselves. In 1642 Massachusetts had required parents… Read more »
Merie was obviously foolish. Look what she created. Who was the force behind the unscriptural withdrawals of uncleanness and the defiled marriage that you mentioned Curious Chris? Merie of course. She died while still enforcing unscriptural withdrawals. How many marriages did she disrupt and or ruin because of her unrighteous judgements? Families destroyed? A very unwise person to say the least Merie Weiss was. Her bad fruit continues with the leadership of the cult today.
She definitely stood for a few foolish ideals, but considering she was in California, a hotbed of Marxist activity when she was teaching, that has led us to our current dysfunction, she must be highly commended for her boldness and bravery. We do not define Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob on the lies they told, though they all told lies, and if we wish to obtain mercy for our faults, we should be merciful to others for theirs. I honestly think it was HC, not Merie behind the withdrawals for uncleanness and a defiled marriage bed, Craig. I have heard from… Read more »
Yet the oppressive Merie you say is in heaven. The very one who started the mess of a church that can easily be identified as a cult.
Her teaching and that of those who followed was much different. However, she set a bad precedent with women teaching. The entire church is dominated by women’s feelings. It won’t begin to grow until women return to the sphere God designed for them. Probably because it started in Southern and Northern California, both hotbeds of Communist feminism, which definitely rubbed off on some of the women, long after they joined the church. Domineering can easily be used to describe some of them. I can just imagine what goes on in the homes of certain married couples in Stanton. To try… Read more »
Stanton has gone on Jihad against me for the last 11 years, for the crime of disagreeing with actions they took that disagreed with God. Why don’t more in Stanton stand up against these obviously unscriptural teachings? Because the teachers in Stanton commonly know EVERYTHING there is to know about all members. It’s part of assimilating new members. Whenever you speak out, before you do it, you think very carefully about what the teachers know about you, and what they will use against you. I know, because this was a painful consideration I had to take in 2008. I had… Read more »
James 1:19-20 Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath, for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. This is a very good verse for reflection. I honestly can say I have no grudges against any in Stanton. While it is the greatest struggle of my life to rejoice with those who rejoice, and sorrow with those who sorrow, despite being unscripturally withdrawn from by them, and refusing to respond to evil with evil, I do my best. I honestly wish harm to none, and still hope the best for all.… Read more »
My withdrawal literally ripped my family apart. Of course, Stanton will say that’s my fault, and I’m selfish for objecting to oppressive treatment, that I should have shut up and taken it, for the sake of being united, and not rocking the boat. Nonsense. No one was commanded by God, especially the men, to stay silent in the face of oppression. My parents marriage was rocked, as it never had been before. The women in Stanton, with their busybody habits have been interfering in my family for years. Constantly encouraging my brothers and sisters to be brought into other Christians… Read more »
Amazingly, the leaders plan well in advance. Before I was withdrawn from, there were people talking about me behind closed doors. My parents, for the first time, and only time, in their entire Christianity, were invited to the teachers home, with all my siblings. The leaders were afraid of what would happen, and well they should have been. Treachery has much to fear. “Dictators ride to and fro upon tigers which they dare not dismount. And the tigers are getting hungry.” Winston Churchill Also, the leaders had other men in the church try to contact me to tell me to… Read more »
But, what happened to me isn’t so bad. I knew to turn to God and the Bible. However, taking away a church environment for not only 15 of my siblings, since people naturally want nothing to do with tyranny, as the human soul naturally craves liberty, but also dozens of other Christian kids, if not hundreds, is so very tragically wrong, and an abuse of power. Mind you, I’ve never told anyone to avoid Stanton or not to come. All I do is tell them all the details of what happened, my side and Stanton’s, and no one who I’ve… Read more »
Yet, this is what Stanton does today. Stubbornly enforcing what God never told them to enforce. Matthew 23:15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. New people in the church are carefully taught to support this completely bogus and unscriptural withdrawal. Stanton’s leaders are in hot water with God, for taking new believers, who are innocent and trusting, and deceiving them to support judgements GOD NEVER COMMANDED. When a Christian leader leads entire churches… Read more »
Whether the old testament or new the principles of wisdom are the same and that is with wisdom comes authority and with authority comes leadership regardless of gender. Wisdom gives one the ability to take the abstract seed and apply it to produce concrete fruits and also the ability to look at concrete fruits and deduce the abstract. In acts 8 we read of a eunuch of great authority and what was he doing in his chariot? Studying. He had authority because he had wisdom, he had wisdom because he was habitually studious. Christ was also a eunuch of great… Read more »
There are no female preachers or teachers in the New Testament. Priscilla ministered with her husband individually. No woman in the New Testament is ever shown teaching men, period, in public. This Marxist feminism has infiltrated the church, and emasculated it. The church is far more in tune with feelings than with truth. I just attended a political rally for a Republican Candidate for Congress today. He is married, and has four children. He’s a worship pastor, has long hair, is a musician, and spreads the gospel through music. I’m repeating what he says about himself, and I’m not interjecting… Read more »
But, our conversation got pretty pointed, and he insisted the Spirit leads us into truth and we must listen to it, and facts and the Bible don’t really matter. Examined critically, what this is saying, is the subjective opinion of every human being is important and can be regarded as truth, which it certainly is not. We parted somewhat amicably, but the biblical illiteracy in the church is a massive problem, and the leaders are to blame. They constantly skirt blame by minimizing the importance of the Bible, and constantly encouraging people to follow them ‘as they follow Christ’. Well,… Read more »
I am curious about your understanding of the words prophecy and prophesy. I understand that prophecy is a prediction; a foretelling of future events and prophesy an utterance; a form of teaching. In Acts 2:17-18 I read of the fulfilling of the prophecy of the prophet Joel where it say your sons and daughters shall prophesy, that is to give utterance to teach and in :18 it says that both the servants and handmaiden shall prophesy that is to teach. Also in Acts 21:9 it tells of a man named Phillip which had four daughters that did prophesy, again teach.… Read more »
The only difference between prophecy and prophesy is the first is a noun and the second a verb. To prophesy is to proclaim. The prophecy is what was proclaimed. Usually the meaning in scripture is foretelling, but sometimes it’s used in a context where it’s simply proclaiming or preaching truth.
I concur with Kevin. Women have a very important role to play, but, it’s not teaching and voting. Agree with searching the scriptures, however, we’ve had 2,000 years of those trying to obey the scriptures and it’s pretty arrogant to throw that all out and believe the studies of the last 50+ years by a few in Stanton are all that matters. The only losers when a person is proud and refuses to learn from others, is themselves. Stanton’s leaders will not tolerate any disagreement with their doctrines, no matter how valid the scriptural understanding may be. “The simple believe… Read more »
“649 Please!!” That was the song request of the beloved CS, who moved to Vallejo to court a young lady, and ended up being courted into the Navy a few years later. From the South, with a distinct Southern Drawl, he had an infectious laugh, and was a model roommate. Of course, that was the song number of ‘Battle Hymn of the Republic’ a favorite song of mine, and Abraham Lincoln’s, written by Julia Ward Howe. It was the song Union Soldiers marched to battle listening to, and it was the last song some of them ever heard in this… Read more »
The sermon also used Luke 3:14 which says “And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.” Now, this is John the Baptist, likely talking to soldiers in the Roman Army, who were notorious for being corrupt, and seditious. Reading Gibbons wonderful, ‘The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire’, one discovers these soldiers constantly waged revolts that removed emperors for power, when they didn’t get paid what they wanted to be paid. This is not… Read more »
Finally, just received this morning (first time Amazon delivered on a Sunday Morning), Walter Lippman’s seminal “Popular Opinion”. While he was a liberal leftist, he was involved in the propaganda of the first World War, and discovered how the minds of the people are easily confused and manipulated by media and disinformation. He was praised by John Dewey, who was a key figure in ruining the American education system, and creating students who were trained to think of themselves as cogs in a machine (sound familiar to anyone attending Stanton, or monitoring the Democrat party?), and who were severely discouraged… Read more »
Why were we never taught in history class the names of the leaders of the bolsheviks in Russia, who were responsible for murdering 40 million?
Because when you view the names, you begin to understand what tribe was responsible, and that same tribe controls our media, schools, tech companies, corporations, victim, groups, and much more, and they do not wish to be discovered.