The hypocrisy of CGGC leader gives me the willies.
The first time it assaulted my consciousness, it altered my attitude toward the CGGC institution forever.
That was in 2010.
I was a delegate to General Conference sessions.
As a matter of history, it was only one year earlier, in 2009, that our leaders in Findlay produced a first-ever Mission Statement which was approved by the General Conference Administrative Council and was published with fanfare in a lead article, written by Ed Rosenberry, in The CHURCH ADVOCATE.
During that same time, Ed was leading a Task Force working on rewriting CGGC credentialing standards.
In 2010, that Task Force produced a 10+ page document to be presented for approval by the General Conference in session.
Even though, while the Task Force was working, the CGGC Administrative Council had created a Mission Statement declaring that we establish churches on the New Testament plan, Ed's Task Force wrote that lengthy document WITHOUT EVEN ONE REFERENCE TO NEW TESTAMENT TRUTH.
Since then, I have never been the same.
I opposed the document on the floor so passionately that when I rose to speak about it AGAIN, the President told me that I could only ask a question.
(If you weren't there, I asked, "What is the capital of South Dakota?" And, after I sat down, Steve Dunn stood to protest on my behalf.)
My characteristic of the CGGC Brand, TO TALK IS TO WALK-ISM was conceived at that moment.
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Anyway...
...in the same way...
...you may remember that I went ballistic, in 2015, in my opposition to that now pathetically failed Strategic Plan.
I blogged about it here.
I don't recall blogging the point over which I was most furious.
I was most furious that the same ERC leaders who wrote the 2015 STRATEGIC PLAN were delegates, two years earlier, at the General Conference sessions in 2013 that approved an update to We Believe and a Statement of Faith that reaffirmed that, in the CGGC, the Bible is "our only rule of faith and practice."
YET, IN DEFIANCE OF THE AUTHORITY OF THE GENERAL CONFERENCE, THERE WAS NOT EVEN A SINGLE REFERENCE TO THE AUTHORITY OF THE WORD IN THE 2015 STRATEGIC PLAN.
Hypocrisy.
Insubordination.
Authoritarianism.
All of the people of the CGGC must, by the dictate of our highest earthly authority, be "ruled" by the Bible, the Word of God.
Even the leaders.
Even ERC leaders.
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By the admission of ERC leaders, the old New Strategic Plan of 2015 has been a disaster. It was only words on a page.
The question of the moment is if ERC leaders will submit to the authority of the CGGC church body and subordinate themselves to the authority of Scripture in creating and presenting the new New Strategic Plan in 2017?
Will their plan be God's plan?
"All Scripture is god-breathed and is useful..."
Will biblical truth be the foundation of the new New Strategic Plan?
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Here's a this-world prediction. THIS IS NOT A PROPHECY. IT DOES NOT COME FROM THE SPIRIT. It's my common sense opinion based on my involvement in the CGGC for many years:
ERC leaders will not include references to the Bible in the new New Strategic Plan.
I think that for two reasons:
1. Their plan is not rooted in God's truth.
I trust the information I'm receiving, from my network within the ERC, regarding what the plan is and, based on what I'm being told, there is nothing of Jesus or the Book of Acts in it.
The plan begins with the assumption that the church is an institution with hierarchical leadership. The plan has to do with restructuring Commissions and rewriting job descriptions and, perhaps, restaffing, perhaps even, ultimately, changing Executive Directors.
It's institutional.
It's not concerned with obeying Jesus and it's not about walking by the Spirit and it's not about establishing our body on the New Testament plan.
And, excuse the hundred dollar word. If you have theological education you'll know it.
Even the most blatant eisegesis could not justify this plan. (Eisegesis is starting with your own idea and, then, finding Scripture to support it.)
I've read Dr. Richardson do eisegesis. And he is world class. He could hold seminars for Jehovah's Witnesses on taking Scripture out of context. But, based on what I'm being told about this plan, the eisegesis that would be necessary to justify this plan biblically would be so blatant to someone who loves the Word that it would be knee-slappingly laughable.
2. And, and this is built, in part, on the first reason but goes beyond it, it is more profound and it goes to the core reality that defines the CGGC's dysfunction and decline:
TO REFER TO THE WORD WOULD MAKE ERC LEADERS ACCOUNTABLE BEFORE THE BODY TO BE, AS PAUL SAYS, PEOPLE "WHO CORRECTLY HANDLE THE WORD OF TRUTH." (2 Tim. 2:15)
To cite Scripture as authority would bring ERC leaders down to the level of the remainder of the Eldership.
To cite Scripture as authority would put others in the position of being able, with evidence, to know that the ERC emperor is buck naked.
Years ago, I accused Findlay leadership of being popish in their authoritarianism. Then, I apologized to all the Popes of history and to the Roman Catholic church for comparing what CGGC leaders do to what the Popes do.
The Popes always submit to their own churchly authority and are careful to refer to Scripture, even if we see eisegesis.
CGGC leaders regularly defy the authority of the Eldership and, these days NEVER seek biblical authority for their plans. If you doubt that, look for biblical authority in the 2010 Credentialing Proposal and the despicable, failed 2015 old new Strategic Plan!
If the 2017 new New Strategic Plan includes references to the Bible, I'm convinced that there will be riots among ERC people who still love the Word. And, I suspect that ERC leaders think so, too.
ERC leaders can't make themselves accountable to the Word because they can't allow themselves to be assessed, by the members of the Conference, as people "who correctly handle the word of truth."
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Will there be Scriptural References in the new New Strategic Plan?
No.
According to the authority of the Eldership of the CGGC should there be Scriptural References in the new New Strategic Plan?
Absolutely!
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The Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing is not blessing the CGGC...
...in large part due to the hypocrisy, insubordination and authoritarianism of the people who consider themselves to be its leaders.
We must repent.
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