The Way, It Was

[Raf]

Anyone know where the letter went? I don't see it anywhere.

[bfh]

Looks like they took it down, but WordWolf copied it in its entirety in post #73.

[Belle]

DARN THOSE GREASESPOTS!!

Here ya go, Raf:

Here's John's latest advertisement to the GSC and anyone else....

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The Way, It Was - June 2008 letter by John Lynn

In the interest of truth, both small “t” (the facts about The Way International) and capital “T” (the Word of God it taught), I am compelled to propose why I think The Way International was (past tense), from a certain perspective, one of the most significant movements in the history of the Christian Church. I do so for the benefit of any graduate of the “Power For Abundant Living” class who still wants to live for the Lord and who may have been unduly discouraged, either by his/her own experience in The Way or by the ensuing barrage of negatives from other ex-Way saints about what was wrong with The Way.

Given that I was one of the top ministry leaders from 1967-1987, I speak with experiential knowledge. Furthermore, I have spent the past 21 years continuing to dig into the Word of God along with knowledgeable Christians, and, in the process, re-evaluating everything we were taught. I speak with great thankfulness for the truth I heard in The Way (hereinafter TWI), with no doubt that God led me to it, and then away from it. And though I left with some wounds, I also took with me the resources I had been given that enabled me to be healed from those wounds and help others do likewise.

I speak so that you can know “the rest of the story,” as opposed to all the disparaging things that have been said about The Way through the years by the media (much of that false), other Christians (much of that false), and disgruntled former followers (much of that true, some of it false). My purpose is to set forth a much more redemptive view of The Way than what I have thus far read from others with “ex-Way vision.” In some ways, this is a sequel to my March, 1988 letter in which I blew the whistle about what was then going on in TWI.

Yes, there was more doctrinal error than I ever realized while I was in TWI, and there was corresponding practical error that became more evil than most of us involved ever imagined. Yes, many precious people were terribly abused. Yes, there was dishonesty about Scripture, there was plagiarism, and there was rampant sexual sin, all of which contributed to many people choosing to turn away from God and His Word. And as I realized these things, I did speak out about them, both publicly and privately, from 1987 until about 2000, after which TWI had marginalized itself in Christendom.

Perhaps worst of all, a golden opportunity to make known the Word of God, as it had not been known since the first century, was squandered. I will elaborate upon why that is true from a doctrinal standpoint, but when else in the history of the Christian Church has there ever been such a cadre of thousands of young, energetic, enthused, biblically knowledgeable, logistically equipped, organizationally backed, diverse, multi-lingual, mobile, available, and committed-to-“It-is-written” men and women with leadership qualities who were willing to go anywhere and spread the Word? Certainly not often in the past 2000 years. Thank God that many of these students of the Word became teachers themselves, and were thus able to recognize the errors that crept into TWI.

The Way. It was. What was it? First and foremost, it was, from about 1955-1987, the only place I know of where anyone could hear the amount of truth of the Word of God that we heard. Why? In large part because God led Victor Paul Wierwille to the work of E.W. Bullinger, whose approach to Scripture was virtually unique. That is what allowed Wierwille, and thus TWI to an even greater degree, thanks to the quality men and women with research ability whom it attracted, to put the Word together like it had not been known since the first century Church.

The sad thing was that I, and many others, became too proud of our knowledge, and failed to couple it with enough of a humble, heartfelt desire to obey God and become like Jesus Christ. We became too arrogant toward other Christians, thinking that our study of truth somehow made us more “approved before God” than they. To a degree, we became more like hearers of the Word than doers, and often deceived our selves. BUT, the antidote to that is not to throw out the baby with the bathwater, because without knowledge of truth, there can be little practice of it.

Why did God have a need for The Way International? Actually, He didn’t. But He did have a need for any group of people who would make known what, or close to what, the Apostle Paul taught once the whole of what we now read in the Church Epistles had been unfolded to him. Why was there such a need? Because true Christian doctrine had all but disappeared from the spectrum of Church history by the 4th century. It was then that the Roman Catholic Church began based upon a bunch of fables mixed with Christian verbiage, established a monolithic ecclesiastical hierarchy, and for more than a thousand years dominated the European religious landscape, killing countless dissenters and for the most part silencing the rest.

When Martin Luther came along (1517 was when he nailed his 95 Theses on the church door at Wittenburg), thank God he did recognize justification by faith rather than by works, but what we today refer to as the "Reformation" of the Roman Catholic Church was very limited in scope. Much of the Roman Catholic doctrine was assimilated into Protestantism and is still being passed along as Christian groups continue to split off from one another. In a nutshell, that is why even the independent church in your neighborhood today most probably believes that there is a Trinity, dead people are alive, God is in control of everything that happens, the Four Gospels are written to Christians, water baptism is relevant, and maybe even that the Bible is not absolute truth.

I don’t know where else we could have heard the “package” of biblical truth we heard in TWI. Admittedly, most of the major doctrinal components of that package were being taught by some Christians, with varying degrees of accuracy, but none that I know of put together as many into a package as TWI did. Let’s begin with what I mentioned about E.W. Bullinger’s contribution to TWI, which was HUGE, because his basic approach to Scripture is what facilitates one being able to discover its inherent keys and utilize them to derive the Author’s originally intended meaning.

TWI taught us to approach the Word with the “It is written” conviction that it is what it says it is, and that it cannot contradict itself. That alone is enough to at least identify error about the Bible, and the keys to the Word’s interpretation we were taught enabled us to understand it, take its truth into our hearts, and apply it on a daily basis.

Given that the identity of Jesus Christ is the world’s biggest deal, I would have to say that chief among the wonderful biblical truths we heard in TWI was that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (not God), the Man who mediates between God and men, and that the Trinity is a pagan fable. Some ex-Way saints now say this distinction is not that important, but I assert that God thinks differently, given what He says in His Word (e.g., 2 Cor. 4:3,4). Yes, TWI failed to teach us that we can have an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus, but there were not too many other places where we could have heard that Jesus is not the “eternally begotten” Second Person of the Trinity.

I’d have to say that the next most important biblical truth we heard in TWI was what we then called the “Mystery,” and, correspondingly, what parts of Scripture are written to Jews, to Gentiles, or to Christians regarding either the past, the present, or the future. For the record, we have since learned that “Sacred Secret” is a more accurate way of rendering the Greek, musterion.

Ephesians is the apex of the Church Epistles (the primary curriculum for Christian living), and it clearly shows that the Body of Christ (the “one new man” of Chapter 2, verse 15) is the most unique group of people who have ever lived, chiefly because of the permanence of our salvation and our holy spirit equipping. 1 Corinthians 2:8 chimes in with the monumental (and generally overlooked) truth that had Satan known the Sacred Secret, he would not have crucified Jesus!

In terms of biblical error that is practically debilitating to one’s quality of life,

I see nothing more important than knowing what Scripture is written to whom, when, and in particular what is written to us as Christians today. The Church’s failure to understand this central truth has led to its trying to live in accordance with directives pertaining to other people at other times. It is only in the Church Epistles that a Christian finds his true identity “in Christ,” as well as his true Hope. Simply put, the Word of God will never fit together without contradiction if one does not understand the “administrations” therein, and in particular this current “administration of the Sacred Secret” (Eph. 3:9).

Yes, there are quite a few Christians who have a “Dispensational” view of Scripture, but the vast majority of them fail to grasp that Jesus is not God and that he did not know the Sacred Secret. Most think that parts of the Four Gospels and of the Book of Revelation speak of the Christian Church, but that is not the case. The Gospels record the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about Christ’s first coming to the earth to Israel (his suffering), and Revelation records the fulfillment of the prophecies about his second coming to the earth to Israel (his glory).

Another major truth we learned in TWI, which is unknown to most Christians, is that of the Giver and the gift, and, correspondingly, that speaking in tongues is available to all Christians because it is a manifestation of holy spirit, not a gift. We also learned the indispensable truth that speaking in tongues is the only absolute proof that one is saved. How many tens of thousands of people did those truths alone set free?

TWI also taught us that death is, in fact, the end of life, and that our true Hope for new life in the coming age is to be raised from the dead and meet the Lord Jesus in the air prior to the Tribulation (the “time of Jacob’s trouble” – Jer.30:7). What percentage of Christians do you think know this? Although TWI failed to teach us that Paradise (the new earth), not heaven, will be our everlasting home, thank God we learned that resurrection is much more than an incorporeal “soul” once again getting a body.

And TWI pointed us toward an understanding of the figures of speech in the Bible (thanks to Bullinger), of which little is known in theological circles. This included the figurative language in the Old Testament that helped us see that God is not responsible for evil or suffering, nor is He in control of everything that happens.

Like I, you may know of some ministries that do teach some of these truths, but I submit that until 1987 there was nowhere other than TWI to find all of them taught as accurately as they were there. That is why The Way International stands out on the spectrum of Church history as an amazingly significant Christian movement.

As far as I can see, TWI was also about the most disparate dichotomy of good and evil in the history of Christianity. Like the wheat and the tares growing up together, tremendous truth and egregious evil shared the ministry platform. Many people look back on their TWI experience with nothing but thankfulness, while others rue their free will choice to stay involved as long as they did because of the abuse they suffered. Some have been stymied by self-condemnation due to the abuses they themselves committed. No doubt there are also many who recognize that they heard the Word like they never had, who have allowed the Lord Jesus to heal any wounds they suffered in TWI, and who have since experienced spiritual growth far beyond what they ever imagined back in “the good old days.”

I hope you are in that last category, and if you’re not, you can be. Even if people badly abused and disappointed you, you can turn to the Lord Jesus, he who is The Way to wholeness in all categories of heart and life. His love and truth will heal your heart and help you forgive and move forward with him toward the same goal you once had. You have a ministry in the Body of Christ, and he who is the Head longs to help you fulfill that calling. It was neither your heavenly Father nor your Lord who hurt you, nor does whatever happened to you change anything the Word says. God’s promises are still true, and they are yours for the believing.

The Way, we were. If you once sat through PFAL, you heard the Word of God taught more accurately than the vast majority of Christians who have ever drawn breath. As a fellow PFAL grad, I identify with you, and have an affinity for you and a desire to encourage you to take advantage of the truth you once heard, if you are not already doing so. Along with me, you will one day stand before our precious Lord Jesus Christ, who will reward you according to how you have lived your life as a Christian. In essence, he will ask each of us something like this: “What did you do with what you knew?”

For a detailed list of biblical subjects I think TWI mishandled, click here.

If you would like to discuss with me about what I have written, please contact me at jalces@aol.com

Please check out what we are doing to keep the Word alive and moving all over the world:

www.STFonline.org and www.TruthOrTradition.com

Your brother in Christ,

John A. Lynn

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[And, again, with WordWolf's replies.]

[Here's JAL's latest letter. Again, he's pretending it won't be seen and discussed at the GSC.

And that he's not trying to insult the posters at the GSC.]

The Way, It Was - June 2008 letter by John Lynn

In the interest of truth, both small “t” (the facts about The Way International) and capital “T” (the Word of God it taught), I am compelled to propose why I think The Way International was (past tense), from a certain perspective, one of the most significant movements in the history of the Christian Church.

[Actually, twi was a SUBVERSION both of BG Leonard's ministry (having his materials so coldly stolen by vpw

was discouraging to Leonard, which is understandable) and a SUBVERSION of the Jesus People movement, since it had

them interest Christians in hearing- then swapped the Jesus People they were listening to (like H33fn3r and D**p)

for vpw and people he trained personally.

From that perspective, it HINDERED the Christian Church on two levels.

The one comfort is that, relatively speaking, the numbers of people who were affected (and some savaged) by twi were

miniscule. Across a 35 year period, less than 100,000 people took pfal worldwide. That's less than CURRENT numbers

of Christians in specific denominations in some major cities (including their metro areas.)]

I do so for the benefit of any graduate of the “Power For Abundant Living” class who still wants to live for the Lord and who may have been unduly discouraged, either by his/her own experience in The Way

[some were nearly destroyed by twi. A few WERE destroyed by twi. I think those who were will need more than a few slogans

to heal up, and they certainly are going to need counselors more competent than those whose claims to "trained" are

"I was trained in twi." They also will need approaches more compassionate and gentle than the 2 x 4 favored by Momentus grads

in general.]

or by the ensuing barrage of negatives from other ex-Way saints about what was wrong with The Way.

[That's one of those "barrages of negatives" JAL intends to refer to the GSC without saying the name. Naturally, he's never noticed

that some discussions have been neutral, others have been positive. From HIS perspective, the "negative" ones predominate, probably

because they interfere with him prostelytizing ex-twi. Hard to tell people vpw was a man to admire when all his felonies and disgusting

abuses of God's people are common knowledge.]

Given that I was one of the top ministry leaders from 1967-1987, I speak with experiential knowledge. Furthermore, I have spent the past 21 years continuing to dig into the Word of God along with knowledgeable Christians, and, in the process, re-evaluating everything we were taught. I speak with great thankfulness for the truth I heard in The Way (hereinafter TWI), with no doubt that God led me to it, and then away from it. And though I left with some wounds, I also took with me the resources I had been given that enabled me to be healed from those wounds and help others do likewise.

[Naturally, the methods for "healing" came from twi, the same twi that crushed Christians with dangerous doctrines and dangerous

practices...but the ones JAL wishes to retain are all 100% safe, of course.

Also of course, those who wish to be healed up from twi should go to JAL, and also retain most of the doctrines of the organization

they need healing from in the first place. To heal up elsewhere is NOT to be recommended.]

I speak so that you can know “the rest of the story,” as opposed to all the disparaging things that have been said about The Way through the years by the media (much of that false), other Christians (much of that false), and disgruntled former followers (much of that true, some of it false). My purpose is to set forth a much more redemptive view of The Way than what I have thus far read from others with “ex-Way vision.” In some ways, this is a sequel to my March, 1988 letter in which I blew the whistle about what was then going on in TWI.

[in short, if you want to know the truth of twi, you have to discard anything you heard at the GSC, and take your information

EXCLUSIVELY from JAL. All other former members, even former leaders, are not to be trusted. JAL's the SOLE exception,

and the only approach is a careful PRAISING of twi. Can't be a COMPLETE praising, since the conclusion has to be

"CES/STFI is the sole source of accurate Christianity", so praise must be qualified carefully.]

Yes, there was more doctrinal error than I ever realized while I was in TWI, and there was corresponding practical error that became more evil than most of us involved ever imagined. Yes, many precious people were terribly abused. Yes, there was dishonesty about Scripture, there was plagiarism, and there was rampant sexual sin, all of which contributed to many people choosing to turn away from God and His Word.

[i'd go so far as to say that most ex-twi are STILL CHRISTIANS. They turned to God for healing, but they turned away from

twi and twi-style approaches. Of course, to those like JAL whose own "ex-Way vision" require he view EVERYTHING with the color-filters

provided by twi, to turn away from twi-style is to "turn away from God and His Word."

So, you can join CES/STFI, or you can be WRONG!]

And as I realized these things, I did speak out about them, both publicly and privately, from 1987 until about 2000, after which TWI had marginalized itself in Christendom.

[Of course, CES/STFI should NEVER be seen has having "marginalized itself in Christendom."

Not even if there's spiders coming from people's noses.]

Perhaps worst of all, a golden opportunity to make known the Word of God, as it had not been known since the first century, was squandered.

[After 20 years of supposed investigating,

JAL STILL labors under the thoroughly-discredited, and throughly-discredited- fiction penned by, and spread by, vpw that vpw

was some great one, and unique in 2000 years of Christians. We've discussed it so often here. JAL has missed it completely,

even though HE's supposed to be superior in understanding Scripture and wants us to come to HIM for understanding.

If he could FAIL so miserably at something so SIMPLE to investigate- and had 20 years to find the answer-

why would any of us (except the delusional) think he could be trusted in DEEPER matters of Scripture?

I will elaborate upon why that is true from a doctrinal standpoint, but when else in the history of the Christian Church has there ever been such a cadre of thousands of young, energetic, enthused, biblically knowledgeable, logistically equipped, organizationally backed, diverse, multi-lingual, mobile, available, and committed-to-“It-is-written” men and women with leadership qualities who were willing to go anywhere and spread the Word?

[One is supposing that ALL of those are actually TRUE, and not just how we WISH to have seen ourselves. After all,

none of us WANTS to see ourselves as having wasted time, or learned harmful doctrines, or especially HURT OTHERS

with harmful doctrines. An approach that embraces truth would admit, however, that those things happened, and suggest

a wary approach about repeating the same errors as in one's youth.

JAL's approach is an approach that embraces his twi experience, however, and the results are markedly different.]

Certainly not often in the past 2000 years. Thank God that many of these students of the Word became teachers themselves, and were thus able to recognize the errors that crept into TWI.

[using JAL himself as an example, however, that was only PARTLY successful.

He addressed some errors as errors, retained other errors, and added new errors, and suppressed open discussion

of doctrines that became the new dangerous doctrines.

Since his group is the sole source of doctrine, and dangerous doctrines of theirs are to be embraced,

I agree that it operates as a sort-of successor to twi.]

The Way. It was. What was it? First and foremost, it was, from about 1955-1987, the only place I know of where anyone could hear the amount of truth of the Word of God that we heard.

[JAL should get out more. He, apparently, has never even heard of BG Leonard, just to name ONE.

Is it stretching credibility to suppose that NOBODY ELSE taught accurately BESIDES Leonard?

I think it is. Leonard himself wasn't even acknowledged....]

Why? In large part because God led Victor Paul Wierwille to the work of E.W. Bullinger, whose approach to Scripture was virtually unique. That is what allowed Wierwille, and thus TWI to an even greater degree, thanks to the quality men and women with research ability whom it attracted, to put the Word together like it had not been known since the first century Church.

[vpw cut corners, and saw nothing wrong with plagiarizing the work of others rather than doing his own.

He insisted on using the title "Doctor" when the place he got it from was unaccredited, rather than going to a

reputable theological institute for his doctorate.

Until Rosal!nd R!nk3r told him the Bible was God's Word, he had been a practicing minister WHO DID NOT BELIEVE IT WAS SO, BY HIS OWN ADMISSION.

(Flip through your copy of "The Way:Living in Love.")

vpw claimed God spoke to him about God Almighty teaching him His Word like it hadn't been known since the First Century, if he would teach

it to others. For the next 11 years, vpw's ministry coasted and none of this "teaching" business happened, neither from God nor any

other source. Then, vpw was ministered to by Stiles, and vpw took the contents of Stiles' book, retyped it, and claimed it was his own book.

vpw pushed his way into BG Leonard's class (again, by his own admission), and then taught Leonard's class (with the same contents) as HIS OWN.

Plagiarism, and stealing the credit from others, are not unique.

To this, after someone told vpw that Bullinger wrote like vpw taught (which must mean Bullinger was like Leonard and Stiles), vpw then added

the complete works of Bullinger. Sometimes he gave Bullinger credit (like using "How to Enjoy the Bible") and sometimes he didn't

(like the entire contents of Bullinger's book on the Holy Spirit, which vpw claimed was his own work.)

Let us not forget that JAL's assuming that Bullinger's mechanized, systematic approach-which DID result in Bullinger making MISTAKES,

like the "kingdom of heaven/kingdom of God" mistake- is all correct, and what God wanted, that God wanted a scholarly approach to

be the exemplar for Christians, whereas we were told a man should be found "FAITHFUL", not "SCHOLARLY".

Finally, if Bullinger's approach was so exemplary, why, then, did vpw renumber Bullinger's "dispensations" into "administrations"

with a change that made them make LESS SENSE?

This whole "since the first century Church" thing was a fiction from vpw. That anyone is still pushing it is a sad statement

on behalf of the person pushing it. Has he truly never read through the book of Acts?

There was no "scholarship", no concern about translations from Hebrew to Greek, no intellectual teachings.

They had RELATIONSHIPS-with each other, with God. They were concerned with LIVES, with LOVE, and the only money collected was

to feed poor Christians. They were decentralized. They were inclusionary- Jesus said anyone who wasn't against him was

for him. twi's approaches were the opposite of those of the first-century Church.

Further, the entire claim is silly to those who've put in a little look into history.

The first-century Christian church did not have Gutenberg's printing press. Until the 2nd century, copies of the books of the

New Testament were nearly nonexistent. So "the Word like they knew it in the first century" was the TORAH, the OLD TESTAMENT-

and "The Word" as existed IN THEIR HEARTS, not ON THEIR PAGES.

Knowledge puffs up, and God's Love BUILDS up. THEY BUILT up. vpw PUFFED up.]

The sad thing was that I, and many others, became too proud of our knowledge, and failed to couple it with enough of a humble, heartfelt desire to obey God and become like Jesus Christ. We became too arrogant toward other Christians, thinking that our study of truth somehow made us more “approved before God” than they.

[HEY!

If you're still claiming you "knew the Word like it hasn't been known since the first-century Church",

YOU ARE STILL TOO PROUD OF YOUR KNOWLEDGE.

If you're still claiming OTHER Christians don't have it, but your group does,

YOU ARE STILL TOO ARROGANT TOWARD OTHER CHRISTIANS.]

To a degree, we became more like hearers of the Word than doers, and often deceived our selves. BUT, the antidote to that is not to throw out the baby with the bathwater, because without knowledge of truth, there can be little practice of it.

[i noticed this unhealthy obsession with analogies whenever it's time to put all things to the test, and hold fast

to what is true. The problem here is, what is JAL's "baby" in his analogy? If I were to say this expression,

I might mean "truth" no matter what, I may mean "God's People", I may mean "God's Love."

It appears that JAL's "baby" is "an organization that teaches the Bible and is above being questioned"-

because that's what he's spent the last 20 years retaining.

He may TALK of "truth", but that's not his obsession...]

Why did God have a need for The Way International? Actually, He didn’t.

[i agree!

God is Almighty. He doesn't NEED any of us. He gives us the pleasure in sharing many tasks with us.

He didn't, and doesn't, NEED any group of people.]

But He did have a need for any group of people who would make known what, or close to what, the Apostle Paul taught once the whole of what we now read in the Church Epistles had been unfolded to him. Why was there such a need? Because true Christian doctrine had all but disappeared from the spectrum of Church history by the 4th century.

[JAL hasn't done ANY more reading on Church history beyond what's in "Jesus Christ is Not God", apparently.

Among MOST Christians, knowledge BEYOND this is considered EASY TO FIND.

There's even information on the internet-he wouldn't even need to go to a library or bookstore for some of it.

If it REALLY had all disappeared, there would have been nothing for us to find in the 20th century.]

It was then that the Roman Catholic Church began based upon a bunch of fables mixed with Christian verbiage, established a monolithic ecclesiastical hierarchy, and for more than a thousand years dominated the European religious landscape, killing countless dissenters and for the most part silencing the rest.

[We agree that establishing monolithic ecclesiastical hierarchies and suppressing dissenters is bad.

Why, then, does one of us embrace it when vpw does it?]

When Martin Luther came along (1517 was when he nailed his 95 Theses on the church door at Wittenburg), thank God he did recognize justification by faith rather than by works, but what we today refer to as the "Reformation" of the Roman Catholic Church was very limited in scope.

[if the doctrine-and the Scripture- was all obliterated in the 4th Century, why, then, was Luther able to FIND "justification by faith" at all?

If the Roman Catholic Church hadn't PRESERVED GOD'S WORD by having monks painstakingly hand-copy it in the centuries before

Gutenberg's printing press, there would have been nothing for Luther TO find. Once the printing press was invented, the stage was set for

an explosion of Bible reading, which resulted in an explosion of Bible discussion and understanding.]

Much of the Roman Catholic doctrine was assimilated into Protestantism and is still being passed along as Christian groups continue to split off from one another. In a nutshell, that is why even the independent church in your neighborhood today most probably believes that there is a Trinity, dead people are alive, God is in control of everything that happens, the Four Gospels are written to Christians, water baptism is relevant, and maybe even that the Bible is not absolute truth.

A) A lot of Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God, no matter what their group teaches.

I've spoken to Catholics who do.

B) Lots of Christians believe the dead are dead.

C) God IS sovereign over all- but, as we know, things in the short-term are allowed to proceed without direct control by Him.

Many Christians have no problem understanding this, and there's books about why there's suffering.

D) That which was written before the Epistles was "for our learning". The Gospels address the time before Pentecost,

but are written TO Christians-the Gospels were written AFTER the Epistles. Don't confuse their order in the book with their

order of writing. Even vpw said Thessalonians was the first Epistle written, but the last one in the order in the book.

E) Many Christians consider water baptism to be a SYMBOL. Symbols ARE RELEVANT.

F) So-called "higher-criticism" is taught in some academic circles, but rarely in churches. I'm sure you can find a church

SOMEWHERE that teaches it, but most churches do NOT.

In the past 20 years, JAL hasn't learned that other Christians are not all uniformly a bunch of idiots. He's not gone beyond

the self-serving claims of vpw, who insisted that to leave his group was to leave any hope of knowing the truth.

In fact, JAL's promulgating that HIS group is now the sole source of truth on earth.]

I don’t know where else we could have heard the “package” of biblical truth we heard in TWI. Admittedly, most of the major doctrinal components of that package were being taught by some Christians, with varying degrees of accuracy, but none that I know of put together as many into a package as TWI did. Let’s begin with what I mentioned about E.W. Bullinger’s contribution to TWI, which was HUGE, because his basic approach to Scripture is what facilitates one being able to discover its inherent keys and utilize them to derive the Author’s originally intended meaning.

TWI taught us to approach the Word with the “It is written” conviction that it is what it says it is, and that it cannot contradict itself. That alone is enough to at least identify error about the Bible, and the keys to the Word’s interpretation we were taught enabled us to understand it, take its truth into our hearts, and apply it on a daily basis.

[And yet, supposed mastery of these principles provided NO protection from embracing Momentus as something EVERY Christian

should take, and the bizarre "personal prophecy" doctrine that was a major scandal in CES/STFI.

The supposed unenlightened Christians out there didn't make those mistakes....]

Given that the identity of Jesus Christ is the world’s biggest deal, I would have to say that chief among the wonderful biblical truths we heard in TWI was that Jesus Christ is the Son of God (not God), the Man who mediates between God and men, and that the Trinity is a pagan fable. Some ex-Way saints now say this distinction is not that important, but I assert that God thinks differently, given what He says in His Word (e.g., 2 Cor. 4:3,4).

[Must be why he spent whole chapters of Scripture explaining it in clear, unambiguous terms.

What? He didn't?

Then, he must surely have stated that salvation is dependent upon this.

What? He didn't?

Then, perhaps God doesn't think this distinction is that important.

I assert that matters that are critical, are made clear BY God, and don't require specialized study.

God gives light to the simple.]

Yes, TWI failed to teach us that we can have an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus, but there were not too many other places where we could have heard that Jesus is not the “eternally begotten” Second Person of the Trinity.

[There were a number, actually. If one is set on making that the doctrinal make-or-break.]

I’d have to say that the next most important biblical truth we heard in TWI was what we then called the “Mystery,” and, correspondingly, what parts of Scripture are written to Jews, to Gentiles, or to Christians regarding either the past, the present, or the future. For the record, we have since learned that “Sacred Secret” is a more accurate way of rendering the Greek, musterion.

Ephesians is the apex of the Church Epistles (the primary curriculum for Christian living), and it clearly shows that the Body of Christ (the “one new man” of Chapter 2, verse 15) is the most unique group of people who have ever lived, chiefly because of the permanence of our salvation and our holy spirit equipping. 1 Corinthians 2:8 chimes in with the monumental (and generally overlooked) truth that had Satan known the Sacred Secret, he would not have crucified Jesus!

[i reject the claim that any ONE Epistle is greater than the others. Romans explains the path of salvation.

Thessalonians explains the hope of Christ's return.

Without those subjects, Ephesians doesn't matter much.

Furthermore, since JAL took vpw's word that the Gospels are not written to Christians at all,

I question just how accurate OR useful the distinctions are between "to whom." Few Christians read the Old Testament and claim it's of equal

relevance to Christians as the New Testament-all of which was written after Pentecost, and is thus written TO us,

no matter what vpw said.]

In terms of biblical error that is practically debilitating to one’s quality of life,

I see nothing more important than knowing what Scripture is written to whom, when, and in particular what is written to us as Christians today. The Church’s failure to understand this central truth has led to its trying to live in accordance with directives pertaining to other people at other times. It is only in the Church Epistles that a Christian finds his true identity “in Christ,” as well as his true Hope. Simply put, the Word of God will never fit together without contradiction if one does not understand the “administrations” therein, and in particular this current “administration of the Sacred Secret” (Eph. 3:9).

Yes, there are quite a few Christians who have a “Dispensational” view of Scripture, but the vast majority of them fail to grasp that Jesus is not God and that he did not know the Sacred Secret.

[Nothing like making an arbitrary distinction between YOUR group and other Christians to define the

line between "us" and "them", and make "them" a bunch of idiots.]

Most think that parts of the Four Gospels and of the Book of Revelation speak of the Christian Church, but that is not the case. The Gospels record the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies about Christ’s first coming to the earth to Israel (his suffering), and Revelation records the fulfillment of the prophecies about his second coming to the earth to Israel (his glory).

[i haven't heard Christians claiming these errors JAL is claiming they do, and, apparently, I interact with them in a meaningful

way a LOT more than he does.]

Another major truth we learned in TWI, which is unknown to most Christians, is that of the Giver and the gift, and, correspondingly, that speaking in tongues is available to all Christians because it is a manifestation of holy spirit, not a gift. We also learned the indispensable truth that speaking in tongues is the only absolute proof that one is saved. How many tens of thousands of people did those truths alone set free?

[if that was the make-or-break, surely God Almighty is not so impotent that all the Christians between 99AD and 1941

would have been left in darkness, and nearly all those in the 20th century likewise.

As for the manifestation of holy spirit, there's a spectrum of Christian beliefs concerning this.

"Charismatic" Christians put this into practice to varying degrees.

Also, it's obvious Stiles and Leonard understood this subject better than vpw, if you bother to look into them.]

TWI also taught us that death is, in fact, the end of life, and that our true Hope for new life in the coming age is to be raised from the dead and meet the Lord Jesus in the air prior to the Tribulation (the “time of Jacob’s trouble” – Jer.30:7). What percentage of Christians do you think know this?

[More than 1%, certainly, which would not be the case if it was a twi exclusive.

twi's taught this one, and the non-Trinity, to a tiny fraction of people in comparison to, say, who the Watchtower Society has taught either.]

Although TWI failed to teach us that Paradise (the new earth), not heaven, will be our everlasting home, thank God we learned that resurrection is much more than an incorporeal “soul” once again getting a body.

And TWI pointed us toward an understanding of the figures of speech in the Bible (thanks to Bullinger), of which little is known in theological circles.

[Depends on the figure of speech. Most common figures are evident to a casual read-simile, metaphor....]

This included the figurative language in the Old Testament that helped us see that God is not responsible for evil or suffering, nor is He in control of everything that happens.

[Yet God is sovereign, which IS the main point.]

Like I, you may know of some ministries that do teach some of these truths, but I submit that until 1987 there was nowhere other than TWI to find all of them taught as accurately as they were there. That is why The Way International stands out on the spectrum of Church history as an amazingly significant Christian movement.

[Perhaps.

On the other hand, where else outside of twi would you have found a supposed Christian organization where its founder claimed

to have heard from God when he didn't, where he funnelled the money for his creature comforts and his vices,

where the progress of genuine Christians (Leonard, the Jesus People) was STRANGLED to strengthen the organization,

where its founder required leadership candidates to write a biography which was then used to help select which of them

he was going to rape or molest, or where he implied all his doctrines came directly from God while some of them

came from conspiracy/rumor mills? All while claiming everyone else walked in error?

In all this, The Way International stands out on the spectrum of Church history as an amazingly corrupted Christian movement.

It takes a backseat to the Branch Davidians, but it also damaged more people than Koresh's group did.

Harsh? Well, you were the one who wanted to compare twi to other Christians...

I think few Christians would be willing to accept a group doing that to anyone in exchange for a greater understanding

of the Bible- presuming twi had a greater understanding of the Bible. And most Christians love God and would accept

knowing Him better. I think they consider God's Love more important than God's Knowledge.

I think they're right, too.]

As far as I can see, TWI was also about the most disparate dichotomy of good and evil in the history of Christianity. Like the wheat and the tares growing up together, tremendous truth and egregious evil shared the ministry platform.

[i agree about the "egregious evil."

I assert that the "tremendous truth" position was largely a matter of "believing one's own press releases", and that this was

an unrealistic position, relying only on the constant repetition in twi that it contained "tremendous truth."

Many FELT like they had "tremendous truth." I certainly did- but I was young and naive. I have learned things in the

past 20 years about God Almighty and about my fellow Christians, and I feel no need to attempt to

"continue to wear the footsie pajamas" of twi doctrine when I can "put on the jacket-and-tie" of God's Love

and mature Christianity.)

(Hey, if JAL can make silly analogies about bathtubs and plates of food, I can make ones about wardrobe.)]

Many people look back on their TWI experience with nothing but thankfulness, while others rue their free will choice to stay involved as long as they did because of the abuse they suffered. Some have been stymied by self-condemnation due to the abuses they themselves committed.

[And some live in utter denial that they inadvertently took part in things that hurt others,

and some KNOW they did INTENTIONALLY and refuse to face it.]

No doubt there are also many who recognize that they heard the Word like they never had, who have allowed the Lord Jesus to heal any wounds they suffered in TWI, and who have since experienced spiritual growth far beyond what they ever imagined back in “the good old days.”

[And many more recognize that vpw and twi was overblown and didn't match its hype, but think we learned SOME accurate

things, went on to Jesus healing us, maturing in our understanding, and grew once we were free of the mental straitjacket

of the twi paradigm. Many of us who can say that have posted, or currently post, at the GSC.]

I hope you are in that last category, and if you’re not, you can be. Even if people badly abused and disappointed you, you can turn to the Lord Jesus, he who is The Way to wholeness in all categories of heart and life. His love and truth will heal your heart and help you forgive and move forward with him toward the same goal you once had. You have a ministry in the Body of Christ, and he who is the Head longs to help you fulfill that calling. It was neither your heavenly Father nor your Lord who hurt you, nor does whatever happened to you change anything the Word says. God’s promises are still true, and they are yours for the believing.

The Way, we were. If you once sat through PFAL, you heard the Word of God taught more accurately than the vast majority of Christians who have ever drawn breath.

[if you keep telling yourself that over and over, and hide from all the evidence otherwise,

you can spend the rest of your life believing that piece of fiction, that rural myth.

If you can't live without embracing a lie, it's not that unbearable.

Many of us would rather suffer the consequences of seeing and accepting the unvarnished truth,

no matter how ugly the truth is, and no matter how pretty the lies are.

Take your pick.]

As a fellow PFAL grad, I identify with you, and have an affinity for you and a desire to encourage you to take advantage of the truth you once heard, if you are not already doing so. Along with me, you will one day stand before our precious Lord Jesus Christ, who will reward you according to how you have lived your life as a Christian. In essence, he will ask each of us something like this: “What did you do with what you knew?”

[Jesus' question will be dependent upon our intellectual knowledge?

Chapter and verse, please.]

For a detailed list of biblical subjects I think TWI mishandled, click here.

If you would like to discuss with me about what I have written, please contact me at jalces@aol.com

[Lest we forget, here's the commercial one last time....]

Please check out what we are doing to keep the Word alive and moving all over the world:

www.STFonline.org and www.TruthOrTradition.com

Your brother in Christ,

John A. Lynn

[DontWorryBeHappy]

hiya greasespotters!

ROTFLMAO!!!!!.................indeed, this garbage letter seems to have been "taken down" from the cesonline website where it was just recently posted!.........is it possible that jalvis not only embarrassed himself by writing and posting that letter, but totally embarrassed the folks who are the "official" "servant-leaders" of the "church" that sponsors that website???...............is it possible that there's enough of a conscience left barely pulsing through the grey matter of those "servant-leaders" that such a rational, yet bold, move could be taken by them??.........or maybe, it was just the decision of the folks who run their websites...........made in the emotional blur of the utter shame they might have felt at having to read what their former "chief spokesman" had to say, on their own website??

whatever the reason, at least the greasespot cafe can't be blamed for "censoring" what "the real" jalvis felt compelled to stand up for!!............people of STFI..........are you beginning to catch a glimpse at what the "true heart" of your "church" is all about??...............i hope so, for your sakes and your sanity!..................peace.

[skyrider]

WW quote:

And yet, supposed mastery of these principles provided NO protection from embracing Momentus as something EVERY Christian should take, and the bizarre "personal prophecy" doctrine that was a major scandal in CES/STFI.

EXACTLY..!!

And, what's going to be the NEXT big thing while "sniffing in the wind?"

[anotherDan]

nannie nannie boo boo

[now I see]

Hilarious!!

BTW, I can't find the link on the cff/stfi website to the Sowers v2p2 farm either, it may have disappeared too, or I'm not looking in the right place, maybe someone else can check too.  

[tonto]

BNIS, I didn't see the link on stiffy's website either, but you can access v2p2's site directly at sowersonline.com...they have added new pictures since I last looked. The work has begun..whoo-hoo! Golly gee...less than two months 'till the slaves um, trainees arrive!

There sure is a lot of competition out there in ex-way world for the dollars of the hard-working believers, eh?

[doojable]

I keep wanting to hear, "Hi-Ho, Hi-ho it's off to work we go" song in the background everytime the subject of v2p2 comes up.

[now I see]

NIS, I didn't see the link on stiffy's website either, but you can access v2p2's site directly at sowersonline.com...they have added new pictures since I last looked. The work has begun..whoo-hoo! Golly gee...less than two months 'till the slaves um, trainees arrive!

There sure is a lot of competition out there in ex-way world for the dollars of the hard-working believers, eh?

GS is changing the world, one post at a time!

I'm sure Mr Hammeroni will also be interested in the new additions to their website too, who knew all of us ex-twi's $'s would be so wanted in the twi afterlife by all these offshoots!  It warms the heart doesn't it? :)

(I think some of them actually lost dollars from the GS community after all these letters got posted.)

[Raf]

I speak so that you can know “the rest of the story,” as opposed to all the disparaging things that have been said about The Way through the years by the media (much of that false), other Christians (much of that false), and disgruntled former followers (much of that true, some of it false).

Nice. Nice. Those are the only three categories listed.

The Media

Other [presumably non-Way] Christians

Disgruntled former followers

How about this for a category, JAL: Former followers. Not disgruntled. Shun the judgmental adjective. You have NO RIGHT to refer to me or anyone else as disgruntled, a word you use to dismiss the valid complaints being made by those who have every right to stand up to treachery of VPW.

[rascal]

One OUGHT to ask themselves WHY the former followers might be disgruntled...eh?

It isn`t like we woke up one day and decided that on which we had based decades of our life, volunteered tens of thousands of hours of our time, invested tens of thousands of dollars of our hard earned money, spent hundreds of thousands of hours in prayer for this group, it`s leaders, and it`s well being.... and suddenly decided that we wanted to be disgruntled for the heck of it.

[Mike]

Nice. Nice. Those are the only three categories listed.

The Media

Other [presumably non-Way] Christians

Disgruntled former followers

How about this for a category, JAL: Former followers. Not disgruntled. Shun the judgmental adjective. You have NO RIGHT to refer to me or anyone else as disgruntled, a word you use to dismiss the valid complaints being made by those who have every right to stand up to treachery of VPW.

I agree.

A person should be considered gruntled until proven disgruntled.

[Raf]

If anyone has the right to say not all former followers are disgruntled, it's Mike.

Wake up yet?

[dmiller]

One OUGHT to ask themselves WHY the former followers might be disgruntled...eh?

It isn`t like we woke up one day and decided that on which we had based decades of our life, volunteered tens of thousands of hours of our time, invested tens of thousands of dollars of our hard earned money, spent hundreds of thousands of hours in prayer for this group, it`s leaders, and it`s well being.... and suddenly decided that we wanted to be disgruntled for the heck of it.

Hey, hey, hey --- Let's call a spade a spade here, ok??

Disgruntled??? No. P!$$eD off??? Yes. :)

It's MY life yer talking about, and I wasted a bunch on twi.

Both during involvement ----- >>> and after.

[GrouchoMarxJr]

Nice. Nice. Those are the only three categories listed.

The Media

Other [presumably non-Way] Christians

Disgruntled former followers

How about this for a category, JAL: Former followers. Not disgruntled. Shun the judgmental adjective. You have NO RIGHT to refer to me or anyone else as disgruntled, a word you use to dismiss the valid complaints being made by those who have every right to stand up to treachery of VPW.

...Worth repeating.

Disgruntled?...Hmmm, in other words, even though Vic deceived people, abused people, took their money, sexually abused women, led some to suicide...AND taught wrong doctrine...it's YOUR fault because you're "disgruntled"...why be disgruntled when you can once again leap through the magic portal, back into "wayworld"...where the snow falls plentifully on the gas pumps and "men of gawd" once again walk the earth...and of course, gawd's servant...JALVIS will humbly lead the way!

[Tzaia]

"I will elaborate upon why that is true from a doctrinal standpoint, but when else in the history of the Christian Church has there ever been such a cadre of thousands of young, energetic, enthused, biblically knowledgeable, logistically equipped, organizationally backed, diverse, multi-lingual, mobile, available, and committed-to-“It-is-written” men and women with leadership qualities who were willing to go anywhere and spread the Word?"

For Readability...this sentence is completely unintelligble. The whole letter calculates this way which is why it seems like rambling.

Flesch Reading Ease --- 0.0

Flesch-Kinkaid Grade Level --- 30.4

Hey Rejoice, I'm running this through StyleWriter and it got a 158 (dreadful) in style index and a 63 (unreadable) in the average sentence length because it's 63 words.

upon = on

from a doctrinal standpoint = often wordy

enthused = prefer enthusiastic and recast the sentence

multi-lingual = usually written as one word.

[Ham]

But it passed msword's spell and grammer checker..

here's what a little "doohickey" on line says about it:

http://www.online-utility.org/english/read...and_improve.jsp

Number of characters (without spaces) : 365.00

Number of words : 68.00

Number of sentences : 1.00

Average number of characters per word : 5.37

Average number of syllables per word : 1.78

Average number of words per sentence: 68.00

Indication of the number of years of formal education that a person requires in order to easily understand the text on the first reading

Gunning Fog index : 33.67

Approximate representation of the U.S. grade level needed to comprehend the text :

Coleman Liau index : 15.37

Flesh Kincaid Grade level : 31.93

ARI (Automated Readability Index) : 37.85

SMOG : 24.21 Flesch Reading Ease : -12.72

A SMOG rating of 19 indicates one needs a post grad degree to understand this sentence with one reading!

isn't it just so wonderful to be talked down to in this manner?

Why doesn't he just make his point, and get on with it? Instead, I am treated to an epistle that takes an ordinary human being fifteen or so readings before they can comprehend what he's saying..

I don't think he's trying to communicate as such. It's such a morass of s*it to sort through.. I think the purpose is more pavlovian.. ring the right kind of wayspeak bells..

Edited July 17, 2008 by Ham

[doojable]

I think the thing reads like one of his promos. I wouldn't be surprised if he dictated it in his "teaching mode" and had someone transcribe it.

I bet he practiced in front of a mirror, too...

[Ham]

He's saying "there will be NO DIALOGUE" even in the style that he writes..

sheesh.

"I'm da master. Study what I say.."

good grief..

[rascal]

Hey, hey, hey --- Let's call a spade a spade here, ok??

Disgruntled??? No. P!$$eD off??? Yes. :)

It's MY life yer talking about, and I wasted a bunch on twi.

Both during involvement ----- >>> and after.

I stand corrected Dave :)

Damned Pi$$ed over the treatment of myself and so many of the rest of those afore mentioned *energetic, enthused biblically knowledgeable, logistically equipped, organizationally backed, diverse, multi lingual, mobile, available, and committed to it is written men and women with leadership qualities who were willing to go anywhere and spread the word*.

How DARE the way international take such a fine group of people and subject them to the indignities of sexual servitude, forced abortions, physical, mental and sexual abuse their children, destroy their marriages, isolate them from their natural families, appropriate their hard earned money, squander their time, their resources, and their youth, and yes even drive some to suicide and death????

On what planet or in ANYBODIES book is this deemed even remotely acceptable mr. lynn?

You ARE nuts, and anybody who follows you are still being led by deception, in my book, and further more, I don`t believe that there is anything even remotely Godly in your effort to draw people back into the system and teachings that enabled the bullies to thrive unchecked and facilitated the cruel abuse, on the tens of thousands of wonderful folks you mentioned...young folks who MIGHT have made a genuine impact for good in this world had their lives not been hijacked by these vile loathsome monsterous low life sob`s that preyed upon the innocent....these scum that consumed their victims, and once their usefulness exhausted....callously discarding the battered and broken lives like so much garbage when their appetites and sick lusts were sated....to then move on to new fresh innocent souls...the blood of their most recent victims still dripping from their fangs....

I believe that you guys that promote this stuff have abided in darkness for so long, excusing it`s oppression, denying the stench, pretending that it is light that you wouldn`t know God or Jesus if one of them bit you on the arse (figuratively speaking of course)

What you promote offends me.

I hope that you ALL have to answer to God one day for what you have stolen. I`ll bet he won`t let you sweep it under the rug like you have tried to do in this world.

Whew..I guess that I`d better switch to decalf :unsure:

Edited July 17, 2008 by rascal

[doojable]

I'm gonna take it one step further...

How dare JAL look down his nose towards anyone that doesn't want to return to "the good old days."

He had no problem defaming twi when he left. Now he wants to pontificate and ruminate?

This reminds me of the phrase, "a dog returning to it's vomit." Ever watch a dog do that? They sniff it and sniff it and sniff it, checking and double checking (This had GOT to be edible- ewwwww NOT) But they DON'T EAT THE STUFF!

....Unless they're desperate and starving.

[oldiesman]

JAL has a right to his opinion with respect to some former twi participants engaging in internet defamation and disparaging comments about the past. You may disagree all you want, but I think using the word "disgruntled" is a harmless way to say it. What do you think disgruntled means? It's another way to say someone is unhappy, unsatisfied about their twi involvement. Well, I think that describes some folks' actions perfectly. (Not everyone at GS Cafe, but SOME.) If one plays in the arena, one ought to be prepared to take some criticism of one's behavior, don't you think that's fair?

Now, if JAL were to come on the forums here and say it here, I think he might be in violation of the rules because we are asked not to make it personal with other posters here on the forums. But John didn't come here, someone brought John's letter to us.

[rascal]

...and we certainly have a right to our own opinion AND the opportunity to voice our disagreement in his apprisal of us, and our motives when he labels us *disgruntled ex followers* AND object to his representation of twi or anybody implimenting it`s doctrines as a Godly, spiritually wholsom group.

Edited July 17, 2008 by rascal

[waysider]

I'm not disgruntled----or angry.

I'm just deeply disappointed that something I believed in so fully turned out to be a sham.

On the other hand, I feel a sense of relief in learning I wasn't turning my back on God when I left.

What I turned my back on was just another run-of-the-mill cult.

Not even a very good one, despite our claims that we were "The Best".