Category: Oneness Pentecostal | Page 33

Pants or not pants?

Pants for women has become a laughable argument in Pentecost.

The argument at my former church was that tights were fine because they had feet, so they resembled hose. Hose were not pants, and hose were for women, so tights were OK (at least in modest colors).

However, then came leggings and capri tights. Leggings and capri tights were NOT OK, even when worn under skirts, even when made out of the same material – or even a bit thicker material – than tights. Leggings and capri tights didn’t have feet in them, therefore they were not like hose, they were pants. Pants were for men, so leggings and capri tights were not OK.

BUT… Long johns were a type of underwear and didn’t show, so even though they didn’t have feet, they were OK, even though they were made just like leggings.

Leggings looked just like tights when worn with boots, but leggings were still wrong, even under a long skirt. (But tights were OK.)

Pajamas were not OK, with or without feet, because pajamas were pants and pants were for men.

Source: https://www.dhgate.com/product/feminine-chiffon-wide-leg-skirt-pants-long/184384882.html

Judge, ye. Pants or not pants?

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Afraid to leave… afraid to stay

I’ve been reorganizing. As I did, I came across a good-bye letter from me to the pastor from March 2008. I didn’t actually leave until December 2009. I don’t remember what prompted me to write the letter; I’m fairly certain it had to do with two younger women falsely accusing me of some really weird things–so weird that when he started rebuking me I had no idea who even could have come up with such ludicrous statements. I’m pretty sure from the way the letter is worded that I figured I’d be kicked out, not that I was planning to just walk out. I also know that I should have left even before that.

Reading the note – a note that was mainly thanks and praise of them for all the “good things” like outreach and being used so much and being “allowed” to help – brought back a lot of memories. Memories of such fear and anxiety that I would physically start shaking so hard I could barely stand if I so much as got a text from the pastor or his wife. Memories of my stomach in knots and me afraid to run to the bathroom because he’d be angrier if he’d called me to stand in his two hour after service line of people he wanted to talk to or who wanted to talk to him and stuck his head out and saw that I wasn’t there, or saw me leave service for any reason, or… Afraid to go to the church for anything, never knowing when I’d get ‘called in’ or what I’d be in trouble for next, and afraid not to go because missing anything meant a step toward hell, no matter what the reason for missing.

People who left had things said. They were garbage, trash. They weren’t worth talking to and couldn’t be trusted. Listening to them or spending any time with them was risking your own soul, because as the pastor said, “be careful who you fellowship!” If you associated with them, you were probably one of them. And if you were one of them, you were backslid, too, and had left God and fallen away ‘like a dog returned to his vomit.’

And so I was afraid to leave, but I was afraid to stay. I realize now that the pastor was exerting a tremendous amount of control with his after service lines that you had to stay in until 1:00 am if he told you to be there, even on a work night, and his rebukes based on false accusations — rebukes without giving the accused an opportunity to explain, harsh rebukes that didn’t even have to do with the original accusations in many cases, rebukes in which the condemned weren’t to say anything or they’d be talking back to the man of God, which was simply not done. I realized even then that the amount of terror that I was feeling and the physical toll it was taking were harmful. I’d been warned by doctors that stress was elevating bad things and manifesting physically. I didn’t know at the time how close I may have been to an emotional breakdown.

Leaving was costly. Staying was costlier. I stayed because I believed in God. I stayed until I barely had any faith left. They taught that those who left also left God, but I would have struggled less with faith in God if I’d abandoned faith in them a little sooner, before they’d entwined ideas of God with their sickness quite so much. I was afraid to leave, and after I wrote the letter I found tonight, it would still be another 21 months before I left. People there at the time may have wondered why I left. I look back, eight years later, and wonder why I ever stayed as long as I did. If I’d know then what I know now, I’m not sure if I’d have been more or less afraid of leaving. But looking back now, my regret is that I ever went there to start with… and that I didn’t leave sooner.

*Fear and anxiety like I describe here, and the kind of control I experienced should never be a part of any ‘church’. If you are in an organization and you are afraid to leave but afraid to stay, seek outside help. And somehow, leave. God will be on the other side of that door, no matter what they say.

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Surviving the ‘You cannot be saved if…’ Gospel

I am ever amazed at the litany of ideas men will conjure up in God’s stead, ideas of what God requires and what God hates, things not found in His Word, His Handbook, nor inspired by His Spirit, yet, and ironically, the legalists cling to their rules & regulations as if it was a child’s safety blanket, living in fear of what monster stares at them, waiting for them to peek out of the blanket. Why is that?

And how do you survive the Ye cannot be saved if… Gospel, and come out with more faith and joy in the Salvation of the Lord? Go at it God’s way, through His Spirit.

“Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?” – Acts 15:10, KJV

What is this yoke that Peter speaks of here? The Law of Moses, known now as Legalism, or living by the Law. The Old Testament rules and regulations. Note the importance of the Apostle Peter’s words, when he said, ‘neither our fathers or we are able to bear.‘

Not even the Jews, under the law could bear the full brunt of what that meant! How then do we suppose to be able to continue being under that yoke?

Well, we aren’t, we are now under the dispensation of Grace, under the Mercy seat of Jesus Christ and washed by his blood, justified by His Spirit.

Well, then why do we continue being led by wolves in shepherds clothing to the altar of sacrifice, to have the blood of Christ shed over and over again by our many works?

“Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.” – Mark 7:13, KJV

In my Oneness Pentecostal background and experience, a very common phrase was, ‘Don’t come peeken out from under the blood…’ That blood being the safety blanket of legalism, and they instilled fear in the children of God like frightful stories parents tell their kids to enforce obedience.

The Council of Jerusalem (Legalism)

Acts Chapter 15 is a timeline and narrative of the Church leaving legalism. They continued with circumcision (the main focus of the council) for the Jewish converts, and we later see Paul circumcising Timothy so as not to offend the Jews during their missionary travel.

As a matter of fact, until Acts 18:7 Paul made his primary mission the Jews, as did Jesus, and His Disciples. Their target audience in the Gospels and early church was only Jew. But the apple that upset the cart was the Gentile bride. And in Acts 15, the Jew and Gentile church collides. (Matthew 10:5-6, Matthew 15:24)

And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. – Acts 15:1, KJV

The Jewish people clung to Moses’ law, even after becoming believers in Christ. It was ingrained into the fiber of their being, their culture. To be circumcised, was to be Jew. And this starts a chain of demands legalists will make, and it didn’t end with circumcision, but the whole Law of Moses.

But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses. – Acts 15:5, KJV

You cannot be saved if…

Man made up rule after rule, after endless and sickening rules of what will keep you from Heaven. The Bible has a very short list, and yet man compounds, expounds and creates his own mini-Kingdom of God, a kingdom God doesn’t want.

What is a glaring hypocrisy is New Testament (Grace) preachers continuously using Old Testament covenants as Law for us today, such as making them equal to the requirements for salvation.

What list did God give us?

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. – Galatians 5:19-21, KJV

What list has Man given us? (Pentecostal slant)

Cutting ones hair (women) or wearing makeup, jewelry, dying ones hair, tanning
Wearing shorts, short sleeve shirts and certain hair styles
Watching television, movies, concerts, ball games
Facial hair on men
Give your money to the preacher (10%+, tithing is NOT for New Testament Christians.)
Cussing or using euphemisms (dang, darn, sheesh, etc)
Drinking of any form of alcohol

The list is endless and nauseating. Yet, how does it compare to Scripture, especially the Acts 15 Council of keeping of Law?

Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? – Colossians 2:20-22, KJV

Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. – Acts 15:18-20, KJV

Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment: – Acts 15:24

Surviving the you cannot be saved if… Gospel is as easy as obeying the true Gospel.

The church forefathers, the Apostles decreed to whom we gave no such commandment:, thus, any ‘preacher’ that commands you to obey law after law and commandment after commandment is not working under the guidance of the Holy Ghost, the Word or God. They are working for their own agenda, and their own ideals, and their own kingdom. Not the Kingdom of God.

The tragedy to these types of churches (spiritually abusive churches) is the scars that are left behind, the judgmentalism that will be ingrained, perhaps the loss of faith, despising of God, His Word, or his true ministers and people.

A wolf in shepherds clothing can train wreck the spiritual connecting that was meant to be shared between Man and God. Jesus said he came to be the mediator between Man and God and yet power hungry, authoritarian men (and women) have stepped in and declared themselves the mediator.

If your leader or church structure is full of demands that simply cannot be found in the Bible, then you are under a false yoke of commandments, and law, and not under Christ. Your survival depends upon you grasping God’s word, leaving the unhealthy environment, and clinging to the Gospel of Grace, and Love, and Mercy.

“Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition”. – Mark 7:7-9, KJV

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” – John 13:34, KJV

“If ye love me, keep my commandments.” – John 14:15, KJV

“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” – Matthew 22, 36-40, KJV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. – Galatians 5:22, 23

God Bless!

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Raising Two PKs in the UPCI

I was not raised a PK but as a pastor’s wife I had trouble fitting in with other pastor’s wives because I thought I wasn’t good enough to be around them. I wasn’t raised by Christian parents and especially not in a pastor’s home.

I did raise two children as PKs but tried to make their lives as normal as possible. I also know my kids were treated differently and were often excluded from activities and parties because they were the pastor’s kids.

It did save the life of my daughter one night when her two friends decided to live on the wild side and went to a party where they consumed alcohol and were involved in a terrible accident and both girls were killed. If my daughter would have been with them, well let’s just say she could have been killed too. This caused my daughter to suffer guilt because she hadn’t said anything to us about the party. She knew why she’d been excluded but didn’t say anything because she didn’t want to be a snitch. The years passed, my son went away to college and my daughter married and my husband left me for another woman and I was left to clean up his mess.

My life changed immediately and the saints took their hurt out on me. It wasn’t a good time in my life. I moved to a bigger city 2 hours away where my son lived and my daughter and her family followed suit. Her marriage was crumbling and soon she was divorced with three young daughters. We couldn’t find another United Pentecostal Church where we felt welcomed because we were no longer in the ministry but were still isolated from the saints. I had women coming to me in the church warning me away from their husbands and my daughter couldn’t attend because of her ex.

So we finally found a non-denominational church to attend. Here we found hope, love and a new beginning. But most of all we found acceptance without the stigma of our past.

I had close friends at my job but it was hard to make friends at church because of our past, but we did and most of all we feel at home.

My kids and I definitely suffered by the elitism of the UPC ministry but from the lack of it in our new church we’ve been able to achieve some normalcy. My daughter married a good man a few years ago who had 2 daughters and they have a wonderful blended family and I was blessed with 2 more granddaughters. I have also been blessed with a very nice man and we’ve been dating for three years and he is not a minister at all!

Through this we’ve learned to be kind and friendly to everyone and we welcome all to our homes for dinner, not just ministry. I belong to a sweet group of people who call me by my first name with the usual “sister” in front of it. I’ve got an identity that is all my own.

So what started out as the worst time of my life has changed to the best time.

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Getting Out the Old Books: The Literal Word by M.D. Treece

Probably the most scholarly words in the Oneness Apostolic churches I have ever seen written on 1 Corinthians 11- otherwise known as the “hair chapter”- is from The Literal Word by M.D. Treece. Most writings on the subject are filled with anecdotes and circular reasoning and don’t very much address the claim that women’s hair must be uncut. It is often mentioned with little evidence. I have to give M.D. Treece credit for trying to tackle this issue.

(Disclaimer: The verses in 1 Corinthians 11, taken by themselves, do not address the fact that women were allowed to shave their heads in the Old Testament when they took the Nazarite vow. The actual meaning of the verses in 1 Corinthians 11 are a widely debated topic among scholars and what is demonstrated here is simply how M.D. Treece’s own logic does not make sense within itself. It does not demonstrate or argue whether or not M.D. Treece is right or wrong about his beliefs and translations otherwise concerning hair/veils/having hair down the head/customs of the day or any other assertion.)

He translates verse number 4 “Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoreth his head” as “And every man praying or prophesying having hair down his head disgraces his head.” (pg 247) I have a photo of his comments on this so you can read his comments on it for yourself below.

So, he translates the word covered as “having hair down his head”. On page 249, he begins to look at the word “uncovered.” He says the covering is hair and not a literal veil. He says “That is the central theme of this discourse.”

The real focus here is going to be on vs 6 “For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn; but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered.” He translates this as “For if a woman is not covered, let her hair be cut; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved, let her be covered.”

Let’s look at this closely a minute. He defines “covered” for a man as “having hair down his head.” So, let’s insert that definition into his translation and see if it works:

“For if a woman doesn’t have hair down her head, let her hair be cut, but if it’s disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved, let her have hair down her head.”- Doesn’t make much sense does it?

First of all, I have read that some people want to say that the word shorn means “to cut.” There is a difference between the words shorn and shaven. We know what shaven means but what does it mean to be “shorn?”

According to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, it means “absolutely, of shearing or cutting short the hair of the head”. See below:

STRONGS NT 2751: κείρω

κείρω; (1 aorist ἐκειρα (Acts 8:32 T WH marginal reading)); 1 aorist middle ἐκειραμην; from Homer down; to shear: a sheep, Acts 8:32 ((cf. above) from Isaiah 53:7). Middle to get or let be shorn (Winers Grammar, § 38, 2 b.; Buttmann, § 135, 4): τήν κεφαλήν, Acts 18:18; absolutely, of shearing or cutting short the hair of the head, 1 Corinthians 11:6 (cf. Winer’s Grammar, § 43, 1).

It means to shear like a sheep, or like a military haircut.

Let’s look at M.D. Treece’s translation and see if it makes sense when we insert these definitions:

“For if a woman doesn’t have hair down her head, let her hair be shorn like a sheep, but if it’s disgraceful for a woman to have her hair shorn like a sheep, or shaved, let her have hair down her head.”

This makes much more sense, doesn’t it? If these definitions are used, not only does the translation make sense but it also means that there is no prohibition against women cutting their hair.

Every single argument for uncut hair is based on the idea that the word shorn means a little trim, but we can clearly see that this is not what the word means simply by looking at the definition in the Greek Lexicon. If you read arguments for women’s uncut hair, this foundational argument is often skimmed over and the anecdotal arguments and circular reasoning begins with a lot of fear sprinkled in about what is going to happen to you if you disagree. But when we put aside the fear and traditional teachings we can clearly see that the word shorn means to shear like a sheep and does not mean what some are saying it means.

I have provided photos of four pages. Page 247, page 248, page 249, page 250.

(Written for the Facebook group Breaking Out.)

Getting Out the Old Books: Guardians of His Glory by Gary & Linda Reed
Getting Out the Old Books: David F. Gray
Getting Out the Old Books: Joy Haney
Getting Out The Old Books: Larry L. Booker
Getting Out the Old Books: Power Before the Throne
Getting Out the Newer Books: Wholly Holy: The Vital Role of Visible Devotion
Search For Truth On Holiness

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