DO 2773 6/91

—Comments on Robert Schuller's Easter Sermon.

(Intro: We had the opportunity to watch a video of an Easter sermon by Doctor Robert Schuller of the "Crystal Cathedral" in Garden Grove, California. His services are broadcast all over the World each Sunday. It was of interest because of what we know of him & our experiences with him & being thrown out of his church‚ as related in Letters such as "Huntington Beach Church Invasion!" ML #1845 etc.!)

1. Just now as I was looking at Robert Schuller in his big, fancy cathedral‚ I was thinking, "Wow, Lord, just think of the tremendous work he is accomplishing in that gorgeous Crystal Cathedral with those huge crowds of thousands! We won't have any big fancy glass temples or crystal cathedrals to show to You when we get to Heaven." And instantly the Lord said: "They're getting their glory now!—From Man! You're going to get your glory in Heaven!—From Me!"

2. And as I continued listening to him preach, I was asking the Lord, "Lord‚ can this be good? What about this show & this man & his work?" And instantly I got the Scripture: "Thou sayest‚ `I am rich, & increased with goods, & have need of nothing;' & knowest not that thou art wretched‚ & miserable, & poor, & blind, & naked! (Weeps) Therefore I will spew thee out of My mouth!"—Rev.3:16,17. (Maria: It's a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof!—2Tim.3:5.)

3. (Techi: There are probably some sincere people there.) (Maria: Yes, of course.) I'm sure even Schuller's sincere, but sincerity is not enough. The people the Lord talks about who will kill you thinking they're doing God service, are also very sincere, but sincerely & horribly wrong! (Jn.16:2.) (Maria: He's talking about his properties now. That's a confirmation of the Scripture you got, that they're "rich & increased with goods!")

4. Well, if you want church, they've got it!—Real entertainment! It's a show‚ a big show! That giant organ must be the biggest one in California, if not the whole World! Look, they have a balcony that goes way up in a wedge shape, clear to a point way up there! I guess he's reaching people that we could never reach. Maybe he's reaching people we reached, but they weren't willing to forsake all. He has about 6,000 in attendance weekly in his "service."

Schuller's Sermon

5. ("Schuller: I have one simple message this morning, I don't think you'll ever forget it. That's quite a claim‚ but I don't think you will: Life isn't fair, but God is good!") (Maria: Did you hear what he said?! He said, "Life isn't fair, but God is good." What a horrible thing to say!) How can life be unfair if God is good? If God is good, then He is fair. And if He is fair, then He cannot create a life that is unfair. (Techi: I suppose I know what he means. Like it's not fair, some of the things that happen, but the Lord...Oh, I don't know!) He's preaching life's not fair, giving the example that there are beautiful children living in rich homes who have all they want, & then there are the poor abused children who don't have anything.

6. What a big murmur against God! (Maria: It's like he's saying that there's nothing good in poverty & persecution & heartache, completely ruling out that the poor are more than compensated by the fact that they have received the gift of meekness & humility, & are often much closer to the Lord through their desperation & turning to Him for help! And besides, they may not have as much in this life, but they will be more than compensated in the Next! (Mat.5:3-5) Everything will be balanced out. God knows what He's doing & it's always fair.)

7. Life is fair & God is fair! If you say life isn't fair‚ you're saying God isn't fair. And if God is not fair, neither is He good. So if you really believe that God is good, you must then conclude that He made life fair. By saying that life is unfair, by logical inference you must conclude that if God created life, that He too must be unfair. Because how could a fair God create an unfair life? Wow, what a doctrine of the Devil to preach that life is unfair!—Because the minute you do that, then the minute people will blame it on God. (Maria: Yes, exactly!) How can you come to the conclusion that God is fair if you say life isn't fair?

8. What a terrible message to give people!—"God is good but life's not fair, He didn't make a fair life, He's not fair to people." (Maria: By saying life isn't fair, he's saying that all the tribulations & tests & problems & difficulties & afflictions in life are bad‚ they're not fair, they're wrong, they're not good!—So contrary to the Word that constantly says that all these things are good & they are for our good!—See Psa.119:67,71; Jer.18:4; Job 23:10; Jn.15:2; Rom.5:3-4‚ 8:18; 2Cor.1:4, 4:17, 12:9,10; Phil.2:13; 2Tim.2:12a; Heb.5:8, 12:6,11; Jam.1:2-4; 1Pet.1:7, 4:12,13; Rev.7:14.) Amen! "All things work together for good to them that love the Lord!"—Rom.8:28. God makes life, He even made the Devil for a reason.

9. Life is fair, & God is fair! If he'd said, "Sometimes life doesn't seem to be fair," that would have been better. But how can God be good & not create life to be good? He repeats that over & over & over & he says, "This is something you're never going to forget!" (Maria: Most people already have that pretty much in their mind that life isn't fair, & now to have it confirmed by this very powerful famous preacher that‚ "Yes, it's true, life isn't fair," then the logical deduction they have to make—& what the Devil wants them to make—is that God isn't fair! Everybody knows that God is the One Who made life, so if He made it not to be fair, then He's not fair & He's not good. So that's a diabolical message!) Yes, because life is good, & God is good!

10. Just think, Robert Schuller knows me & was a friend of my Mother's! I wonder if he ever thinks about the time his ushers threw out me & our Hippies? (See ML #1845.) (Techi: So he's been preaching for ages, hasn't he?) Yes‚ a long long time, probably over 40 years. He's got to be in his 60's or 70's. (Editor's Note: Schuller is 66 years old.)

11. One thing I noticed about his singers, they don't have the light on their faces that our singers have when they sing. (Techi: They were singing, "God is watching us from a distance!" Is that what it really said? Distance! I can hardly believe it!) (Maria: Oh my! Well‚ actually it may be quite appropriate for the many there who probably don't have Him in their hearts & don't know Him personally.—Poor folks who don't even know how "naked & wretched & blind" that sounds! It's like the Lord said of the hypocrites, "These people draw near Me with their mouths & their lips do honour Me, but their heart is far from Me."—Isa.29:13.)

12. Thinking back on his message now, he's a great story-teller, but he really didn't quote much Scripture! He didn't give one Scripture to prove his point! (Techi: He couldn't, because there wasn't one to prove his point!) (Maria: Yes, ha! If he'd preached Romans 8:28‚ he would have been negating his whole sermon!)

13. Well, that's what I call a brilliant job of pastoring & church building! He's really done it. He's a very good preacher. He has to be a very good businessman too, or have good businessmen.—But I sure don't like his message!

Prayer

14. (Prays:) Well Lord, You see their hearts. While we just look on the outside‚ You look on the heart.—1Sam.16:7. He has thousands of members, Lord, & we hope they're saved, & He does mention You, Jesus. He preaches all over the World on his TV show in over 20 countries & reaches millions upon millions of people, so we suppose, Lord, that's why You've blessed him & allowed him to continue, because he does at least believe in You. However‚ we imagine, Lord, that that big church & its great fame & ministry has probably drawn a lot of people unto it.

15. Thank You Lord for the verse You gave about them! Thank You for the Truth! They are great today & they are certainly rich & increased in goods & believe that they have need of nothing, Lord, but You said they are wretched & naked & blind; therefore You will spew them out of Your mouth! It doesn't necessarily mean they're not saved, Lord, but "spewing out" is an expression of contempt, & there will be a lot of people in Heaven who are in contempt—in contempt of Thy court—& will not be shining stars. (Daniel 12:2.)

16. These people are shining stars now. He's a shining star of California now, but I really believe, Lord, that we've done a greater work than he has. We have not built a physical temple‚ but we have built a temple of living souls that will be forever in Heaven!—"Lively stones built up into a spiritual house!"—1Pet.2:5. His temple will soon be gone—crushed, shaken apart probably, fallen, "in the days when the towers fall," as You said.—Isa.30:25.

17. Well, Lord‚ continue to help Schuller to be a blessing to whoever he's reaching. We hope he's not leading too many people astray & that some people are finding You through his ministry. Help his ministry to have some real genuine fruit that he'll someday see in Heaven—we hope. That's some little pitiful handful while we'll have millions! We're not very famous now, in fact we're quite infamous. Do you know what that means, Techi? (Techi: Yes.) Most people think we're villains! But God knows the Truth. There will be a lot of people in Heaven when we get There who are There because we just gave'm God's Love!

More on Schuller's Sermon

(Later, talking to Mama:)

18. The more I think of Schuller's sermon, the less I like it! When I think of him & his funny little expressions, he reminds me of an imp! (Maria: Yes. Now that you mention it, I think the same thing!) He preached so much about how life is unfair. He never proved that God was good, he just tried to prove that life was unfair—& of course that's what the Devil wanted him to do! He did not want him to prove that God was good, so he had him spend all his time trying to prove that life was unfair. Because once you've established that, then people have to automatically conclude that God is not good, which is exactly the lie that the Devil is trying to implant in people's minds. If you're going to say life's unfair, then you've got to say God's unfair. (Maria: Yes, because God created life.)

19. Life is fair, & God is fair! All of life is to teach us something, no matter what. He told all those tear-jerker stories that attempted to illustrate that life was unfair, but he never told one story showing that God was good!

20. I never heard a preacher preach & use less Bible! I can't remember one single Scripture that he quoted, can you?—Except in his benediction at the end when he said, "The Lord bless thee & keep thee" etc. (Num.6:24-26)

21. The more I think of it, the more I think it was horrible! What a horrible message for Easter, of all things! What was his Easter message? He missed the whole point about life, that it is fair in the long run‚ the happy ending! And none of his message was Scriptural. It was just like the Devil himself preaching!

22. (Maria: The terrible thing was that he said he was going to preach a text that "You're never going to forget!"—And he went over & over & over it! Time & time again they had those words‚ "Life isn't fair," flashed on the screen, every time he'd say it!) Well, I think he was right about the fact that we'll never forget it! That's the thing that impresses you the most. So then for him to say‚ "But God is good," is contradictory! The two statements are completely contrary! To say life is not fair & then say‚ "But God is good," is almost sarcastic!

23. He started off with Saint Francis of Assisi's poem which he read from a little booklet, then he made a big financial appeal for a coffee mug. They were apparently going to have a whole series of those coffee mugs with different lines from St. Francis' poem on them.

24. Robert Schuller has obviously been blessed too much by the World, the flesh & the Devil. "Beware when all men speak well of you."—Luk.6:26. The Crystal Cathedral is one of the largest churches in the U.S., & probably one of the most expensive, too!

25. You'd certainly think that if you sit your child down to watch something that's supposed to be an Easter religious show of some kind, at least they'd get something good, but that was more diabolical than a lot of the worldly shows! I'm sorry that Techi ever saw it! (Maria: Maybe what we should have done was to just fast-forward or turn off the tape or just excuse her. But I'm glad she heard what the Lord had to say about it anyway!) She saw through some of it herself! (Maria: Yes, she's the one who said you couldn't find a Scripture to back up his sermon because he didn't have one!) He's certainly clever with words—diabolically clever! (Maria: People like that can go awfully far astray through the deceitfulness of riches!—Mk.4:19.)

26. Well, now we know what's wrong with him‚ anyhow! Not only did he put us out of his church, he literally put Christ out of his church! That's just the kind of church that would appeal to the World—the World, the flesh & the Devil! (Maria: Yes, it was so much show. During that blessing at the end, I could hardly even listen to the words, his face was so out front, filling the whole screen. He exuded so much fleshly glamour, like "Glamour or Glory," & not any of the Lord's glory.)

27. That "Crystal Cathedral" is just the kind of church the Devil would love‚ one of the largest churches in the U.S. What an example of "I am rich & increased with goods & have need of nothing!"—"Thou art wretched & naked & blind & I will spew you out of My mouth!"—Rev.3:16,17. That's some Scripture I got for him! (Maria: And immediately after you got the Scripture, he started talking about his properties!) Yes! He was just horrible! "They call Me `Lord, Lord,' but do not the things that I say!"—Luk.6:46.

28. I'm sorry Techi was here when we got around to watching that, but then I thought, "Well, this is a test of her faith."—And she saw through it. (Maria: Well, at first she started siding with him, but she was convinced by the end that it was the wrong way to think! She realised there wasn't anything to back up what he was saying. And when she heard that girl singing, "God loves us, God loves us at a distance," then she was even further convinced that they were on the wrong track!) Yes, wasn't that song amazing?

29. (Maria: It was an eye-opener to see how blatantly they come out with doctrines of devils! That kind of thing is so blatant & there's so much Word against it, that in some ways it's not as bad as the more subtle things that are not so out on the surface & that you can't see the problems with as easily. I was glad that I was here too & we both could be speaking against the lies. There was so much truth to confront the lies‚ so Techi had to sit up & take notice! It's such a good sample of what you've always preached against the churches. I think it's good even for our people to see how bad off those church Christians really are! It's a sample of how terrible church people, supposed Christians, can be when they reject the Truth!

30. (On one hand you've got these liberal churches who have almost no acquaintance with the Lord or the Word at all & are just going through the motions, but on the other hand you have those who really are Christians & are conservative, evangelical, born-again people & do have some acquaintance with the Lord & the Word & some knowledge of it & some kind of relationship with Jesus, but don't use it to help others or live for others or live for Jesus. They just go their own way & use their relationship with the Lord strictly to benefit themselves & to make themselves feel good & to try to improve their own personal image. These are the ones that I think you've blasted the most because they deserve the most condemnation, since they do have the Lord in their hearts but they're not being obedient children. It's a sad sad situation! It makes you feel like the verse‚ "The whole World lieth in darkness," & it pretty much does!—1Jn.5:19.)

31. That sermon didn't leave you with a thing! It didn't leave you with one good feeling, except the little story he told about the little girl in the hospital who was so seriously ill & about to have an operation who looked up into her doctor's face & said, "Doctor, can I pray for you?" And because of her faith, the doctor poured out his heart to the Lord, & the Lord was able to use him to save her life. That was about the only positive thing in the whole show! Otherwise his sermon was very negative.

32. (Maria: It shows that when people get off the Lord's track, they become totally insane, illogical! It was amazing how he could be so deluded & so deceived! It just shows that no matter how supposedly sane & educated & knowledgeable a person is, if they reject the Truth, they receive lies! You can certainly tell the difference between the real sincere men & the ones who are so shallow & don't really have anything, they're just actors. Like Techi replied when you said he didn't use a single Scripture, "What Scripture could he use?" There's not a Scripture in the Bible to support a text like that! It's the opposite of what the Bible says.) Yes, because that's what the Devil says & what the Devil's people always say.

33. (Maria: And then he has the gall after he's preached all that to say, "But don't be a cry baby & say, `Why me?’"‚ when that's exactly what he's saying!) The whole thing was contradictory‚ contrary to the Scripture. (Maria: Strong delusion!) How's that for an Easter message! If Easter symbolises anything, it's hope! (Maria: And fairness.) Yes, fairness & a happy ending! (Maria: All you were left with was that horrible title!) It was horrible! Blasphemous! He's like a devil himself, very clever!

34. And his son seemed like a deadhead to me, he wasn't inspiring at all. He prayed that long prayer, & I can't remember a thing he said, he was such a deadpan. (Maria: I think the most inspiring thing about it was that sweet teen's "Amazing Grace" solo.) Yes, that was the most inspiring thing about the whole show, it was like the voice of God trying to overcome all that other stuff! If anything says that life is fair & God is fair, it's that song, "Amazing Grace"! (Maria: His church is so much "having a form of godliness‚ but denying the power thereof."—2Tim.3:5. They have the right hymns & the right message in most of their songs, but they deny it by the way they live and how they speak.)

35. When I saw that duet between that woman & another man, I said, "That's strange, there's no light or joy on their faces like there is on our people when they sing." It was all perfectionist type of singing, all harmony & loud, but I can't even remember what they were singing about! And that pianist looked like something out of Hollywood! He was smirking while he was playing, absolutely doing nothing but showing off. They've sure got quite a bunch of actors there!

36. And his final appeal was: "Make your thinking big enough to make room for God!" No altar call, no actual question asking for a decision. That's the closest he came to asking for a decision, "Make room in"—not even your heart—but "make room in your thinking for God." In other words, "Try to squeeze a little of God in somehow."

37. What lies he's preaching!—Outright lies! He's obviously glorying in his building & his shows. Can you compare Schuller & his church to the Apostle Paul & his ministry? (Maria: Paul said that "all things work together for good," & that he "gloried in his afflictions that the power of Christ might rest upon him."—Rom.8:28; 2Cor.12:9.) Yes. This guy's saying it's not fair! He's certainly not "glorying in affliction!" (Maria: Paul said, "When I'm weak, then am I strong."—2Cor.12:10. They think that when they're strong in the flesh & in material things, then they're strong.) But the Lord said, "My strength is made perfect in (your) weakness." They're really glorying in the flesh. (Maria: Yes, & didn't Paul say "that no flesh might glory"?—1Cor.1:29.) Yes. (Maria: It's a good comparison.) You can see why Schuller didn't use much Scripture‚ because almost any Scripture he would use would be contradictory to what he's saying & practicing!

38. He sure is off the track! He was not preaching Jesus at all! He had one little thing to say about Jesus, something like, "What a terrible life He had to live—suffering, crucified, dead & buried!" (Maria: He said, "That was so unfair!") He never even brought out why! It was as though he didn't even see anything good about the life of Jesus! Schuller's idea is that life was even unfair to Jesus. That would certainly be saying God was unfair to Him.

39. But we know that life is fair, and God is fair! If, like Schuller, you say life is unfair, who's going to believe you when you say, "But God is good"? The Scripture teaches you to see something good about everything, really, if you love the Lord. The Scripture really says all things are good! When you say that "all things work together for good to them that love the Lord," you're saying that all of life is ultimately good and good for you! (Maria: It also says, "He doeth all things well."—Mk.7:37.) There are so many Scriptures contrary to that sermon! Like Techi said, no wonder he couldn't quote a Scripture‚ there's no Scripture in the Bible to support it! She saw that right away!

40. He definitely wasn't preaching the Word, that's for sure, & he wasn't preaching Christ either! The whole thing was a fake & a phoney! What's the big attraction there?—Not the Truth, but the show & the buildings! (Maria: "The deceitfulness of riches!"—Mk.4:19.) Yes, exactly! They think they're rich & increased with goods & have need of nothing, whereas in the eyes of God they're wretched & naked & blind! It makes Him sick at His stomach so that He'll spew them out of His mouth!

41. I watched the faces of the people, they had a lot of panning shots of the audience, but they didn't have the light & the joy in their faces at all that you would expect real Christians to have. (Maria: If there were any real Christians there, they'd probably leave & go elsewhere where they can fellowship with other real Christians.) They all looked very worldly to me‚ even his choir & soloists.

42. That organ they have must be the biggest organ in the World, it looks like several different organs, & they have an orchestra! It's an all-star performance, all entertainers, of whom he is the chief! He has a certain spark—a spark from the Devil, real demonic inspiration!

43. Let's face it‚ that was a murmur! To say life is not fair is a murmur! And then to turn around & say, "But God is good," is contradictory! Who's going to accept that? (Maria: Yes, he never told us what he meant by God being good, that was like just sort of an afterthought. I don't know where you were supposed to find the goodness of God in all of this the way he presented it!) What a travesty of the Truth! I'd better get off this subject, I just can't do the subject justice!—All those poor people that he's led astray!

44. In the light of the Scriptures, all that doesn't shine very well. In fact, it's not light at all, it's all darkness, "lovers of darkness because their deeds are evil."—Jn.3:19. What a contradiction to have an all-glass church! It's like they're saying, "See? We love light!"—But that's about the only light they have, sunlight! One of these days Schuller's beautiful Crystal Cathedral will lie in ruins. It's going to be one big mess of broken glass—kind of like his people, transparent, so shallow—& they'll wind up just broken glass like their church, shattered! (Maria: They call it "crystal" when it's just glass.) What do you bet it's not even paid for yet? I'll bet they borrowed the money, like most churches do, & then they spend the rest of their lives trying to pay for it!

45. Well, I'm glad we finally got to see the sample & know the truth about Bob Schuller & his Crystal Cathedral! Thank God for the temple we're building in Heaven with living stones of souls that will never pass away!—Real life, millions saved! Thank You Lord!

(The next day:)

Maria's Talk to Techi—

Trials Are a Blessing & Privilege!

46. (Maria:) I know the Devil fights you a lot & you might think that's not fair! "Why do I have to keep having all these tests & trials?" But the Lord evens things out. Look how many blessings & privileges you have! Look at the Family the Lord has placed you in! You probably have more blessings than most! Maybe you have more battles too, but the Lord's fair. So it evens out! So if you think sometimes you have so many terrible battles, well, just praise the Lord for all the blessings He gives you. "To whom much hath been given, of the same shall much be required."—Luk.12:48.

47. I think the Lord's very fair & through all these trials & tribulations He's going to give you wonderful victories! And do you know what? In the Bible there's nothing but good said about all these trials & tribulations & tests & afflictions & difficulties. That would be a good Word study for you to do sometime, to look up all those verses!

48. Bob Schuller's absolutely crazy to say that "Life isn't fair because people have all these tests & trials & afflictions & difficulties & poverty!"—Because the Bible says that all those things are for our good! In other words, the Lord is blessing you & privileging you with those things!—Not underprivileging you like he was saying. That was a really crazy sermon, wasn't it? You could quote a lot of verses‚ & every verse where the Lord talks about afflictions & difficulties & trials & tribulations‚ it's in a positive way, it's in a good way! So he was just completely cracked, deceived by riches (Mk.4:19)‚ deluded by the Devil! He refused the Truth, therefore he believed the lie! (2Th. 2:10-12.) Because all those things that he's saying are unfair are wonderfully fair, they're a privilege, they're a blessing to be able to have those! (Fam: "Count it all joy!") Yes, "We glory in our afflictions."—Jam.1:2, 2Cor. 12:9.

49. Those trials & tribulations are wonderful! They're the things that help us & that make us what we are. Remember, all great saints have suffered, that's what made them great!—That's what made them pure‚ made them beautiful, made them wonderful! So the Lord's really privileging you when He gives you all these tests, trials, weaknesses & even physical afflictions. See? At least you can say yes by faith, because the Lord said it in His Word! So you're privileged to have all this.

50. So you shouldn't say, "Why me? How awful!" But you should say, "Thank You Jesus! Thank You for this, because it's making me what You want me to be! It's making me pleasing to You & it's growing me up & it's teaching me lessons & it's doing all these wonderful things for me!" They don't feel very wonderful, but we don't go by feelings, do we? We go by faith in the Word, in what the Lord says‚ not by how we feel! "Now no chastening (or trial or test) for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: Nevertheless afterward it yielded the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."—Heb.12:11. PTL!

(For confirmation from the Word that life is good & life is fair, see Scripture compilation on page 9-10!)

Comments on Schuller's Sermon to the Russian People

(Six months later, after seeing another sermon which Schuller addressed to the people of Russia:)

51. (Maria: He finally did bring in Salvation‚ but he didn't mention God at all throughout the whole thing until the very end!) Yes. If you cut off the end, all you have is a very good psychological or philosophical message‚ without God & without Jesus. All of that would have suited almost any scientist, psychologist, psychiatrist or philosopher today! All you have to do is cut off the little bit at the end about God & you've got something that almost everybody would receive.

52. (Maria: It's like he's saying, "If you want the best of both Worlds, then you throw in Jesus. You do it all yourself‚ but you put Jesus on as a finishing touch.") It's like a recipe. You're going to make a very good cake, you have all these different ingredients, & it's just great; but if you just put in this last ingredient, it will be even better. (Maria: Like the icing on the cake, ha!) Yes! (Maria: "You can make the cake all by yourself, but if you want it a little prettier, you just put the icing on. You can just take Jesus & He'll make things a little bit better.") Yes, "He improves what you have done yourself." Oh boy, what a deceiving self-works message!

53. (Maria: He was saying, "He carries you & makes things a little easier throughout life, but you really have to do it." It was almost contradictory at the end when he told that little story about God carrying a person when he couldn't do it himself‚ because all through the sermon he's saying you can do it yourself, you can do it through any kind of hardship, any kind of tribulation, you can do it! But then he uses that illustration of the two footprints in the sand that contradicts all that, that through the hardest years God had to carry you.)

54. He's mixed a sort of "do-it-yourself" philosophy along with "add a little of God & that's even better." (Maria: It's sad that he's got his priorities & proportions so wrong‚ because he so emphasised the "do-it-yourself" idea, & the poor Russian people are never going to be able to do it themselves!) He emphasises what your self can do more than anything else!—"And throw in a little bit of God at the last minute, He'll really round it out. It'll look better that way too."

55. (Maria: It's really sad. It's just the kind of thing the Russians don't need!) They've been trying to do it themselves for 70-some years & it didn't work! So he's suggesting, "Well‚ maybe the only trouble was you didn't add God. Now go ahead & do it again yourself, but add God & that'll work." He certainly puts a lot of emphasis on self.

56. His whole message & philosophy of life is: "Life's not fair, but you can straighten it out yourself & then God will help you.—A whole lot of you & just a little bit of God!" (Maria: It sure doesn't go with the verse, "He must increase but I must decrease."—Jn.3:30.)

57. He still seems to believe that God has no control over life! (Maria: Yes. He's saying, "God doesn't have any control of life, but after everything's botched up, then God comes in & God can fix it.") He said‚ "Do you want freedom? Then go for it! Do you want dignity? Go for it! Do you want peace? Then work at it! Do you want prosperity? Then achieve it! Set your own goals, make it happen! Nobody else will do it for you!"—Not even God! Not a word about God!

58. Imagine, he has the World's largest religious audience! It sounded like he was going to tell the Pope‚ "You & I can get together & look what we could do!" (Maria: I'll bet the Pope could have given a better sermon than Schuller did as far as emphasising the Lord.) I'm sure he would have! At least the Pope glorifies God & Jesus.

59. (Maria: Schuller throws in a lot of truth, but the whole message is so deceptive!) I told you before, I'm almost convinced he has a demon! He's so clever & so deceptive! (Maria: When he was talking about the price of his book he said, "I have to be honest, I cannot be deceptive." It's as though he's trying to convince you of his honesty & establish his credibility so that when he slips you these lies, you'll believe them.) Yes, he's being so honest; that's the way the Devil deceives, by being so honest. Most of his message to Adam & Eve in the Garden was honest: "It's good fruit, good to eat, & ye shall be as gods!" Then he slips in the lie, "But ye shall not surely die!"—Gen.3:4-6. Most of the Devil's message was the truth‚ except one big lie, & that destroyed the whole thing!

60. (Maria: So you can have a lot of demons walking around saying mostly good, true things?) Well, of course! How are they ever going to deceive you & lead you astray if they don't tell you some truth? (Maria: Even preaching the Gospel & Salvation!) Yes! He throws in a little Gospel & a little Salvation‚ a little bit of God & Jesus at the very end so you'll swallow all the rest of the hook! He adds a little bit of bait—too late! Too late bait!

61. (Maria: But it's tragic, isn't it?—That he didn't give them the message that they need the most & are looking for from this supposedly great man of God!) They couldn't do it, but he's telling them they can.—They just need to add a little bit of God. "Oh yes, we'll throw in a little Jesus & God at the end here, but you've got to do most of it yourself. He's not going to do it for you." Boy oh boy!

62. Paul said, "The good that I would‚ I do not, & the evil that I would not, that I do! Who is going to deliver me? I thank God through Jesus Christ my Lord!"—Rom.7:19-24. In other words, "I can't do it, only God can do it!" (Maria: Yes, "Without Me, ye can do nothing."—Jn.15:5.) But what he's preaching is, "You can do it, & God will help you. He'll help a little. He'll put the finishing touches on it."

63. He preached‚ "First of all‚ with yourself, all things are possible." (Maria: Yes‚ "Then if you want God, that'll make it go even better. You can do it one way or the other, with or without God. But if you'll accept Jesus for your Salvation as we Christians do, you'll get to Heaven on top of it all.") "You can have success on Earth & be a success. Even though life is not fair, you can still conquer. But of course, if you want to have all this & Heaven too, then you have to add belief in Jesus to it."—But it doesn't seem that he is even telling them how to get to really know Jesus personally by accepting Him into their hearts.

64. (Maria: Look how much we can learn from this—learn where it's not!) Yes, learn what not to do! Like I've often said about some of these guys, at least if you don't see where it's at from hearing them‚ certainly you see where it ain't & they furnish you with a dandy bad example!

Reaching Eastern Europe & Russia! Poster Power!

65. (Maria: It's interesting to note the different methods that some of these church people are using to try to reach the people of Russia. Pat Robertson advocates educating people & giving them Master's degrees from his university so they can go back afterwards to try to change their country for the better. [See "Go To It & Do It!", ML #2771.] Robert Schuller advocates positive thinking & that you can do anything you want if you have enough faith in yourself. Other preachers are going in there & building church buildings; others are passing out Bibles, God bless'm for that, but thank the Lord that He's shown us to keep things simple & basic & uncomplicated!

66. (We're just going in there & telling the people, "Just take Jesus! He's the answer you need! You don't need a big education, you don't need years of preparation, you just need to open your heart to Jesus! That's all you have to do. In fact, there's nothing else you can do, it's too difficult a situation, only Jesus can help you‚ so just open your heart to Him!") Amen!

67. (Maria: And we've heard time & again that when people in Russia compare our ministry there to that of the other Western Christians, they say they are so thankful for ours, which is so simple, & because we really try to love them & follow up on them. Evidently the other Christians just come in for a short time, but right now—thank the Lord, & thanks to your vision—we're going there to stay & to establish Homes, & that seems to be another thing that they've been really impressed with. They also comment‚ of course, on the effect of our literature & how far-reaching it is. Somebody said, "You're the best Christian group!", & here are a few other testimonies we received from Russia, which show that although there are lots & lots of Christians & Christian groups there‚ compared with them, we are much more effective & much more powerful because of our methods. Would you like to read them?) Yes.

68. ("The University witnessing is starting to snowball! We've been witnessing in the Universities during the day & inviting the most potential ones to the weekend meetings we are holding to feed the most potential sheep. Yesterday while at the main university, we met many English & French speakers, & began singing quietly to one guy, & by the time we finished, there were 30-40 students gathered around us calling for more! We sang some more songs‚ gave them Gospels & invited them to the weekend meeting for more. There's a churchy group trying to have regular Bible studies in the main University, & a lot of the students are getting turned off by their approach & their pushiness & their arguing about doctrines. In many ways it's similar to how these churchy people turned off youth in the U.S. long ago, but the Russian kids love us & see that we're so different. TTL!"

69. (And from a witnessing team in another city: "Our first program in one of the English schools was a hit, which the Lord anointed & blessed! The kids went away raving & the teachers & principal got very turned on about it as well, inviting us to please come back any time to do more shows or speak with the kids in the classrooms. The principal is a very precious man who has a real heart for the kids & wants to help them. He sees we're able to reach their hearts, so wants to give us every opportunity to be with them. One boy said other Christian groups had come to the school before but they just droned on & on & bored everyone, whereas he said we do it just right by presenting the Message in music.

70. ("One of our Russian outside witnessers told us of another Christian group that was just in town from Canada. She ran into the director of the Military Academy here, who would also like us to perform there, & he said these Canadians walked into their academy right in the middle of classtime & he let them take over his class for over an hour. He said they talked on & on about God & faith, but that some of the cadets were falling asleep at their desks. So although there are other Christians here‚ it seems like their overall effect is gradually turning people off with their dull doctrinal presentation.")

71. When I read those reports from Eastern Europe & Russia & all, it's just absolutely thrilling the way we're getting the Word to them!—While some other people are just beginning to think about taking them Bibles or Gospels! They say they see our Posters posted up all over—in stores‚ post offices, train stations! Isn't that wonderful? They call us the Poster people. What a testimony & witness! Lord‚ it was Your idea, TYJ! I'm Your idea, Lord‚ so it's no credit to me, all glory to You, Jesus!

72. I'm sure we are reaching more millions of those people than anybody else! I mean, we have distributed millions upon millions of free Posters to those people! Now you know nobody else is doing that! (Maria: And not only do they reach the one person who takes the Poster, but they reach maybe 10 or 20 other people!) Plus all the ones that are posted in bus terminals, metros & public buildings are reaching even more than that! (Maria: Those people are so poor, they sometimes live 10 to 20 in an apartment. So when they take one Poster, think of how many people they reach!) Take one & pass it on!

73. Imagine, I could hardly believe it when Ivan Ivanovitch told us, "Some day your Posters are going to be in the railroad station here!" (See "Ivan Ivanovitch!", ML #279:47-48, given in 1973!) I thought, "Oh Lord, that's an exaggeration, that's being a little optimistic!" But because he was a spirit, he knew! We've heard that our Posters have been in a Kiev railroad station‚ as well as the Moscow trains & subways! (Techi: I'll bet Ivan Ivanovitch is laughing!) I'll bet he is! He's probably saying, "Aha! I told you so!" But much more than that! There are lots of others posted in many other places! PTL!

LIFE IS GOOD & FAIR!

—Because God Is Good & Fair!

—From the Bible!

Jn.10:10 I am come that they might have life, & that they (His children) might have it more abundantly.

Psa.145:17 The Lord is righteous in all His ways, & holy in all His works.

1Chron.29:14 All things come of Thee, & of Thine Own have we given Thee.

Ezra 8:22 The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek Him; but His power & His wrath is against all them that forsake Him.

Psa.23:1,6 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. Surely goodness & mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: & I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Psa.84:11 For the Lord God is a sun & shield: the Lord will give grace & glory: no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Psa.85:12 Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good; & our land shall yield her increase.

Psa.145:15-16 The eyes of all wait upon Thee; & Thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest Thine hand, & satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

Psa.146:7-9 The Lord executeth judgment for the oppressed: which giveth food to the hungry. The Lord looseth the prisoners: The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind: the Lord raiseth them that are bowed down: the Lord loveth the righteous: The Lord preserveth the strangers; He relieveth the fatherless & widow: but the way of the wicked He turneth upside down!

Isa.1:19 If ye be willing & obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.

Zech.9:17 How great is His goodness, & how great is His beauty! Corn shall make the young men cheerful, & new wine the maids.

Mat.5:45 Your Father maketh His sun to rise on the evil & on the good, & sendeth rain on the just & on the unjust.

Acts 14:17 He left not Himself without witness, in that He did good, & gave us rain from heaven, & fruitful seasons‚ filling our hearts with food & gladness.

Mark 7:37 He hath done all things well.

Rom.8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.

—AMEN!

—Life is fair & God is good!

Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family