March 7, 2005
(ML #3534, GN 1125)
FD/MM/FM August 2004
ML #3245:57-77, GN 847
57. Question: How can I keep from compromising the message for gain?
58. (Dad speaking:) To keep from compromising for gain‚ just keep the message first, the Lord's will and lost souls, and trust Him for the money and material goods you need. He'll never fail you! It's a simple principle, but it's not always easy to practice it. It sometimes costs you in the short term, and in the long term it requires a lot of love‚ wisdom and tact with your friends, contacts and kings. I know, because I faced such situations many a time when I was on Earth.
59. Back before the Family began, when I was teaching Christian school and had two houses and a steady income, the Lord tested me on compromise. He told me to go and sell all I had and follow Him, preaching the Gospel full-time. Imagine! Here I had a wife and four young children to support, a stack of bills each month, and the Lord wanted me to give up my job and launch out by faith. Well, I did‚ and I'm so thankful I did! We witnessed all over the U.S., the Lord supplied every need‚ and our witnessing eventually turned into the Family. What would have happened if I had put money in front of the Lord's message, material things in front of following Him fully? We wouldn't have the Family we have today!
60. In the early days of the Family we were often faced with situations where we could have compromised for gain. We had to work with kings such as Fred Jordan and Brother Paul, who supplied us with housing or funds or both, and wanted us to do things their way, since they were footing the bills. We did do things their way to some extent, but only as long as we could stay true to our principles and keep the Lord's work as our first priority.
61. We had to make sacrifices in little ways to keep them happy, and use lots of love, wisdom and tact to keep from offending them, but we always kept the Lord in first place. In working with Fred, some of our hippies had to do such things as pledge allegiance to the flag‚ or dress up and appear on his TV show, or go to fund-raisers and meet his supporters, things that our dear revolutionaries weren't too happy about! But Fred supplied us with places in Texas and California where we won hundreds upon hundreds of disciples and thousands upon thousands of souls‚ and made news around the world! The Family really took off during that time!
62. Eventually Fred wanted us to compromise our basic principles, so we broke with him. Well, he broke with us. He threw us off his properties and locked us out of some of them, and that's a story I've told you before! But while we worked with him, we bent here and there without breaking. If he wanted us to do something, we prayed about it. And if we could do it without compromising our principles and it resulted in the Gospel being preached, we did it. We were willing to become all things to all men, that we might by all means save some.
63. So when you're working with friends who are helping to support you and they ask you to do something for them, the first thing to do is pray about it. If the Lord indicates it's okay—and it's within the bounds of the Charter and the Letters, of course—then it's fine to do it. But if it's outside the bounds of the Charter and our basic beliefs, or the Lord says no, then you'll have to very sweetly and tactfully explain to your friends why you can't do so. Share the Word with them, read the prophecy to them (if the Lord indicates you can)‚ explain why you can't comply with their requests, in a loving way. You don't want to offend them, but you don't want to offend the Lord most of all!
64. Be true to your convictions and stand on the Word. Sometimes your friends and kings will accept it, whether it's gracefully or with grumbles, and you can keep working together. But if they won't, then you may have to say, like Martin Luther did, “Here I stand; I can do no other.” He couldn't deny the Lord's Word‚ salvation by grace. They wanted him to compromise. In fact, the penalty for not compromising was excommunication, and he faced possible death as a heretic! But he was true to his convictions and the Lord kept him and supplied wonderfully for him, just like He'll do for you if you're true to Him and His Word.
65. So be sweet and loving with your friends and kings, but if it comes down to a choice between them and their support or the Lord's will, then stand strong for the Lord. You won't be sorry! You may lose a king or their support, but the Lord will raise up new ones, if necessary, and more than repay you for any lost support. He'll never fail His children who are true to Him. Don't you fail Him by compromising for gain, okay? I love you! (End of message from Dad.) (See also “Mama's Memos!—No.7,” ML #3229, GN 830.)
66. (Mama:) It can be a temptation for anyone to compromise the message or water it down a little in order to receive the support of those you're ministering to, particularly to kings or queens that help you a great deal. But as Dad has said so many times in the Letters—and as he repeats above—it's not worth it to compromise for material gain, because that only weakens your testimony and causes the Lord to withdraw His blessings.
67. You have to make a decision, both personally and as a Home, that you're going to hold God to His Word and not compromise for material gain—or any other gain‚ for that matter‚ even to keep kings and friends. The Lord has access to more wealth than you could possibly need, and if you're doing His will and His work, and obeying Him by staying true to His message, then He's promised to supply your every need. Put Him on the spot and He'll answer!
68. You may also be tempted to compromise for the sake of friendship sometimes. Maybe a local person you've been witnessing to has grown close to you and you don't want to strain your friendship by sharing anything that might make them uncomfortable or that they might not agree with. When questions come up about our controversial beliefs, maybe you tend to sidestep the issue so you won't risk offending them or losing their friendship. You need to have wisdom and tact, of course, but what can you do in such situations?
69. (Dad speaking:) Yes, by all means use wisdom and tact when you're witnessing, as well as lots of love and prayer! You want to be sure that your words are the Lord's Words, the right words for that needy soul at the right time, which will have the right effect and hopefully bring forth the right fruit in his or her heart.
70. But along with love, prayer, wisdom and tact, you also need to keep your convictions strong. This Family didn't begin by my only telling people acceptable things that would make them happy and that wouldn't offend them in any way. It began with my faithfulness to pass on the Lord's message, whatever it was.
71. Often the Lord's message was different and controversial, and that's how He's made us and kept us. We are unique, His called–out church of the Endtime, and there's no one else in the world quite like us! That's what attracts people to us‚ the wild, free spirit we have, the Lord's love and joy in our hearts that we can share with others, and the wonderful lifestyle He's given us as we have tried to follow Him fully.
72. So when you compromise that message or are afraid to pass it on to others at the right time and in the right circumstances, you're not doing anyone a favor. First, you're not being faithful to the message the Lord has given you to give them, and it makes the Lord sad that you're ashamed of it. He can't bless them with His truth, and He can't bless you for passing it on to them.
73. Second, you're not doing the person you're witnessing to any favors, because it's the truth that will set them free and that will help them. Despite how concerned you are about keeping their friendship, you won't keep it through watering down your convictions and not standing up for what you believe. That's not what attracted them to you in the first place, and that's not what will keep them your friend—or if it does, that's not the type of friend you really want or need.
74. Third, you're also hurting yourself when you silence the voice of conviction, the still‚ small voice of the Lord directing you to say something or share something. As you numb yourself to that voice and that conviction, or convince yourself that you'll share whatever it is "later," then you numb yourself to the Lord. And little by little you begin to drift from the Lord, until you find yourself alienated from the life of God, wondering why you should believe in this or that doctrine anyway. That's a path that can lead you right out of the Family if you don't watch out.
75. How can you sell others on your message unless you're sold on it yourself? If you're not convinced of your beliefs and enthusiastic about them, how can you expect anyone else to be? In such a case‚ you'll wind up a poor witness and salesman for the Lord, and you'd do well to examine your own heart, mind and motives to see where you stand with the Lord.
76. Stay true to the Lord's message, folks! Stay true to our beliefs! God blesses your giving out, not your withholding. Those who withhold‚ it tends to poverty, both spiritual and physical. You only hurt yourself and others by withholding, although you should share everything in love and prayer, of course, like I mentioned above.
77. You have spiritual riches beyond compare in the Words the Lord has given you, truth that is so explosive that it can blow the Devil's lies to shreds, and love that is so wonderful that it can change hearts and save lives for eternity! Don't neglect passing them on. Don't be ashamed of the Lord's message. If you're a faithful witness‚ the Lord Himself will be proud of you, and will reward you with His "Well done" in front of all the saints and angels of Heaven! Then you'll enter into His joy with a clear conscience, knowing that you did your best for Him. And you'll have lots of company in Heaven, souls who are thankful for your faithfulness and conviction. I love you! (End of message from Dad) (See also "Conviction and Honesty," Maria #51, DB 3.)
ML #3307:132-149, GN 906
132. ACCUSATION: Mama and Peter shoot themselves in the foot by publishing ridiculously bizarre, controversial Letters. We've gotten over our problems of persecution, but then they go and publish something else that's going to cause trouble. People try to tell them that their teachings and doctrines will bring the wrath of the System and the ire of man, but they won't listen.
133. (Mama:) To hear some people talk, you'd think we were running some kind of a System business in which we produce our product according to the going market and preferences of the world climate. But we're not. We're a revolution! Yes, we're a missionary movement, a publishing house‚ a follow-up machine in the making. We wear all kinds of different "hats," but we're also a revolution, as we have been from the beginning.
134. What makes us revolutionary is the Word we receive from the Lord—the New Wine. Why do you think the Lord calls it "New Wine" anyway? Because it's new!
135. Peter's and my primary responsibility before the Lord is to receive His Word and give it to you. Your primary job is to take that Word and give it to the world! The Family is different. Unlike the other churches and new religious movements‚ we're not out to gain popularity. Like Dad said, "The prophets didn't prophesy for audience reaction, to hear the laughs and the howls and the amen's and the applause. They just spoke the Words of God‚ come what may, live or die, sink or swim, rise or fall, and that was that, flat!" (ML #303A:69).
136. We certainly don't deliberately try to cause trouble and negative reactions from people outside the Family, but if it comes down to a choice between obeying God or compromising for fear of man, we will obey God. That was always Dad's policy, and that is ours as well.
137. There are plenty of other churches and fellowships of very sincere Christians who love the Lord and want to be close to Him and who have a much more mainstream doctrine, if that's what you're looking for. But if you remain in the Family, you can expect new revelations, new truths, and new directions, because God still speaks today!
138. Let's have a little reality check: Don't forget God in the equation. The GNs are not some concoction from the minds of Peter and me. They contain the Word of the Lord as He gives it to us. It is our responsibility before the Lord to give you what He wants you to have. We cannot hold back or censor it in order to make it more mainstream and "normal."
139. We're not just your shepherds and the leaders and pastors of our religious movement; we're prophets‚ as are you! And if God's message is unconventional, well, God's prophets have always been known for their radical, outlandish, strange, unconventional messages and deeds, and have often been ridiculed for them.
140. Look at Noah. He spent more than 100 years building the ark, preaching that God was going to destroy the world by a great flood, and only his wife, sons, and their wives believed him. But he was right!
141. Look at Abraham. God told him to leave his family and friends and go he knew not where‚ to some land someplace that God would somehow give him. Then when he got there‚ God told him that he'd have a son when he was 100 years old—and not only that, but when the son arrived, God told him to take him up on Mount Moriah and kill him! But Abraham believed God and obeyed‚ and came to be known as the father of faith because of his trust in God despite His unusual orders.
142. Look at Moses. He fled Egypt‚ no doubt wanted for murder, and spent 40 years in the desert just tending sheep. Then when God sent him back to confront Pharaoh, he preached and prophesied that God was going to deliver the Hebrews from the world empire of the day, Egypt, totally by faith! He had no armies, and he was so poor at communicating that his brother Aaron had to talk for him!
143. Look at Joshua. He was crazy enough to believe that he could send his men marching around the walls of Jericho, blowing their horns, and the walls would fall down. But his men believed him, and God fulfilled His promise.
144. Look at Gideon. God told him that he could defeat an army of 120,000 Midianites with just 300 men—and he was so confident of victory that he sent 32‚000 men home who had doubts about it, just leaving the ones who were fully convinced along with him. And he did it, starting with trumpets‚ torches, and clay pots.
145. Look at Samson, Elijah and Elisha, with their outlandish message and acts, at Samuel‚ and at King David of old. And look at the prophets that followed them: Isaiah was told to go naked for three years as a testimony of how God was going to strip Israel. Ezekiel was told to spend a year lying on his side in front of a model of Jerusalem and eat cakes baked with dung as a testimony. Hosea was told to marry a prostitute to demonstrate the Lord's love for Israel.
146. And if you want a prophet with an unusual message, look at Jesus! We're very familiar with His Words and message today, but think how radical it must have been back then—and still is: "Ye cannot serve God and mammon" (Mat.6:24). "Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment?" (Mat.6:25). "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their dead" (Mat.8:22). "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law" (Mat.10:34-35). "He that is not with Me is against Me, and he that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad" (Mat.12:30).
147. "If thy hand offend thee‚ cut it off. If thy foot offend thee, cut it off. If thine eye offend thee, pluck it out" (Mark 9:43,45,47). "My mother and My brethren are these which hear the Word of God, and do it" (Luk.8:21). "Whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever will lose his life for My sake‚ the same shall save it" (Luk.9:24). "If any man come to Me and hate not his father‚ and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple" (Luk.14:26‚ 33). "They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead‚ neither marry nor are given in marriage" (Luk.20:35).
148. "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood, ye have no life in you" (John 6:53). "The time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service" (John 16:2). "Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain‚ they are retained" (John 20:23).
149. So if all the prophets have preached and practiced a radical message, and the Son of God did so as well, why should people think it odd that we do too?
ML #3361:57–58, GN 957
57. (Jesus:) Only if the Family members are strong in faith and willing to preach the truth as given in the Words of David will you fulfill your special place in the big Endtime picture. It's that uncompromising witness that will allow Me to continue to give My full blessing to the Family. This is one of those spiritual principles which is contrary to the mind of natural man. You would think that the Family would grow and prosper and become strong and financially powerful by recruiting sheer numbers, by tickling people's ears with what they want to hear‚ by making them feel good about themselves and not "blowing them away" with strong unconventional doctrine. But the opposite is true.
58. By remaining true to your unique calling, by preaching the Word—even the uncomfortable, seemingly unpopular Word—and winning those who are willing to follow in your footsteps in spirit, will your new members be strong, powerful, and fruitful, and the result, with time, will be much, much more than had you tried to walk the more conventional route and not tested and tried your new members with the strong meat.
ML #3364:37-122, 162–205, GN 960
37. (Mama:) Okay‚ ... I want to go back to the subject of faithfulness to the unique message the Lord has given us, the children of David. I'm referring to the meat of the Word—the radical, different, controversial Words of David. Even if these other weaknesses are strengthened—the division, the dependence on System jobs, the lack of living communally as Jesus' disciples did, the compromise for gain, etc.—that won't be enough if we're not willing to be true to the message the Lord has given us. Even successful communal living and trusting the Lord for supply, even building a greater church isn't the all in all, if that means you're discarding or burying the unique and important Words of David that the Family is blessed to have received.
38. There are those of you who write in, chiding Peter and me for what you consider our lack of wisdom regarding what we've printed. There are those who feel that your experience being out on the field makes you the experts on what's to be preached if we're to avoid "blowing people away" with what you call "unnecessary doctrines." The bottom line of your suggestions is: "Can't we just preach Jesus and the Bible?" The argument that's made is: "That's all you need to be a missionary, so why stumble the sheep with all this other stuff, these strange truths that no one else is preaching. And if no one else is preaching it, why do we need to? After all, couldn't we have a perfectly effective missionary movement and win new members without having to get all distracted with these new private doctrines?"
39. The thinking of these who want to do away with the revelations the Lord gives us is that they're intended for the Family‚ as private reading, but whatever we publish becomes available to the general public fairly quickly. We acknowledge that that is true. Peter and I are completely aware of the fact that putting designations on our literature doesn't in any way keep it out of the hands of those outside the Family. We keep that in mind with every GN! We prayerfully consider the legal implications of everything we publish. We have many proofreaders, as you know, and they often bring up questions related to security that are seriously considered and prayed about.
40. So we are aware that whatever we publish in the GNs is quickly made available to outsiders, even to our enemies. We also realize that there is a possibility that anything we publish could be presented as evidence against us in a court of law in the future. Peter and I and our counselors in WS are fully aware of this.
41. That brings us to a question: Where do you draw the line? If we were to listen to those of you who want to avoid anything controversial falling into the hands of the general public‚ our enemies, or even new converts, things would be very different in the Family today. Because if we want to prevent anything that's new, radical, and not according to the mainstream church system from reaching the public or those we're witnessing to, or our enemies, the only solution would be to not print it, to completely censor the Lord's Words. Really, is that what you want?
42. Here are excerpts of what one person wrote not too long ago:
43. (Comment from witnesser:) I don't think that at this point we are really persecuted for being a radical Christian group. I don't mind being persecuted for that. When we speak about "New Wine," we mostly speak about new revelations, like the practical application of the Law of Love and the "Loving Jesus" revelation (not the spiritual one‚ as the spiritual one is also easily explained and very well Biblically founded). It is written in the Letters that these new revelations are reserved for us (the Family) in these days. These are doctrines particular to the Family. I think that what we face really as persecution is the result of our lack of discretion with these things, which I feel should be and stay private.
44. I think that some very sensitive things come out even in CM/FM mailings, which we need to realize will be made public to the whole world nearly immediately. [Note: Examples given were: "Loving Jesus" revelation‚ ML #3024-25 and 3029-33; mention of striptease at Peter's birthday party, ML #3296‚ GN 893; innuendoes of sexual sharing on Valentine's Day, GV 84; automatic "waving" as an application of loving Jesus intimately, ML #3284, GN 912; and the date Mama had with Steven, ML #3345‚ GN 939.]
45. I personally have nothing against these things, except maybe the fact that they are rather personal and I wonder if it's wise to publish this in these days when we no longer have any security. The Statements state that our sexuality is something private, and I think that it should be. Unsaved or even saved people who are new in Jesus will take this as adultery, which I agree we do not necessarily believe in, but why make it public to the world that does not understand and will automatically turn our "good" into "evil"?
46. I am only talking as a witnesser. In my last six years of discipling, I have seen that these things hurt us more than they help. We are having more success now by putting these things on the back burner and just preaching Jesus and the Bible. As soon as I mention The Family, these things mentioned above are the things that I have to defend, instead of teaching the Bible and teaching the sheep to love Jesus and witness. I don't think that these things should even come into the picture, as they're not part of what is needed to be saved and learn to be a missionary. …
47. In the early days, when we started out, we were only required to believe the basic Bible elements of the "Revolutionary Rules," which didn't even require believing that Dad was a prophet. (I didn't even know there was a "Dad" when I joined in 1975. But the Holy Ghost confirmed it with time, as it is in itself "meat" to a "babe," and really is not even essential to salvation nor to be a fruitful missionary for the Lord.)
48. Again, please understand‚ I don't have anything against the doctrine; I just think we need to be more cautious with our lit and doctrines, and that our "gospel" that we preach should not be the "new revelations" the Lord gives us between Him and us in our intimate life together, but that it should be the simple Gospel of Jesus for the world as outlined in the Bible‚ as it was with us when the Family first started. I know that we don't preach these things as our Gospel purposely, but by not being cautious, we actually are, and by making these things, which are actually the personal maturation of the Family in 30 years of growth, part of our essential beliefs, we are actually stumbling sheep by not letting them grow with the "milk of the Word." (End of comments.)
49. (Mama:) I understand this person's point of view. I believe there are quite a few of you who feel the same and who have resorted to the same kind of witnessing.
50. It is perfectly acceptable to feed babes with milk and to not get into controversial issues when it's not appropriate. But I must clarify a few points that this person and many of you have lost sight of.
51. As I explained earlier‚ and as this person also mentioned, there is no way that what we publish for the Family will remain private. That doesn't happen. So if Peter and I really wanted to keep anything radical, new, or controversial out of the hands of the general public or our enemies, we'd have to not publish it. That would be our only choice. That is not generally an option.
52. Peter and I are responsible before the Lord to give you the Word He gives us, prayerfully considering the security aspect. You probably don't realize it, but we have even consulted various lawyers before publishing our more radical GNs, to be very sure the presentation is appropriate and safe. There's nothing illegal in what we say, much less in what we practice‚ but we are aware that controversial subjects can be twisted and made to appear that way unless they're presented with care and prayer. We aren't living in a dream world; we know that what is published will come back to us, and we want to do all we can to protect you, the Family. That is also our responsibility.
53. But what this person that I quoted earlier is saying, along with anyone else who feels the same, is that we should just "forget all that New Wine and just stick with the Bible," that we should just preach "the simple Gospel of Jesus for the world as outlined in the Bible, as it was with us when the Family first started." That is clearly not what has made the Family what we are today. If you only want to witness the Bible‚ you should be in the churches! If you want things to be like they were in the early days when you only had to follow the "Revolutionary Rules" and you're willing to downplay or forget 30 years of Letters since then, then you're in the wrong place! God help us!
54. The feelings this person articulates and the stance he has taken in his witnessing is a clear example of the kind of deadly compromise that has seeped into our ranks regarding our witness. Clearly he doesn't want to have to defend any of these doctrines in witnessing, and since they come up when the Family is mentioned‚ I assume that he no longer witnesses in the name of the Family. And if he believes that you only need Jesus, the Bible, and salvation to be an effective missionary, I can't help but ask why in the world he or anyone else who feels this way is in the Family. Why should you risk being persecuted for our radical beliefs? Why go to all the trouble of covering up the doctrines of the group you've been a part of for years if you don't even believe they're necessary?
55. For God's sake, if you can't take even a mention of sexual freedom and sharing between consenting adults in our in-house pubs, if you want to avoid mentioning anything at all sexy, or the fact that there was a semi-nude dance for Peter in our all-adult birthday party, if all this is so "personal" that you'd rather it never even be mentioned in the pubs—in fact, you wish it would just go away—then you're in the wrong place! What do you think the Family has become? If some of you can't take any mention in the pubs of legitimate, Godly, Charter-allowed sexual freedom, then there is something seriously wrong with you! And if you think you can be in the Family and witness without letting your converts or even new disciples know about Dad or our radical doctrines, you are mistaken! It's ridiculous!
56. For Heaven's sake, think about it! Do you realize what you're saying?! You're wanting to gut the Family of everything that is unique to our message‚ and you might as well start building church buildings today, because that's what you're becoming! It's pitiful and upsetting!
57. I'm very concerned about the conservative, churchy, religious element in our CM Family, wondering what in the world happened to many of you! Where's that dedication you once had to the Words of David, when you were even willing to get out the most radical Letters and posters on the streets by the millions? Now any little mention of sexual freedom or sharing or anything that might stumble someone is hooted down as unreasonable, unwise, unnecessary, and a lack of discretion!
58. What in the world do you want? Do you want all the unique doctrines of the Family to be forgotten, or to be just for your private personal enjoyment, or even to be relegated to the shelves in our older Volumes as a part of our "history" which we'd just as soon forget? I'm sorry‚ but all of those options are impossible! Some of these same critics are plenty willing to practice the sexual freedom of the Law of Love in their own lives, and yet they'd deny this truth to the sheep the Lord brings across their path! And it goes further than that with a lot of you; you don't even want people to know about Dad or the Letters or that you're even part of the Family!
59. It's this watering down of the message and compromise through cover-up or deliberate denial that we cannot have in the Family. Of course, there are plenty of things about the Family that a lot of people won't like, especially if you're witnessing to churchy, narrow-minded, got-their-minds-made-up religious people. Just to name a few: the fact that we believe in David‚ our Endtime prophet; our history of FFing; our belief in and practice of sexual freedom as per the full truth of the Law of Love that Dad taught us; hearing from the spirit world (not just Jesus‚ but spirit helpers and departed spirits); Dad continuing to lead the Family through his messages in prophecy; the practical application of the "Loving Jesus" revelation, etc. Let's face it, the Family is not mainstream‚ and we never will be.
60. We have accepted into our outer circles those who don't or can't drop out, and we have lots of excellent literature to feed the GP and new converts that is similar to the productions of other Christian groups or churches. But I want to make it clear that the radical elements of the Family and the meat of the Word are not going to disappear, so you're doing yourself and your sheep a disservice if you try to lead a double life where you read the GNs in your Home and maybe even practice them privately, but in your witness you try to completely divorce yourself from the doctrines of the Family or even the Family name. That just isn't fruitful, and it won't work! Your sheep will find out eventually and then they'll distrust you and disrespect you for your lack of honesty.
61. Again‚ the argument that our radical doctrines should remain private or that they "shouldn't even come into the picture" is irrelevant to Peter and me, because we fully realize that anything we publish or have published won't remain private—not in this day and age. It will come into the picture eventually! You can think that you're keeping our meaty doctrines private by not teaching them and by not witnessing in the name of the Family, and you can hope they won't come up, but that's only a stopgap. That only delays the inevitable. If you remain a part of the Family‚ your sheep will find out, and when they do‚ your lack of honesty will be a terrible testimony. Not only will you look like a hypocrite, but a liar.
62. So take my word for it, if you want to remain in the Family and win new disciples, you'd best be much more honest and open about what we're really about—our history and some of our radical doctrines. You can explain some of these things with the Statements that are available for your use. Those provide very well–presented and well-rounded explanations.
63. I'm not saying you should immediately give your sheep the meat of these radical doctrines. I'm not saying you should necessarily preach them; but neither can you hide them indefinitely. There will be persecution eventually, and when that happens, your sheep or new disciples will find out about our radical past, our former persecutions, the accusations made against us, and our controversial doctrines. They'll find out about these things through twisted tabloid TV shows and exaggerated, lying newspaper articles, or through publications of apostates, things posted on the Internet. Is that how you want them to be taught and introduced to these doctrines? Of course not! Be wise‚ and teach your sheep yourself, with love, prayerfulness, wisdom, and patience. (See also "Preparing Contacts for Future Persecution," ML #3243:80-123, GN 845.)
64. Regarding the mindset that any of you have that's similar to what's expressed in the letter from a Family member that I quoted earlier, the Lord said:
65. (Jesus speaking: ) This is precisely the kind of compromising of the message that I want to root out. It's not that I expect the Family to actively promote the radical, private messages or to try to stir up controversy and trouble‚ but the deliberate hiding and denying of the radical doctrine is a compromise that must stop. This is exactly the kind of compromise that I hate, that which compromises and denies My Word!
66. The compromisers are those who think everything is fine with just the Bible and salvation. If everything were fine with just that, why would I still be talking today? If that were all that is needed today, why would I have raised up David and Maria? Why would I have even created the Family if all that were needed were the same messages the churches give? It's ridiculous and is the epitome of compromise of the meat of the Word.
67. You see‚ some people get a little confused‚ and when you talk about not compromising the message they get scared, because they think that means they need to actively promote or even preach the radical Word, the truths that are unique to the Family. That is not the case. That's not what I expect. But I do expect that they won't deny them, or try to bury them or pretend they don't exist‚ or that they won't try to hide them from their converts at the time when they should be feeding their sheep the meat.
68. Some of these conservative‚ fearful, compromised shepherds are like irresponsible parents or teachers who only feed the children in their care mush and baby food and milk, when they should be giving them meat loaf sandwiches, hamburgers‚ or a stew with plenty of tender, juicy meat! It's pitiful. Those kinds of caregivers can be charged with negligence. When the heads of the folds of David don't provide proper nourishment for their "children," that is negligence in the spirit, and the reason many of them don't do it is because of compromise for gain. They're afraid of losing their flocks, but part of the problem is they're not winning the right kind of sheep in the first place; they're winning churchy, lukewarm sheep. Or they're not willing to put forth the time and patience needed to teach them and answer their questions and help them understand and receive the truth of the meat of the Words of David.
69. Any way you cut it, that kind of compromise of the Word is wrong and cannot be tolerated. Those who are the caregivers and shepherds of the sheep of David must have the faith to explain and teach (when appropriate) the meat of the Word. The sheep will find out anyway, and it's a matter of either preparing them step by step‚ with wisdom and patience, or letting them stumble upon it themselves, usually with the spin of your enemies, which makes it almost impossible for babes to understand.
70. Those of you who think you can hide these truths from your folds are living in denial. That is naïve and ridiculous. I will not let these words be hidden. They will be revealed and shouted from the rooftops, because these are the very truths and messages that will win the strongest leaders and laborers. You aren't to go out of your way to preach it‚ for I will open the doors in My way and My time, but neither are you to deny the truth, or blatantly hide and bury it. I will not bless that, and your sample and character will be tarnished as a result of such shenanigans, as there will undoubtedly be questions as to why someone would even remain in a religious movement if he or she were ashamed of its doctrines and message. (End of message from Jesus)
71. (Mama:) As I said earlier, I realize our enemies do eventually get ahold of our CM Letters or things that are written specifically to certain circles of the Family, or to certain Family members in specific situations. They take those words and quote them out of context, wrest them, misapply them, and do their best to use them against the Family as a whole. Sometimes they prepare entire compilations of "twisted truths," which they've used against us in past court cases.
72. While we regret that these Letters have fallen into their hands, and we certainly hope none of you are guilty of passing them on, we don't regret the words and truths themselves! (I'm referring here to the pubs still in our Homes. We acknowledge that some of those purged in the lit purge lacked the needed safeguards, or were easy to misconstrue, and for that reason they are no longer in our Homes.) In defending them, in "contending earnestly for the faith that was delivered unto us," it gives us a chance to present our side of the story, God's message and full truth, and to spread it far and wide. So nevertheless, the Gospel is preached, even if it's through contention sometimes! In defending the faith, we've often made more progress, gained more friends, spread more message, and won more people to the Lord than we could have any other way. All things truly do work together for good to those who love the Lord, thank God!
73. I want to remind you of what the Lord said in Part 1 of this series:
Only if the Family members are strong in faith and willing to preach the truth as given in the Words of David will you fulfill your special place in the big Endtime picture. It's that uncompromising witness that will allow Me to continue to give My full blessing to the Family. This is one of those spiritual principles which is contrary to the mind of natural man. You would think that the Family would grow and prosper and become strong and financially powerful by recruiting sheer numbers‚ by tickling people's ears with what they want to hear‚ by making them feel good about themselves and not "blowing them away" with strong unconventional doctrine. But the opposite is true.
By remaining true to your unique calling, by preaching the Word—even the uncomfortable, seemingly unpopular Word--and winning those who are willing to follow in your footsteps in spirit, will your new members be strong, powerful, and fruitful, and the result, with time, will be much, much more than had you tried to walk the more conventional route and not tested and tried your new members with the strong meat (ML #3361:57-58, GN 957).
Points to Consider
About the Meat of the Word
74. Each of you in the Family needs to make a decision about your stance concerning the meat of the Word. Take the following points into consideration when deciding:
75. • Peter and I will not compromise the message the Lord shows us to publish. We will be wise, yes, and we will prayerfully consider security‚ but we will obey the Lord.
76. • You can be sure there will be more new truths and strong meat published in the future!
77. • What we publish for the CM or CM/FM Family eventually falls into outsiders' hands. We realize that, while these are essentially private messages or doctrines for our personal edification‚ that doesn't mean they'll not be made public eventually. You must therefore be prepared to deal with that.
78. • Peter and I have no intention whatsoever of becoming like the church system, where our message to the world is only to preach Jesus, salvation, and the Bible.
79. • The Family has a lot of radical beliefs that many people don't like. Those are not going away. We are not becoming mainstream and ordinary.
80. • You cannot hide or deny the Family, Dad, or our radical beliefs indefinitely‚ because your sheep will eventually find out.
81. • It is your responsibility to teach your sheep, to bring them along, to help them receive the basics of the meat of the Word. If they can't handle it when taught lovingly, patiently, and in the Lord's time, then they would do better to become members of some active charismatic church.
82. • We will never have strong disciples unless we win the kind who can receive, believe, and live the meat of the Word. We're after quantity and quality!
83. • The Word teaches us that all who live Godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution‚ and that we will be persecuted for righteousness' sake, for the Gospel's sake. Are you willing to stand up for the Gospel—the Words of David—that the Lord has delivered unto us and given us to preach in these Last Days? Do you believe that the meat of the Word is part of the "righteousness" God has given us as His Endtime children, with the message of David our Endtime prophet? If not, you'd better find a place with more basic beliefs you would have the faith to stand up for, bearing in mind that you'll probably be persecuted even for those someday!
We're Still a Revolution!
84. Here is a message of confirmation from Dad:
85. (Dad speaking:) This Family began as the Revolution for Jesus! We weren't church folks or namby-pamby spineless noodles for Jesus; we were radical, dropped-out revolutionaries who wanted to change the world for Jesus—and we still do! And you don't change the world by becoming just another church, just preaching Jesus and salvation. We started off by preaching the full Gospel‚ everything Jesus said, and not only preaching it, but living it full time.
86. That's what made us news around the world and why we hit the headlines in nation after nation! We were different, we were news‚ and the Lord's message made news! Even if the media sometimes twisted it and misrepresented us, nevertheless the Gospel was preached!
87. We weren't your normal meek and mild little Christians who drifted along, witnessing a little here or there when we had time—the silent majority, who have never made a sound, never changed a jot or a tittle, never sank so low or rose so high, never made a mark‚ never made any impression, so you never even knew they ever existed! We were fiery‚ fervent followers of Jesus, and still are. We don't believe in being conformed to the world but in being transformed! We believe in offering our bodies as a living sacrifice unto God, which is just our reasonable service after all the Lord has done for us!
88. You may say, "Well, Dad, those days of the Revolution for Jesus are sort of past now‚ aren't they? That was the sixties and seventies. Aren't we the Family now‚ and aren't we a little more mainstream, so shouldn't we have doctrines that are a little more mainstream?"
89. Let me ask you a question: What does the Family stand for? It's short for the Family of Love, a Family that was born in the white-hot fires of the FF Revolution! That's another revolution that changed tens of thousands of lives around the world and spread our message—God's message—further than we could have ever imagined! We don't FF anymore, but that's the revolution that gave us our present name, won multitudes of souls, and made God's love news in hundreds of news articles around the world!
90. Now we witness the Word instead of FFing, and that's a revolution too, because it's not just the Old Wine of the Bible; it also includes all the New Wine the Lord has given us over the years. As we've obeyed His Word to the best of our ability, He's given us revelation after revelation, showing us what His Word really meant, from our earliest days up to the present.
91. He's shown us the best way to reach the world is to live together in unity‚ having all things in common, and distributing our belongings to each man or woman as they have need. He's shown us that He meant it literally when He said we should love Him with all our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves, and that all the law hangs on these two commandments—His Law of Love! He's shown us that we can live this Law of Love in every way, even sexually, for you who are of age. He's shown us that we are literally the Bride of Christ, and that He's our Husband, and we can love Him intimately. He's shown us that we really are in the Last Days, and that time is short and we need to redeem it and do His work while we still can! He's given us the keys of the Kingdom and is teaching us how to use them to harness the greatest power in the universe!
92. So we're still a Revolution for Jesus—not some sort of reformation or revival, much less a church service for Jesus! God has called us out of the church system to work full time for Him, to believe fully in His Word, and to give our hundred percent to living it and preaching it. That's revolutionary, and that's what's kept us from drifting back into the System and becoming just another ho–hum, do-nothing church, even one that might have thousands of members.
93. We're different, and that's why we can accomplish so much, and why people are attracted to our message. We're different, and that's why we must remain dropped out rather than settling back into the mire and morass of the mainstream along with the flotsam and jetsam of "normality." We're different because we're God's new Church, His new Bride, not His old Church!
94. Now I know it's hard being different sometimes, and we get some bad publicity and persecution for it. But if we didn't, I'd be worried! After all, Jesus said He's chosen you out of the world‚ so the world often hates you, just as it hated Him. Well‚ thank God the world isn't your friend, because that would be enmity with God. If you find yourself wanting to become the friend of the world, you may be on your way to becoming the enemy of God. That which is highly esteemed among men is abomination to God. That's God's Word and warning—pretty revolutionary, huh?
95. There's a lot in the Word that's revolutionary, and we believe in it and follow it and do it, and people know we do. People who know the Family at all should know that we stand for all-out, full-time dedication to Jesus. They may not always agree with what we do and say‚ but they know what we stand for, and if we weren't willing to stand up for our beliefs, they'd figure we didn't believe in them very strongly—and that they weren't really worth believing in the first place!
96. Not only that, but the Lord Himself would be ashamed of us‚ because we're ashamed of His Word, the truth He's given us over the years. He was willing to give everything for you, to live and die for you, and yet you're ashamed of His Word and don't want to preach it or stand up for it because it's a little controversial and sometimes people are stumbled by it.
97. Well, let me tell you, if you're not willing to preach His Word—all of His Word—the Lord will see to it that it gets preached anyway, even if He has to find someone else to do so! I'm not saying that you should run down the streets proclaiming that you're the bride of Christ or start talking about the sexual aspects of the Law of Love with the next passer-by. But if you're ashamed of these doctrines or want to sort of sweep them under the carpet with your long-term friends and contacts and even new disciples, you can be sure that "there is nothing hid that shall not be revealed." The truth will come out‚ whether it's in the form of a news article, slander from your enemies‚ a comment from someone else who's known you a long time, etc. Then how will you feel for having tried to cover it up, and how will your friends, contacts, or new disciples feel about you?
98. The words the Lord has given us over the years are His words, and they're what make us the Family we are. In your efforts to make us look more presentable or attractive or to sort of modernize the Family, watch out that you don't weaken the structure. Remember "Builders Beware!" When you start carrying out the bags of grain for some reason—any of our doctrines that you feel are maybe a little controversial‚ a bit too radical, inconvenient, things that need toning down or tossing out or whatever—then you're in trouble! Those words, those bags of grain, are what keep the building on its foundation—steady, stable, sturdy and strong! Builders beware!
99. It would do some of you good to dig into those bags of grain that keep us on a firm foundation and remind yourself of what's in there! When's the last time you read "Dropouts" or "God's Explosions" or even looked through "Revolution for Jesus" in the MOP? You're wondering why we can't be a little more conventional and "normal" in our life and outreach? When's the last time you read "Did God Make a Mistake?" or "Jesus People?—Or Revolution!" or dozens of other Letters along the same lines! Those Letters have not been superseded by the Charter. The Charter is built on the Word, and they're the Word too!
100. And you know what? Most of the Letters I just mentioned are GP, along with hundreds of other early Letters. I not only told the Family what God had shown us, but I told the world, and the youth of the world loved it, and so did many of the public! The Letters went like hotcakes, and you still meet people who remember you and your message from those days. They write you at your e-mail address; they see your Web site‚ and they're just thrilled that the Family is still around, still going, still witnessing the same things!
101. So I was faithful to preach and to live what God showed me. I was faithful to the message and the Man, the Son of God, and that's what started the Family. Will you be faithful too? Will you keep going for Jesus, bold and brave and unafraid, committed to His Word‚ His truth, His message? I hope you will. I pray you will. You don't want to miss His "Well done, good and faithful servant," nor His standing to receive you at His throne, telling His Father and all the angels of Heaven that, "This is one of My faithful witnesses who loves Me and was not ashamed of My Word. Come, dear bride‚ and inherit the Kingdom that I have prepared for you from the foundation of the world!" Hallelujah! (End of message from Dad.)
102. (Mama:) Thank God for Dad's faithfulness to preach and teach and live the full Word of God! That's why we have a Family, why millions upon millions of people have heard about Jesus, and why 25 million of them have received Him and will live forever with us in Heaven! Here are a few quotes from some of those Letters that Dad mentioned:
Revolutionary Quotes From the Early Letters
History is a record of nothing but dropouts—because they're the only ones that made news! There was nothing new about the rest of the people—the System robots who followed the party line—the conformists and conventionalists that nobody ever heard of! It was the nonconformists, unconventionalists‚ individualists, iconoclasts‚ rejects, and dropouts who really made history! You'd better believe it! So if you want to make history, just be a dropout! If you want to sink into the oblivion of the forgotten man, conform to the System! ("Dropouts IV," ML #34:22–23).
*
To Hell with the proper way! The proper way is of man! The unexpected and the improper, the unconventional and untraditional‚ the unorthodox and unceremonious, contrary to man's natural expectation—this is the way God usually works! "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the Earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts!" (Isa.55:8‚ 9). Who can know the mind of the Lord, and who can show Him anything?
Who the hell do you think you are, anyway, to tell God what to do and how to do it? God knows His business and it's none of your business how He does it! So quit trying to tell Him how He ought to do it! "Now, Lord, You must do it this way or that way, so we'll be accepted and people will understand." … Just trust God that He knows what He's doing! "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart: and lean not unto thy own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths" (Pro.3:5,6). ("Did God Make a Mistake?" ML #35:13–15.)
103. (Mama:) Here's a real classic, one of my favorites, which, by the way‚ was printed in 1973 and classified GP—that is, for the general public!
Jesus Himself said He had to pour His very New Wine into very new bottles who could expand their receptivity sufficiently to take it‚ accommodate it, and even rejoice in it, for it spoke their language and helped Him to reach the drunks and the harlots and the publicans and sinners and the radical young zealots with whom He associated. It also proved He was not part of the System and was not bound by its conventions, inhibitions and prejudices. …
A revolution is a total break with the traditions of man and his churches and his preconceived ideas about God and misconceptions of morality. We have turned completely around and are going a different direction, no longer man's way but God's way, and we are free to enjoy to the full the beauties and wonders of His creation with all of its pleasures, which He Himself created for our enjoyment.
This is no day for the weak and the fearful and those who are unable to bear the many more things that God now has to say to us in these Last Days when He must tell us the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help us God!
I'm sorry, but the revolution did not begin with our trying to please people and giving them only what they were able to believe and accept. ... If you are not young enough in spirit, pliable enough, resilient enough, and elastic enough to expand your vision and faith to accommodate this New Wine of the Lord, you will certainly be unable to take what's coming, and your vessel now shaken will be truly shattered! ...
If naked truth bothers you, you are definitely an old bottle and had better avoid the crash! But if you can accommodate this New Wine without asking why or trying to analyze its ingredients, God has such thrills and intoxication of the Spirit in store for you that you will be glad you drank it without question, and you'll be whisked off into a world which you never dreamed existed, where you'll enjoy the very wonders of total intimacy with a sexy‚ naked God Himself in a wild orgy of the Spirit as His totally surrendered Bride!
Otherwise, you're like the old church‚ an old bottle, cracked, broken, useless, and doomed to abandonment and oblivion! May God help you to know where you belong!
P.S. Remember the warning Jesus gave to some: "I would that ye were hot or cold, but because ye are lukewarm‚ I will spew you out of My mouth!" Halfway, half-hearted, half-baked disciples make God sick at His stomach! Please don't be one of them! It were better that you had never heard the truth than to have heard and gone back! God says, "My soul abhorreth him that turneth back!" Cut loose and come on! (From "Come on, Ma, Burn Your Bra!" ML #286:3-5,13‚14,18,23,24,27.)
104. (Mama: ) And the Family hasn't changed in being a Revolution for Jesus, even though Dad has passed on. We still believe in the Word‚ all of it, and that inevitably makes us different. As I said several years ago‚ right after Dad's Heavenly Homegoing: "We can never be only a missionary organization doing relief work and 'Consider the Poor' ministries. We are believers in sex, prophets of the End, portrayers of Heaven‚ separatists from the world, destroyers of darkness, and fighters for the truth! And in all these, beloved, we are preachers of the Gospel and lovers and winners of souls. And it is because of all of these other things that we are the successful missionary organization we are today" ("Why We 'Preached Sex' in the Press Release Announcing Dad's Homegoing!" ML #2957:13, Lifelines 21).
We Can't Compromise
For the Sake of Church Christians
105. I don't believe in going out of our way to antagonize sincere Christians‚ but neither do I believe in toning down or compromising our message in order to make friends with those who are already saved and already belong to a church, etc. Those people are not our main audience. They already know the Lord, and if they're churchy at all, you can be pretty sure they're not going to like our kind of religion! Some of you have written in‚ asking why we have to be so controversial as to blow away the Christians you've grown close to; or if they're not blown away yet, you fear that they will be as soon as they hear of some of our radical beliefs. Here is some counsel from Dad on that and other points.
106. (Dad speaking:) If you're talking about toning down the presentation of some of our doctrines so that you can work with the church system and be more acceptable to them and make friends with them and have them accept you, I can guarantee you that you're going to be toning things down so much that you're going to have very little of God's present-day message left!
107. As far back as 30 years ago, church Christians were having difficulty with the Family's doctrines of personal witnessing! And even 40 or 50 years ago, that used to get me into so much trouble when I would talk to churches and church folks about personal witnessing, because they didn't want to do it; most of them didn't want to be involved in it or make the sacrifices to get out and personal witness. They wanted to leave that up to the pastor on Sunday morning. And they didn't want to accept forsaking all, they didn't want to accept the fact that you didn't have to have a church building to go to in order to worship God—that you could worship Him standing out in the park with your friends. And they certainly don't want to accept our beliefs on sex! They never have, and I wouldn't be surprised if most of them will never fully be able to accept it. And if they're not willing to accept God's simple, basic Law of Love and Godly sex and sharing and giving love one to another, they're certainly going to find it even more difficult to accept Loving Jesus.
108. Of course, you can tone down the presentation of our doctrines in certain given situations. You have to be led of the Lord and His Spirit and His wisdom. There's a time to present the Family's beliefs and doctrines to outsiders in a way that will make it as easy as possible for them to understand it and accept it. You don't have to go and stand in front of the church doors and insist that they believe the way that you do.
109. But we have every right to what we believe and what we stand for. God has every right to get His message out through the Family, and we're free to believe and live and practice and follow the message that God is giving to the Family today. And although it's not our aim to force anyone to believe and accept our beliefs or doctrines or lifestyle, we would like them to believe and accept‚ and we want to give them the opportunity to hear the message. But we also have a firm belief that we have every right to our freedom of choice and belief and doctrine and religion and lifestyle and mode of operation and everything.
110. The churches tried to persuade me for years, as did my first wife, that I was going about things the wrong way, that I shouldn't be challenging them left and right, that I should tone things down, that I shouldn't be going around telling people that we really can live according to the Bible, that Jesus did really mean that true Christians should be willing to forsake all and follow Him. The minute I started standing up for the truth, I was never fully accepted by the church Christians.
111. And that's why the Lord had us start the Family, because in you He saw people who were willing to accept His message. The Family didn't want it toned down. They wanted to believe it. They were excited and thrilled and turned on and happy to have finally found others who wanted to live the Word, to preach the Word, to give the Word, and to obey the Lord and follow Him no matter what! They were willing and happy and were honored to deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Him.
112. That was what turned them on! It was their key! And the more the Lord asked them to do‚ and the more He presented them with, the crazier the idea, the more it challenged or exposed the System or the churchy Christians‚ the happier our people got—the more excited they got! They got even more conviction and more fire to give everything to Jesus and serve Him with all their hearts. They loved Him, so they loved the truth. They loved His new fresh wine! They loved His new fresh revelations and messages!
113. That I was David, the Endtime prophet‚ was the greatest thrill in the world to our one hundred percent, sold-out, loyal disciples! Because that's what they needed—a shepherd who could lead them through the Endtime, someone who the Lord had anointed with great conviction‚ faith, and boldness‚ who wasn't afraid of the wrath of the System, who wasn't afraid to stand up and face the lion's roar. They had to face my roar! Ha!
114. You are personally responsible for what you do in your life and with your life and with the truth that God has given you. No one can tell you what to say, and no one can make you say anything when you're face to face witnessing to someone. It's between you and that person and the Lord, and it's up to you to deliver the Lord's message to them—whatever the message is that He wants you to give that individual. And it varies a great deal from person to person depending on where they're at in the spirit and how much they can receive at a time. Some need to be spoon-fed with milk, and then they grow and grow in the spirit and they can take stronger feedings, and then they can take the meat, and then they can take the fresh New Wine and revelations.
115. But you're the instrument and the tool that delivers the message. God's given the Family His message for today in all of its wonderful glory. He's given you His revelations, His leading and guidance through me, and now through Mama and Peter, and it's your choice what you do with it, how you treat it‚ how you handle it, how you deliver it. It's one thing to tone down your presentation of one of the Family's doctrines like "Loving Jesus" or the voice of prophecy, or whatever, with the purpose in mind of helping the person to receive it and fully understand it and gradually letting them grow in the spirit until you can give them more and more. If you're being motivated by true‚ genuine love for that soul and for that person, then the Lord will be faithful to lead and guide you as to how to present the message.
116. But if your goal is to tone down the message because you don't even like the message, and you don't want to talk about it, and you don't want to present it in the first place, and maybe you don't even believe in it‚ then that's a whole different story!
117. Like I said, we have freedom of religious belief and the freedom to follow the Lord and obey His message. The church also operates according to their belief, and they have the freedom to do so. Each individual has the freedom to decide where they feel they fit best.
118. God called me out of the church system so that He could use me and make me into the vessel that He wanted me to be to give His message to the world in the Endtime. He personally spoke to me and to others and told me my calling and my job. He was the One Who told me that I was David for the Endtime, that He would set up one shepherd over His sheep and He would feed them. And even though I didn't understand everything at that time, I still had the personal conviction and faith to follow God. I believed that God knew what He was doing and that He knew best.
119. And that's what each person has to decide for themselves. No one is forcing you to believe anything that you don't want to believe. You're not being forced to stay in the Family. You're completely free to stay if you want to uphold the standards and beliefs of the Family‚ or you're completely free to serve the Lord in another way, whether it be with the churches, with another Christian group, or whatever. You have freedom of choice.
120. Our Family beliefs are not a secret; we're very open with our beliefs and the Lord's message. That's our job. We are witnesses. We are His tools in the Endtime, His mouthpieces. That's what we live for—to bring people the truth, to set them free, to give them Jesus, to bring them happiness and eternal life. And although the road may sometimes be rough and bumpy, we know that we're doing the Lord's will and we're obeying Him. (End of message from Dad.)
Comments from one of our COs:
121. It's not uncommon for the Family today to be looking at the seeming success of some churches and question our ways, methods, tactics‚ message, etc. I think this is something that will need further clarification as we proceed with the Activated build-a–church vision. It's real easy, when we're talking in terms of building a church, to compare ourselves with those in the church system who have been successful with that type of thing. I guess because the terminology is the same, you sort of inadvertently compare with different churches‚ what they're doing, how they're attracting people‚ what their message is, etc., and because they are often pretty successful at drawing larger numbers, then they look more successful at serving the Lord.
122. But we're talking about two very different things here: Building a church and having a place where people come for spiritual feeding is one thing; being the priesthood or serving the Lord as one of the 12 is very different, as well as being responsible to serve up a meatier message. That is our calling, and that is the standard that we have to judge ourselves by—not by the 70 or the 120 or the 5,000. (End of comment from CO.)
Q: Why do we have to even talk about the meat of the Word, when our main job is to preach the Gospel to every creature? Isn't the Gospel Jesus and salvation?
162. (Dad speaking: ) I started a revolution‚ and the Family is still a revolution today! You are the called-out ones—called out from the church system. Nothing has ever changed that. You've been called out to preach a message of love that no one else is preaching; that's what I've always taught, and nothing has changed.
163. I've never been mainstream, the Family's never been mainstream, and it never will be! Those of you who want a mainstream message, who prefer to stick to milk instead of meat, can take your pick. If it's only salvation you want to preach, then go to the churches. I mean it! If that's what you want, I'll send you with my blessing. There are some wonderful folks in the churches—sweet, sincere, and dedicated Christians who love the Lord and want to preach the salvation of Jesus.
164. This doesn't change the fact‚ however, that the Lord has given the Family a unique calling—that which is distinct from mainstream churches. And we've got to stay true to that calling—the particular calling He's given us!
165. I'll grant you, you've been experiencing the maturation of a movement for a good many years now. But just because the Family has grown wiser, just because you're branching out with new methods, new tools, new modes of operation, and new tactics to win the world, just because you've grown and have learned better ways to become all things to all men, doesn't mean you can back down on standing true to the message that the Lord has given you. And that is a unique message, a radical message! It's a message of love, of the Endtime, of the Law of Love, of loving Him and doing more for Him‚ of letting His Spirit live, think, and move in you, of standing up and defying the forces of evil that prevail in the world today, of getting activated!
166. Yes‚ the main job of the Family is to preach the Gospel to all nations. You are to make disciples of all nations. I have no doubt there are sincere Christians in other groups, but when the Lord tells you to make disciples of all nations, He means for you to preach the unique message He's given you to preach! He's given the Family a new religion—a religion of love, a religion of life and liberty, of loving each other and loving the Lord. The Family's message is real religion, alive religion, Endtime religion!
167. I've never taught you to pull your punches‚ and I'm not about to now. Look at the Letters! If anyone thinks I only taught you to preach the milk of the Word, go back and brush up a little on the older Letters and what I taught you. Granted, I taught you to use discretion, to not go out of your way to offend people, but I've never been one to hide or cover up the truth of the message the Lord was giving us to preach either.
168. What you folks need to do is balance Scripture with Scripture. Never in all my years when I was with you there on Earth did I advocate the Family concentrating only on the milk of the Word. Are you kidding? Take a look at the radical things I led you in! From our red–robed prophet days, to reaching out to the most despised and rejected of all—the hippies. We let the world know about our views on politics, the fall of America, the Arab Wall, and the Green Paper Pig, just to name a few. We passed out millions for the billions of MO Letters around the world—and those Letters had meat in them! There was nothing mainstream about that! The world heard about FFing—we didn't hide our light under a bushel. Then came our posters that were read around the globe, and our view of Heaven was a far cry different than most mainstream institutions. If you'll do a little homework, you'll see I never taught you to stick to only a mainstream message‚ to just the milk of the Word.
169. Use wisdom in bringing your babes along, yes, but the idea is to get them off the milk and on to meat!
170. There's nothing like the Family on the face of the Earth! You know why? Because the Lord Himself has called you to live His Law of Love. He's called you to be dropped out of the mainstream. He's given more truth, more of the pure waters of His Word to the Family than to any other group on the face of the Earth, and He doesn't expect you to sit on it and not live it or preach it!
171. When you start settling down to where you want to please the mainstream, you'd better watch out! Yes, you've got to use a little wisdom. You've got to be Spirit-led. I'm not saying you need to go out and knock people over the head with our radical doctrines and beliefs right off the bat. You've got to know your meat, and most of all you have to pray and be Spirit-led on what to give to whom‚ on where you give it to them‚ and on how fast you need to go in feeding your friends and sheep the meat of the Word.
172. The Lord has called you to be His mouthpieces, to deliver His very unique message to the world—and that message is a radical message compared to what others are preaching. The message He's given the Family to preach today is about the Endtime, about loving Him, about witnessing. And for those who want to be disciples and get closer to us, it's about being His Bride. It's about loving Him and praising Him and hearing from Him in prophecy.
173. Did I ever pull my punches? Didn't I always teach you to hit things head-on? What I taught you was to obey God‚ to follow God and to be true to giving out His message. If it's persecution you're worried about, you'd do better to worry if you're not getting some type of persecution for righteousness' sake. "Beware when all men think well of you!" Of course, we don't want to go out of our way to bring problems upon ourselves, nor do we want to make the Lord have to bring persecution to stir us up or make us obey and get out the truth, but Jesus promised that if they persecuted Him, they'll persecute you. The good news is this: He's promised to keep you through it. He's promised to help you rise above, and you will come through victorious!
174. What you need to worry about is not preaching the message He's given you to preach! What you don't want to do is receive persecution for not obeying what He's told you to do. I've never been one to pull my punches, and I'm not about to start now. The unique message the Lord has given you to preach is what the Family is all about. And now, in this era of action, with the Activated vision, the world is going to hear about it.
175. Why do you think the Lord is giving you the power to rise above and the keys of the Kingdom? He's giving you the power over all impossibilities because He knows that's what you're going to need to preach the unique message He's giving you today—the message of love, the message of His Law of Love, the message of the End.
176. Yes‚ I've always taught you to preach Jesus, and who knows more about Jesus than you do?—About His personal life, His Heavenly Kingdom, and how He works and operates? What better way can you preach Jesus than by teaching the world His true ways, about loving Him and loving others—about His Law of Love! Jesus said, "The words I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." He said, "My words are Me." So if you want to preach Jesus‚ you've got to preach the words He's given you to preach. It's all Jesus. That's what the Family's message is to be—the words He's given us.
177. Yours is a special calling‚ a unique ministry, a unique message. It pays to obey the Lord. It pays to stay true to what He shows you. That's what He's calling the Family to do today. That's what Mama and Peter are doing, just like I did. That's the calling of prophets—to obey what the Lord shows them today and trust Him for the future. (End of message from Dad)
Q: Since most saved Christians don't accept that David can be our prophet‚ and certainly not "the prophet of the End," should we try to hide this fact, or should we even let go of this doctrine?
179. (Dad speaking:) God has a plan and a purpose for the Endtime, and if some people don't want to believe that God used me as the Endtime prophet to give out His message‚ then that's up to them. You can't force people and beat them over the head and make them believe! And I'm not surprised that church Christians don't believe it, because they don't even believe that God is still speaking today. So it's really going to stretch their faith to believe that not only is God speaking today, but that He chose little people like me‚ and now Mama and Peter, to speak His message for the Endtime.
180. I never thought of myself as a great prophet; I just knew the Lord was real, He was moving, He was speaking, and for some reason, He chose me to speak through. And I couldn't let the Lord down. I had to obey Him by faith and give the words and message that He wanted me to give to you and to the world. I loved the Lord so much and I knew that He loved you so much and He was counting on me to be willing to speak His message, no matter what the cost.
181. I knew the church Christians in general wouldn't like it or receive it and that they would persecute us for it, but you can't stop the Spirit of God or His message and what He wants to do and what He wants to say because you're afraid that it might upset some Christians and make them mad. I mean, if they haven't even been able to accept that a prophet has been among them, good night‚ they're going to have a hard time with the things the Lord has in store for the future! So I think if you're worried now to even let it be said that I was a prophet, and not only a prophet but a great prophet, and not only a great prophet but the Endtime prophet, you're going to have a lot more worries than just that! Because the Lord is not going to stop there!
182. I never considered myself great and I'm not great, but the Lord has a great message to get out and He's not going to stop there. You just have to make up your mind if you're willing to go on with the Revolution and go full speed ahead into the future or not! You can stay back there with the church Christians and read the Old Testament and get a few jewels out of the New Testament, but I'm telling you‚ you haven't seen anything yet!
183. God is about to explode! The future is so far out that if you haven't even got the faith to speak the name of Father David with great faith and conviction and pride in our message, then Lord help you. I couldn't care less if a few church Christians' feathers are ruffled. So what?! Are they going to be the ones who are going to stand by your side and stand up for the truth and uphold the standard and the Lord's Name in the Endtime when the battles are really raging? Are they the ones? Some of them might be, but you're certainly going to know who it is by who is willing to receive the Lord's message of today, today.
184. It's a new day! These are new times, and the messages that are coming in are brand-new! So you'd better fasten your seat belt, because you're in for the wildest ride of your life! You're either going to go on with the Revolution‚ with Mama in the driver's seat—and she is one wild and willing driver—or you had better get off at the next stop. It's up to you. (End of message from Dad.)
Q: What's wrong with making friends of believing Christians?
186. (Dad speaking: ) There's nothing wrong with making friends with believing Christians. We want friends, and we try to cultivate good, fruitful, meaningful friendships with others—not only Christians but with anyone who shows a sincere interest in the Lord, the Family‚ and our work. You Family members are highly skilled witnessers who have been trained by the Lord Himself and by me to put your best foot forward and present your witness in a way that will be easy for the person you're talking with to relate to and accept.—Providing they have a hunger and a vacuum in their heart for the Spirit of God and for the truth and His message. And the Family knows that in order to do that‚ you have to show yourself friendly and have a friendly approach and cultivate their friendship. That's just natural!
187. So of course there's nothing wrong with making friends with Christians or with anyone—you have to do that. That's your first step, and that's your starting point in any witness. But true friendship is based on honesty, openness, and good communication, and that type of relationship is built on faith and trust in one another. And if whoever you're witnessing to, whether it's a Christian or anyone else, knows that you're going to be open and honest with them and that they can trust you to not be deceitful or hide the truth‚ but that they can trust you to be the kind of person that's going to be open‚ then that's going to win their respect and deepen your friendship even more.
188. So if you really want to win friends and cultivate true, lasting, fruitful friendships, honesty and openness are a very big part of it, and that means you're going to have to be honest and open with them about your beliefs, your lifestyle‚ our doctrines, who you are, and why you're doing what you're doing. Because of course they're going to be interested, they're going to want to know about you.
189. If they're interested in the Spirit of God and in the spirit they see in you, and they start asking you questions‚ it's because they want to know, they want to be fed. They're hungry, they're sucking, they have a vacuum in the spirit, and God is using that vacuum because He wants to fill it. And He's going to fill it through you, if you're yielded and willing and open to be the channel to give them His Word, love, comfort, encouragement, guidance and message.
190. So if they start asking you about your beliefs on sex, for example, you can't just clam up and say nothing! Because they're going to think that's pretty strange and they're going to wonder why you're suddenly not willing to discuss something with them and be open and upfront and honest about it.
191. It's true that church Christians don't generally like the sexual freedom the Lord has given to us. He's willing to give it to anyone, but very few people have been willing to accept it, believe in it, and obey it. They think there's something inherently wrong with enjoying sex and being open and honest about it‚ especially if you're a Christian.
192. But the Family doesn't think there's anything wrong with sex—we never have! We've always been very open and forthright and honest in our belief that sex is God-created, God-ordained, Godly, beautiful, pure and wonderful in His sight. That is, good, Godly sex, of course. I'm not talking about perverted‚ worldly, selfish sex; I'm talking about real loving sex where you're giving and caring and sharing and concerned for each other.
193. The Family has never felt there is anything wrong with sex, and thank God He used me to help set the Family people free to believe it and live it and enjoy it and not be dragged down by guilt, condemnation, and the lies of the Devil.
194. So, I'm sorry that it is a point of controversy with church Christians. They've always screamed "blasphemy" or "heresy" when it came to our sexual doctrines, and I'm sorry if it's a difficult thing for you to explain to Christians. But don't worry if they're not willing to receive it. We're not trying to conform to them and to what they like or don't like, and to the way they think we should be, think‚ or operate, and what they think we should be preaching and how they think we should be living!
195. The Family was not created to conform to the church system! The Lord ordained the Family to be different, to be dropped out of the church system, to be new and revolutionary and radical and willing and open to receive God's messages. God knew He couldn't count on the church Christians to accept it, receive it, or live it. That's why He started the Family‚ and He's been using the Family ever since to be His vehicle to show the world not only the beauties of good, Godly, loving sex, and how it can be lived in love and enjoyed and shared, and that it's not a sin, but also other messages that God cannot trust the churchy Christians with because they just reject them. They won't receive it and they won't do anything with it, so He can't give it to them! He has to choose people like you, the Family, who are willing and ready to accept it.
196. So I'm sorry if you can't get the church people to see eye to eye with you about sex. You're just going to have to decide what's more important to you. If it's more important for you to maintain your friendship with your church group or your circle of church Christian friends, well, then so be it; that's your decision and your prerogative. But they're still going to want to know your beliefs on sex. They're still going to ask you those questions, and you're going to have to answer them. So you'll eventually have to make a decision between them and us!
197. It just comes down to the fact that you have to decide if you believe in the message the Lord has given us or you don't! And if you're for it and you believe it, you're not going to have any trouble saying so and standing up for the truth and the standard! And if you don't, then you might as well quit pretending and make some decisions in your life about where you want to serve the Lord. After all, if you no longer have faith in our radical message and you continually want to hide it and deny it‚ you'd probably be happier in a different outfit whose beliefs are more in line with your own. (End of message from Dad)
Q: If something isn't done about our approach regarding our radical beliefs, we are going to go on stirring up the media, making enemies‚ and for what purpose?
199. (Dad speaking:) You have to keep your eyes and mind on the goal and vision and spiritual warfare. The media gets stirred up because the Enemy stirs them up, because he does not want the Family to get out the Lord's message. These are the Endtime days and the spiritual warfare is becoming hotter and more intense, and the Enemy knows that the Lord is pouring out His message to the Family, and that the Family is willing to deliver it to the world.
200. The Devil knows that the messages you've been given in these Endtime days are just what the lost sheep are longing for and desiring to hear. They're radical‚ they're revolutionary, and the Enemy gets so mad that he tries to stir up the media. He's willing to do anything he can to stop the voice of God. Of course, he can't stop the voice of God, but he's still crazy enough to try.
201. God is in control and He knows just what the world needs and when, and who to give it to and how to give it. And don't worry; if you're faithful to obey God's voice and where He's leading you, He'll take care of you. He'll protect you and do miracles for you in order to take care of you. He'll do mighty things for you as you step out by faith and boldly and unashamedly tell the world God's message. You have nothing to worry about, because when you're in the center of God's will and being used as His mouthpiece and His tool, the media and all their puny efforts are nothing in the face of God's mighty power and anointing.
202. So what if the media gets stirred up?! Don't worry if you offend a few people and make a few enemies. Jesus always had enemies, those who tried to kill Him because of what He said and what He stood up for.
203. I don't care what our enemies say; all I care about is what the Lord tells us to do and say! That's what we're in this business for! I love the messages the Lord has given us. I love His fresh, hot, radical, beautiful, wonderful‚ thrilling messages! Wouldn't you rather have to suffer a few mockers and scoffers and the ridicule and criticism of a few enemies and the lash of the media‚ than to give up your faith in God and what He's doing today, right now, in these Endtime days?
204. The Lord has to use a new approach to reach this generation because they're so lost. They're even more lost‚ more hungry, and more cold and dead in the spirit than previous generations. They need His radical, revolutionary, far-out messages! That's what's going to warm their hearts and give them hope and open their eyes. So don't be afraid to deliver it.
205. It's only the beginning. God has much more in store! He wants to reach His lost sheep, so follow closely and God will use you mightily and to the full, and you'll never be sorry. Because one day soon, all those that you were instrumental in reaching‚ all those people that you helped to win to the Lord will be with you in Heaven, and you'll be able to thumb your nose at all those scoffers and mockers and at the Devil himself, and tell them that's what it was all for, that's what the purpose was—so that we could win as many as possible into His Heavenly Kingdom. (End of message from Dad.)
ML #3453, "Addressing the Follow-up Shepherds," pages 18-21, GN 1038
Addressing the follow-up shepherds
Peter: The sins of the follow-up shepherds are no worse than the other sins the Lord is exposing.
*We're proud of you pioneers of the follow–up work. The Family has benefited from it and we commend you for that. But a number of things have gone wrong. You've pioneered what not to do as well as what to do.
*Many of you built your follow-up works on your charisma, your style‚ and it has become a "cult of the personality." It's based on you and the way you do things, rather than being based on the Family and the way the Family operates.
*Some of you have the attitude of, "We're beyond the Family. We're beyond the Charter. We're beyond the Folks. We're out there and they don't understand."
*Some of you have gone to the churches to get your information, and in doing so, have brought that churchy spirit back with you. Some of you have made a god of this. Soon you're saying‚ "This is better than the Words of David. The Family's wrong."
*You've strayed from the simplicity of the Family. You feel like you've pioneered your way beyond us.
*Many of you have compromised for your Active members' tithe. You don't teach them the meat of the Word. You don't tell them the truth. You've let your standard slide down to theirs because you don't want to lose their tithe.
*Many of you go to the Letters and get your information and class material from them, and then you sit down and teach your sheep. You don't point your sheep to the pure Word, so your sheep end up thinking that you're so great, that their shepherd is so spiritual to come up with all these things from the Lord. You allow your sheep to exalt you.
*You don't give credit to the Lord, to the prophet. You take the credit to yourself. You lift yourself up. You don't give your sheep the MO Letters, the pure Words of David.
*Your pride has blossomed to the point that you speak against Mama, against me, against the Family. "The Folks aren't doing it right. The Activated program isn't the way to go. Oh, the Folks, they don't know. We know. We're doing it. We've gone to the churches and found out what they're doing and we know what to do."
46. (Dad speaking:) You can't model the Lord's work after the works of a dead or dying church system‚ regardless of how fruitful that system was in the past, or how fruitful it now looks to be.
47. Yes, there are things you can learn from the old, some of what to do and what not to do, but the comparisons quickly come to an end with the realization that the children of David have been called out of the church system.
48. There are many churches that are godly in their own little way. They're niche ministries, if you will, and they bring souls to salvation or help and teach others. There are many churches that know how to build and organize their following. But where are the churches that promote the deeper‚ meatier, stronger messages of the Spirit as do the children of David? Many are saved‚ but few there be that are the children of David.
49. So if you want your following to join the bands of David, the Gideon's few, you have to lead them to the water by the spirit and into the spirit, instructing them in the deeper truths of the spiritual world around them and into a passionate‚ intimate relationship with the Lover of all lovers. (End of message from Dad)
*Many of your Active members are quite churchy. You compromise feeding them the meat of the Word because you know that if you tell them about hearing from spirits or hearing from the departed, there goes that tithe—that cash!
*Some of your sheep you've had in your Bible classes for years now, but you're failing in teaching them to be children of David and imparting the Family spirit to them.
50. (Dad speaking:) The folks in Brazil started in the spirit, and the Lord blessed them mightily. He rejoiced in them. But as the work grew, the individuals grew in stature in their own eyes, and slowly, slowly they started to edge the Lord and His message of the day more and more to the sidelines. As they began to stop looking to the Lord, they began looking more to the pattern of the successes of other churches and the successes of other men. The beauty of their original desire to build the work of God became corrupted as the acclaim they received ministered more to their pride than bringing out the humility that they once knew so intimately.
51. The greatest danger, though, is that they haven't seen this creeping paralysis slowly taking over their hearts and their spirits. As their desire grew to be the center of attention and successful in the eyes of their flock, it meant they had to avoid dishing out the meat of the Word‚ the deeper truths of a relationship with the spirit world. They can still change, but they will need to make the right choices. (End of message from Dad)
52. (Jesus speaking:) Besides feeding the new church on the meat of the Word, the feeders themselves must be on the right foundation and have the spiritual components themselves to be able to produce the fruit that is needed for the End. If the tree itself is weak, the fruit can certainly be no stronger. If the builders are rife with disunity and lack of taking time in the Word themselves‚ and even putting the fruit of the Word or their followers themselves above their own time in the Word, they will not produce the disciples that are needed. They will produce a weak church, one that will crumble, just as they will crumble in the Time of the End if they do not have the spiritual foundation and constitution to make it through the heavy storms. If My builders are rife with bitterness and disunity, or outright blatant disobedience to the Charter, then how can you expect their fruit to be much better? They will simply produce the kind of fruit that they are. (End of message from Jesus.)
Copyright © 2004 by The Family International
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