It's a Sham

[Ohio]

Originally Posted by JJ

AskSeek: your post about TLR being "a sham" expressed what some here have concluded. I've been wrestling with questions about TLR for 32 years (after a "storm" in my local church divided and scattered "the saints" there, and broke my heart). The answers are both simple and complex. After two years of participating in this forum, I see that opinions here vary quite a bit.

My own opinion is that there is a need to consider TLR's "ways", all the way back to its "roots" in "Exclusive Brethren" teachings and practices as well as the in-compassionate and legalistic shepherding of M.E. Barber, learn from the good and drop the bad.

I like what "The Concerned Brothers" have been saying http://www.concernedbrothers.com

JJ, you are so right. I too could never reconcile the many blatant Christian contradictions I found in the Recovery and especially with WL, until I studied Brethren history, especially J.N.Darby. One quote by a Brethren historian was quite helpful during my time of "wrestling" with these anomalies. F. Roy Coad basically said that with Darby there was so much good to speak of, and yet so much more wrong.

One must begin to apprehend this difficult conundrum in order to properly assess Witness Lee and LSM. Who can deny that he spoke many wonderful things and did much work for the Lord. Yet WL also felt he was above the law, and did many things a Christian minister should never have done. He thought far more highly of himself than he ought, based on these numerous false teachings of Deputy Authority, the Recovery paradigm, the ground of locality, oneness, Minister of the Age, the Work, etc.

After seeing the sad plight of so many ex-members who had forsaken the faith, I decided a better understanding of Lee for ex-members was to identify all the sources of leaven in his ministry. Like how the Apostle Paul admonishes us to "prove the will of God," and to "test all things, hold on to the good." Jesus Himself counseled the disciples not to reject the entire O.T. dispensation, but to beware of the "leaven of the Pharisees," and to "search the scriptures" because they always point to Christ.

For example, I would never reject the worship of God by calling on the name of the Lord. The Bible and Christian history is filled with the record of other men of God who have done so. But the public show we witnessed of "let's all stand and call on the Lord 5 times" must be utterly discarded. Like the Lord's word about the Pharisee praying in public to make show, we should all go to our "closet." It's not some "thing" to do. After visiting numerous non-LC churches, I learned that many dear believers call on the Lord from the heart, yet without fanfare.

So let me ask, "who has got the real thing?"