Daily Deprogramming

Today I decided to take a look at the surrounding verses to the short verse we often hear all by itself especially in cults/abusive churches.  “For we walk by faith and not by sight.” 2 Cor 5:7   Although of course it is true, when we hear it over and over all by itself it becomes a sort of a mantra, and a pat answer for everything that faces a Christian.  When I was a JW they referred to their Organization as “The Truth.”   It took me years to shed that lie, and stop saying it when referring to them.  What  heresy!  Jesus Christ alone  is  ”The Truth”,  and no organization, or any other person, place or thing even compares.

Now back to “We walk by faith and not by sight,” Verses 1-10  of 2Cor 5, are speaking about our earthly bodies contrasted with our future resurrected bodies.  “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.  For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:   If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked, for we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened :  not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.  Now He that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also has given us the (earnest ) guarantee of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:  “For we walk by faith and not by sight.”  We are confident , I say and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.  Wherefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him.  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he has done, whether it be good or bad.”  

As you can plainly see here there is much more than, “We walk by faith and not by sight.”  What the margin of the KJV says about the verse among other things  is that :  “We have eternity in us now.”  “The Holy Spirit within us is our guarantee (earnest)  that God will give us everlasting bodies at the resurrection. Such hope should give us great courage and patience to endure anything we might experience.   Paul was not afraid to die because he was confident of spending eternity with Christ.  Of course facing the unknown  may cause us anxiety and leaving loved ones hurts deeply, but if we believe in Jesus Christ, we can share Paul’s hope and confidence of eternal life with Christ.”

I lived with Ardith Keef’s thought terminating cliche’s for many years. Cult leaders reduce their doctrines to tiny and short overused thoughts and words  to keep people from thinking about the deeper meanings of things in order to lead them  in the cult doctrines and teachings. 

Today Ardith Keef tells her followers, “The Christian who is walking by sight is always evaluating the circumstances.”  “His Word is not enough.”   She dispenses parts of His Word to suit her doctrine of the moment and discards other parts.   In working for her for 17 years I found that any minor  problem she had with a mailing,  music that needed to be brought to someone  etc. , was always “pretty critical!”  when she ” evaluated the circumstances.”  But when another person had a  serious problem  (for instance the death of a child) there was no empathy or mercy and the same  pat answers over and over, such as ”You must  walk by faith and not by sight” , “set your face like flint ” , or “look up and move on.”

I had a grandchild die a horrible death , (I stayed and worked at Ardith’s store until closing time) and never took a day off because of my loss.   Some months  later another infant was in  serious danger, and I was criticized for being upset.  Ardith backed me into a corner and said,  “Do you think you know more than God?”  She never one time offered to pray with me when she knew I was suffering, which is what I would have done for her or anybody else who needed comfort.   This is cruel, sick , and it is cultish, and  unchristian, I don’t want it for anybody else.   This is why we speak out here at Anchorabuse.org.   When you worked for Ardith keef you were expected to “stay at your post”  no matter if someone  you loved even died.  You were expected to stay at the Anchor Church, as it was where God put you, and there was no excuse good enough for leaving, even your health.  This is a perfect example of cult behavior.

Cult leaders keep people down and feeling as if they will never be good enough to please God.  They hold up their golden carrot , of “Look at me!  I can do this! So can you!  I know something you don’t know , keep reaching for what I have.”  They are liars and pretenders who  take great pleasure in owning your soul.  The Truth is none of us are good enough ,and that is why He sent His Son to die for us.  The Truth is the Blood of Jesus Christ is our Righteousness.

The Word of God is enough dear ones.  It tells us how to tell the true from the false. Look at the fruit!  Check the spirit!  Do the works and words of the one leading you line up with His Word?  Is there Love and does it abound?  Look below the surface and ask questions.  Are you inundated with short , thought terminating  cliche’s?  Are all your doctrines coming through the controlling influence of one person?   Look at the Word of God , find the  point of the over used cliche’s if they are there ,and read around them, get the whole picture for yourself.  We will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ ,and we are each  responsible for what we take in and believe.