SOME YEARS AGO, Herbert W. Armstrong (HWA), founder of the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) established a doctrine in his church that would redefine God for his followers that they would maintain at all costs.  First, he correctly proposed that the Trinity doctrine is false.  But instead of reverting to the one true God of the Bible, he replaced the false trinitarian doctrine with "binitarianism" (polytheism) in latter-day WCG spin-offs and splits, generally called churches of God (COG).  These latter-day disciples of HWA, while discontinuing some few of his aberrant practices, have continued to zealously guard his strange and extra-biblical doctrine of Polytheistic Binitarianism or "Poly-Binitarianism."  The word "Poly-Binitarianism" is a new word.  I just created it on this date, November 04, 2002.  It represents an extension of so-called binitarianism or a "two-gods theology" into historic pagan polytheism, two or more gods.

The Historic Binitarian model suggests that The Father is God and Jesus Christ is God.  Thus, in that historical instance, two separate but somewhat equal Gods exist.  This binitarianism denies that the holy spirit is a god of any sort.  But the late Armstrong and his disciples have taken this extra-biblical idea to another level.  The disciples of Armstrong continue to propose, as HWA proposed about 50-60 years ago, that the members of the present extension of the original Armstrong church (not the present configuration of the WCG today, because it has changed to trinitarian) will become God as God is God.  The disciples of Armstrong, in their renamed churches and fellowships, will, they say, become ruling members of a family or a pantheon of Divine Gods, every one of them (if they continue in the fellowship, that is).  And this family of gods, possibly numbering into the millions or billions, they suggest, will rule over mankind in a millennial setting.  They will have all power and authority.  They will be co-rulers and co-saviors with Jesus Christ.  They will have the power of imparting life to lifeless things and the power to resurrect the dead.  They will have the power to create life out of nothing.  They will be Gods, like the Most High, in every sense!   And they will be worshiped as Gods.  People will bow down to them.

Follow me on this.  Those in the Armstrong Camp who speak of themselves as "binitarian" falsely call their worship model "monotheism." DECEIT!  This is not only confusing but irrational and deceitful.  Here's why.  First, they reject the common term "polytheism" as applying to them.  Polytheism is defined as the worship of two or more gods.  They actually reject the very definition of their worship practice and in desperation, rename their model!  They assign their own definitions to common words and concepts, such as "God" or "polytheism," which practice negates any credibility these people might have had to start with. While Moses was on the mountain for 40 days, the Israelites got restless and had Aaron cast a Golden Bull (not really a calf) as their new worship model (Ex.32).  They bowed down to it and danced before it.  Some have suggested that this golden statue represented the true God.  But the true God destroyed many of these people for their idolatrous practice.  I believe that the old originalWCG was scattered and destroyed for some of the same reasons that the ancient Israelites were scattered and destroyed.  One poly-binitarian preacher in the Fall of 2002 actually wrote that "monotheism is an ambiguous concept"!  He writes that, "Modern monotheism with its emphasis on the oneness of God was not the same concept found in ancient times."  He then goes on to suggest that an ancient concept existed that he calls "binitarian monotheism."  All this under the heading, "The Unknown God."  Unknown God, indeed!!!

They call their worship model "monotheism" to the world, but between themselves, they use the term "binitarianism" as describing their system, but the model they present has another name, a name they reject.  That name is polytheism.  I call it "poly-binitarianism." Sometimes when religious people stand on their distinctive created doctrines for their very salvation, the first thing to fly out the window is truth and honesty.

The persons who are the subjects of this article are not monotheists.  They are not even binitarian practitioners, but they are zealous believers in and teachers of polytheism and nothing less.  They have given themselves over to a multiple-god worship service and refuse to listen to reason or consider any other view.  As such, they have rejected the only true God of Jesus Christ.  In speaking to the ancient Israelites, the Lord God Almighty made this statement: "Know therefore this day, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD [Yahweh] is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; THERE IS NO OTHER" (Deut.4:39, RSV).  I repeat: THERE IS NO OTHER!  Then, in verses 6 and 7 of Deut.5, this same God gives this chilling statement: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  You shall have no other gods before me."  Later on, a passage known as the Shema is given:  "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God is one LORD" (Deut.6:4, RSV). It may be restated with equal correctness and clarity: "The LORD our God, the LORD is one"; "the LORD is our God, the LORD is one"; or "the LORD is our God, the LORD alone."  Jesus Christ repeated this passage as the Great Commandment in Mark 12:29-30. Although there are many gods in the world, there is but ONE LORD (Yahweh) our one God (same) who is sovereign and unique; thus both ancient Israel and modern spiritual Israel (Gal.3:26-29) are said to have one loyalty.  (END).

 

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