Does the WMSCOG Practice Deceptive Recruitment?
In recent interviews with the media, Michele Colon has been very vocal against the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG). The following is one of the accusations Michele Colon makes against the Church:
“They don’t tell you what they are all about upfront, because if they did, no one would join them,”
This statement from Colon is influenced by our favorite characters in this show—the “cult experts.” “Cult experts” teach that one of the characteristics of the groups they label as “cults,” is that these groups do not tell you what they believe in up front and they hide it from you. You do not find out what the group really believes in until you have already been “brainwashed.” “Cult experts” call this practice “deceptive recruitment.”
We should ask ourselves the following question: Does the World Mission Society Church of God practice “deceptive recruitment?” Through this article we will find out that once again the answer to this accusation is:
Jesus Christ Also Deceptively Recruited His Disciples
If we are going to accuse the World Mission Society Church of God of “deceptively recruiting” its members, then we must also accuse Jesus of deceptively recruiting His disciples. When you look at the account of Jesus calling His disciples, you do not see much explanation of what Jesus is actually calling them to do.
Matthew 9:9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
John 1:43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”
When we look at the biblical accounts of Jesus calling His disciples, we never see him explaining in detail everything they are going to face in their life of faith. According to “cult experts,” in order to not deceptively recruit His disciples, Jesus should have said the following:
“Follow me, but let me warn you. You may face jeers and flogging. It’s possible that you could go to prison and remain in chains. You will be stoned; you could be sawed in two; you could be put to death by the sword. You can be shipwrecked; spend a day and a night in the open sea; you will have to constantly be on the move. You will be in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from your own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles, in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea, and in danger from false brothers. You will have to labor and toil and often go without sleep; you will know hunger and thirst and will often go without food; you will be cold and naked. Besides everything else, you will daily face the pressure of having concern for all the Churches.”
This is the life the disciples had to undergo as they followed Jesus. But since Jesus did not tell them all those things from the beginning, according to “cult experts,” Jesus deceptively recruited them. It wasn’t until after Jesus had them fully indoctrinated that Jesus finally told them about the difficulties they might face.
John 21:18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
If we go by the standards of “cult experts,” and individuals like Michele Colon, then we must say Jesus was a deceiver who did not tell His followers up front what they would go through as a result of following Him. But we know that is not the case. The truth is that Jesus first had to show them the evidence of why He was the Christ and, through His works and teachings, let them come to the conclusion themselves.
Who can explain the whole Bible in 15 minutes?
No one can explain nor understand the Bible and its history in a 15-minute conversation. The fact is that our Christian faith is derived from the teachings of the Bible and we believe in Christ because of the prophecies He fulfilled, as recorded in the bible.
John 5:39-40 You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.
Two thousand years ago, Jesus clearly said that the scriptures (the Old Testament at the time) testified about Him. This means that, at that time, for us to understand why Jesus is the source of eternal life, we would first need to understand the Scriptures. Understanding these scriptures is what led His disciples to follow him.
John 1:44-45 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”
Due to their understanding of the scriptures and the prophecies about the Messiah, the disciples were able to recognize the Christ. But what do you do when a person doesn’t believe the Bible? You would first have to teach him why the Bible is true. Then, teach him why he should believe in Jesus. Then, he could learn about God’s commands and how to keep them. Finally, he could understand about Second Coming Christ and God the Mother.
The WMSCOG does not deceptively recruit members.
I have been a member of the World Mission Society Church of God for some time now, and I can say with certainty that the Church does not hide its beliefs. In fact, we are very open about it.
When we look at the following videos of the WMSCOG being recognized by different state governments, we can see that the recipients were very upfront about what the Church believes in.
The videos below show the Resolution Ceremony granting awards to our Church in different city halls of the United States, as well as interviews with Church members. As you can see, the members clearly testify to our faith in Christ Ahnsahnghong and Heavenly Mother.
You can also see a copy of the welcome message form the Church website. Here, you will find that Christ Ahnsahnghong founded the Church and that we believe and follow God the Mother.
On the same page, you will find a link to the Church’s introductory video. This video clearly shows the Church’s beliefs as well as the history of the Church. As you can see the evidence, the Church does not hide its beliefs and these are easily accessible for anyone to read.
The WMSCOG is not what they make it out to be
The problem stems from the critics’ misrepresentation of the Church. They have their own opinion about how the Church should teach its theology. The truth is that everyone who studies the Bible at the Church of God comes from a different background. Everyone’s experience in studying at the Church of God is different. However, critics twist and misinform the public about the Church’s theology and beliefs.
Let me give you an example. What if a Christian came to you and said the following:
“Come to our Church. We believe that a Jewish carpenter in his 30’s, who was single, hung around prostitutes and tax collectors, spoke against the religious leaders, was crucified (but whom we believe came back to life), promised us life in another place if we eat his flesh and drink his blood, and claimed to be the king of a kingdom we cannot see right now. We believe this man is God.”
All the things above could be said about Jesus Christ and they are true. But without having a good understanding of the Bible, they will not be able to understand why these things make Jesus God. In the same way, those who speak against the Church of God expect that when Church members meet someone for the first time, they say things, which, first of all are not true, and second of all, are an inappropriate way to teach the scriptures.
Let us not be influenced by the mischaracterization created by “cult experts” and their side-kicks, but instead let us believe the Bible. Visit your nearest World Mission Society Church of God. All your questions can be answered through a Bible study.
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I was baptized in the Church of God in 2012. I was told up front that there is God the Mother testified in the bible. This sparked my interest and I came to study about God the Mother and learned about God the Father as well. Never did I feel that anything was hidden from me. As long as I made time to study, the church made accommodations to teach me and answer my questions. It has been 4 years and I would do it all over again. Never did I imagine that I would learn so much, that I would meet true God, and that I could be confident in my salvation. No one can learn so many profound truths of the bible in one day however I can honestly say nothing is hidden. You just have to make the time to study. Thank you for the article it puts everything into perspective.
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“Deceptive Recruitment” Really you have to be kidding. When I first came to the Church of God I had a lot of questions and it was always answered through the bible, just like 2000 years ago when the disciples testified about Christ they only used the scriptures. At the time when I was still doing bible studies they even let me know about their website and all the amazing achievements of the church. Nothing was ever hidden from me. I really hope people don’t fall for what Michelle speaks about against the church and these “cult experts” that are making money from their dumb books leading people away from True God testified in the bible.
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If we at the Church are trying to hide our beliefs we are doing an extremely horrible job at it. I mean with the countless videos, news interviews, public preaching, seminars etc. We are clearly doing a very unsatisfactory job at concealing things. every single person has more to offer up about themselves as time passes, guess the whole world has cult like qualities. It’s impossible to know every minor detail about anything right away.
Come and study, see why Christ Ahnsahnghong and Heavenly Mother are God. If you have studied and still have questions, don’t be afraid to ask the overseer. Bring up your concerns and allow yourself to see in the bible what the truth is. Cult experts are scam artist and opportunist, they will tell you whatever they need you to hear to get your money. The World Mission Society Church of God will show you what the bible says so you can go Back to Heaven. Point blank period
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If you have met a member of the Church of God, im sure that one of the first questions you were asked was regarding God the Mother. Then what exactly are we hiding? “cult experts” and their minions are only using psycho babble to gain attention, please do not fall for their deception. When studying the Bible it’s best to build a foundation and then add to that understanding. This is not the matrix, where you can plug in and learn martial arts in one minute. We discuss our belief from the outset and then we make efforts to help others see the teachings of the Bible one step at a time.
Thank you again for a very clear and precise article.
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I don’t understand why Michele says that she didn’t know Mother is here in the flesh until 6 months later, that the church hides its beliefs…she obviously didn’t come to church that much if she didn’t know…Mother’s picture is everywhere in the church, and every service You can here Mother referenced as here in the flesh…the first day I visited church I heard that and saw the pictures, even before I was baptized…also I speak with many people and preach to them immediately and say that God the Mother is here in the flesh in Korea, and many people want to know about it. This is the exact opposite of what Michele claims. ..she’s just straight up lying…just doesn’t add up!
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That’s a ridiculous claim. Imagine a college student talking a biology course, and after the first day of the class saying to his professor, “you didn’t teach me everything about biology! You didn’t explain everything on the syllabus! You’re lying! Must not be true! Must not be a true professor!” It’s natural it takes time to learn, as with anything. Does that imply hiding and deception? No way. Ridiculous. Even Jesus said, “I have much more to tell you, more than you can now bear…” but he didn’t at that time. Then is Jesus using deception?
I wish we could show people all the Bible prophesies at once, thatd be great! But unfortunately theres that thing called time…
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This is an amazing article! We at the WMSCOG are very open about what we believe. In fact, when I was first invited to the WMSCOG the first thing I was told was about God the Mother. I was even told that She was here on earth AND saw a picture of Her right away! Out of curiosity I came and did a bible study. The first thing that was mentioned to me during my FIRST bible study was about Christ Ahnsahnghong! Though prior to attending the WMSCOG I had never heard about Father and Mother, EVERYTHING was proven to me through the bible. There is not a single teaching that cannot be proven through the bible. I was not “deceptively recruited”. I saw that everything that I was taught came directly from the bible and I believed in the bible, so I made my decision to start attending the WMSCOG. I can honestly say that it was the best decision I have ever made. Everything the WMSCOG teach comes directly from the bible. We do not teach our own words or our own interpretation of things. The WMSCOG teach the bible; the Word of God and we are very vocal about our beliefs.
Please do not put your spiritual life in the hands of those that speak against God. Do not be influenced by “cult experts” who have no knowledge of the bible, nor knowledge of the WMSCOG. If you want to know more please come, ask, study and see for yourselves. You will see that Christ Ahnsahnghong and Heavenly Mother are God Almighty. -
You can tell that people who have it in their hearts to speak against WMSCOG are trying their hardest to attack and knit pick at any little thing possible, but the truth of the matter is, they can not win! Everything we do is in accordance with Christ’s teachings! Anytime someone wanted to know firsthand, even if visiting the church for the first time, and if they want to know about the truth of second coming Christ or the Heavenly Mother, we boldly testify to them from the bible about Heavenly Mother New Jerusalem and our Father Christ Ahnsahnghong. What is there to hide or be deceptive about if everything is in the bible? I would feel more deceived going to a church that worships on Sunday or celebrates Christmas yet tells me that they are following Christ’s teachings. Now that’s deception, since none of that can be found in the bible!
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When I was younger and I asked questions to people that seemed to know the Bible well, I was looked down on for asking too many questions about the Bible. However, coming to the Church of God I received all my answers through the Bible. They answered all my questions and even wanted me to ask questions.
Through studying more and more through the Bible at Church of God, I learned more about God and this was well after all my questions were answered. I started to learning about God and not just hoping I knew something. I gained actual faith.
The so-called cult experts look from the outside in and think they know something… As the article mentioned, the Church of God is definitely not shy about the teachings. If you attended one Bible study you would know, if you visited the church you would know because you would many photos, if you attended at least one service you would know clearly what the Church of God believes in.
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It is just funny that people claim the Church of God hides its beliefs. We actually use any opportunity to TELL people what we believe. If we were hiding anything why mention that we believe in Christ Ahnsahnghong and God the Mother when given an opportunity to be on the media? On the website, an overview of everything you will learn in the studies is plainly explained from the Sabbath to Heavenly Mother.
Personally, when I first stepped inside the church, I already knew EVERYTHING the church believed but I just hadn’t seen everything in the Bible yet. I knew that if I agreed with the Bible studies, I would come to believe in Second Coming Christ, and that God the Mother is on the earth now in South Korea. That’s why, when I studied about the Sabbath and Passover and found them to be true, I kept coming excitedly because I wanted to see proof about Christ Ahnsahnghong and God the Mother as well. And I saw it. If there had been a single flaw in the Bible studies I would have stopped coming right away. There was no deception involved at all. I came because I wanted to know God and this church is the only one that has been able to prove God to me, UNLIKE any other religion I have experienced in my life.
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Actually, I believe what she is saying is not true, because when you come to the World Mission Society Church of God, you study the basic teachings of the bible, and in those lessons is clearly explained to the members that they may face difficulties and persecution, just like Christ and the disciple faced 2000 years ago, you see in the basic studies what you will encounter when you chose to follow the teachings of the bible, maybe she did not pay attention when she studied, I think she was just looking around, I don’t know it is very clear, what you learn at first, anyone who chooses to follow the bible should come to this church, if you want to follow traditions, custom of men stay where you are!
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This is a great article. I sometimes think why are these “cult experts” still trying. Even they’re false accusations doesn’t even make sense. You can relate this with almost everything in this world. You can say this topic relates to the Military, school and even work. But either way we still don’t hide anything. Im so thankful to Father and Mother that we have the perfect truth, and you cant find fault with the truth. Thats why if you have questions about the church ask the right people, the church. Not someone that doesn’t belong to the church.
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After reading this article and seeing the videos with my own eyes, I can easy come to the conclusion that Michelle Colon came to is laughable and a gross misrepresentation of the Church of God. How can she justify herself after this article? While attending the church and learning all she did I wonder if she, even once, told someone everything she had learned in one sitting. Her words are devoid of any sense of intelligence and frustrating to read because they are not based on even a morsel of truth. Not even a little!!!! World Mission Society is a church based on delivering the truth transparently! She clearly misrepresented what the church is about and in such a defamatory way.
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According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary the word ‘Deceive’ means “to make (someone) believe something that is not true”. Do you believe that the Bible is true? Then the church of God cannot be deceptive since everything that is taught in the church comes directly from the Bible. Stating this fact, how can it be deceiving? It is the truth because it comes from the Bible. People decide themselves to get baptized and join the church as member only after doing Bible studies. Moreover, this means that the reason to join or get baptized was not because of the church withheld information but rather because of the teachings of God they saw in the Bible after the church ‘exposed’ it. In my opinion the World Mission Society Church of God is amazing because rather than hiding the truth it actually reveals it, something that I was never able to find in other churches. That is why I trust the Church of God..
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First, it’s a teaching of Christ to be bold and courageous so we have no reason to withhold information. Second, the first thing usually asked of a person when first approached is if they have ever heard that we have a Heavenly Mother (not Mary). Third, before someone is baptized (which is pretty soon after coming to the church the first time) they are asked if they want to be baptized in the name of Christ Ahnsahnghong, the Holy Spirit’s name. So really what information is being withheld when everything that makes our church different from all the others is being presented right from the beginning? People who make these claims never bring up all information of what really happens, in fact these slanderers are the ones withholding information with the intention to make the Church look bad but it won’t work because the WMSCOG was established by God Himself and will never fail (Acts 5:38)
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