A Critical Evaluation
Of the Teachings and Methods of
The International Church of Christ
Mark Schweitzer
M.Div.
Pastor of College Ministries
ã Shepherd’s Community Church 2000
The ICC Bible Studies: A Critical Analysis © 1997 Dave
Anderson. REVEAL and Recovery
from the ICC ministries. Used by permission.
This evaluation may be copied without written authorization
As long as it is copied in it’s entirety without change and not for financial gain.
Dedication:
This work is dedicated to the faithful students and leaders that make up Night Watch College Ministries and the Pierce College Christian Bible Club. It is because of your willingness to stand for the truth of the gospel of Grace that many have been rescued from the International Church of Christ. Your desire to serve the Master and to be equipped more fully for God’s work has been an encouragement and challenge for me.
May God be pleased to equip you with this work so that you might reach still deeper into your places of work and school with the love of Jesus Christ. My prayer for you is the same as that of the Apostle Paul to the church at Ephesus:
“For this reason, I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man; so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him {be} the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”
(Eph 3:14-21)
Mark
Schweitzer
April,
1999
The
History of the International Churches of Christ
How
do people get involved in the International Churches of Christ?
Discipleship
in the International Church of Christ
The ICC Bible Studies: A
Critical Analysis
The Denominationalism
and False Doctrines Study
A Summary of the Bible
Studies
SALVATION
AND THE INTERNATIONAL CHURCH OF CHRIST
A Review of the Common
Proof Texts with Responses
THE
MEDIA’S RESPONSE TO THE INTERNATIONAL CHURCH OF CHRIST
Philadelphia City
Paper – 2/ 25/99
Christian Research
Newsletter - Headline News – 11/ 3/92
Pepperdine University
Newspaper - 2/18/99
THE
INTERNATIONAL CHURCH OF CHRIST: A CULT ON ALL LEVELS
Introduction
Historically the college campus has been a major recruiting ground for cults as impressionable students venture out from under the wings of their parents and begin to interact with the “real world.” Unfortunately these students quickly find that this real world does not play fair. Students come with pure motives seeking answers to life’s most difficult questions and they find many who are willing to give them answers using language that sounds very familiar but later turns out to be new definitions placed into old terms.
A very unfortunate example of this is the Heaven’s Gate cult and their leader Marshal Applewhite. This cult came into prominence when thirty-nine of their members committed suicide in 1997 by drinking a deadly cocktail, reminiscent of the Jonestown suicides of 1978. Applewhite led these men and women to believe that the Comet Hale-Bopp was the sign that a spaceship of extraterrestrials would arrive and take their souls to the next level of existence, which Applewhite called the “Kingdom of Heaven.” We look at this story and try to imagine what kind of people could believe such wild things in this day and age. Unfortunately the haunting answer to this question, which comes from the surviving relatives, reveals that these were men and women just like you and I. Many grew up in church, leading very “normal” lives, pursuing a college education, and working to make their way in this life. So what was said to these men and women which ultimately led them to their death? A Newsweek article written by Kenneth L. Woodward, in April of 1997, relays these frightening quotes:
Belief in UFO’s remained part of Do’s (Applewhite’s cult name) evolving gospel—and part of Heaven’s Gates allure. But what gave his final vision theological ballast—what apparently made it comprehensive and believable to the 1990s youths who joined him in his death pact—were familiar phrases ripped from the larger fabric of the New Testament. …Do knew the Bible: his father was a Presbyterian minister and Do had been a musician with several churches. He also knew that he was filling the old wineskin of Christian beliefs with a cocktail of his own devising.[i]
Applewhite began with the familiar teachings of Christianity and moved into the kingdom of the cults. The words, which began with a familiar ring, soon led these people from their families, friends, jobs, and ultimately to their death.
Should we be surprised at this tactic? The answer is no! In fact if you were to look at the history of most major religions (Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Islam, etc.) you would find that their founders had at least some, if not extensive, experience within the Christian church. We also ought not be surprised because long before there were cults who masqueraded as churches, there was Satan, an angel of darkness, who masqueraded as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
The Heaven’s Gate example I chose was for the purpose of drawing a stark picture in your mind. Most cults that you find on the campus, or anywhere else for that matter, will most likely not call you to kill yourself. But what all cults have in common is spiritual death. For the untruths or lies that they teach, lead people away from the saving grace of Jesus Christ. As the Apostle Paul warns in Acts 20:28-30 (see also Mt. 7:15, 10:16; Lk. 10:3):
“Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.”
The name “cult” has been given to those groups that teach “perverse things” and that draw people away from the church of God, the church which Christ purchased with His own blood. Let me take a few moments and explain more fully the term cult.
What is a Cult?
From the beginning of the church we are warned against divisions that would arise from people teaching things contrary to that which was originally given in the Scriptures. Thus we are continually taught not to accept any doctrine that was not originally given by the apostles. Romans 16:17-18 cautions us as it says “Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissension (divisions) and hindrances contrary to the teaching (doctrine) which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting (Parenthesis added).” Today many aberrations have arisen and given birth to offshoots in the Church.
However, this should not be surprising. Throughout the Old and New Testament we are continually warned of false teaching and teachers. Here are only a few references:
¨ We are warned about false prophets in Deuteronomy 13:1-5 and 18:20-22.
¨ Jesus warns of false prophets and teachers in Matthew 7:15-23 and 24:23-24; as well as in Mark13:5-6 and 13:21-22.
¨ We are warned by Paul in 2 Corinthians 11:14, Galatians1:8-9, Colossians 2:8-9,
2 Thessalonians 2, 1 Tim.1:3- 4 and 4:1-2.
¨ We are warned by Peter in 1 Peter 5:8-9 and 2 Peter 2:1-3.
¨ We are warned by John 1 John 2:18-23 and 1 John 4:1-5.
In fact just about every book of the Bible mentions a warning about error and falsehood creeping into Israel or the church that must be guarded against.
When we hear the word cult we envision people held against their will, confined away from society, working with little or no pay and continually abused by authoritarian leaders. They are unable to think for themselves having been changed into religious robots or zealots. While these descriptions are possible, and have occurred, they are unlikely. The word cult has been thrown around too easily and can be a dangerous labeling if not understood or explained.
The Definition of a Cult
The original use of the word “cult” comes from the Latin word “Cultus” which means worship. It was used of any person or group that had an object of worship. Many dictionaries today keep this generalized focus on the word cult. For example, according to Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language a cult is “a system of religious worship with a strong admiration of or devotion to, a person or thing.”[ii] This is far too broad to be helpful.
Today the most common understanding of a cult comes from the sociological definition which takes into account the activities of a group rather than what they teach. While the criteria is different depending upon which author you are reading many thoughts are common among all. These include employing deceptive recruiting or fundraising techniques; using fear to indoctrinate a member, keeping them in the group ("If you leave, you'll go to hell"); practicing information control and manipulation; and breaking members' ties to family, friends and environment. While dictionary definitions and comparisons to the norm of society are helpful, they are still too broad in scope. For cults almost always come in the name of religion.
We must turn to a theological definition in addition to our sociological one. With a theological definition, what is or is not a cult must be based on the standard set up by the Bible itself, as it is interpreted literally by means of a historical, grammatical, cultural, and contextual study, using the Bible’s teaching as the focal point for all beliefs. Thus within a theological framework a cult is a group bound together in an intense devotion to a person, ideal or thing; and which has a system of beliefs that is contrary to Scripture and the Christian faith they claim to represent. Walter Martin, the founder of the Christian Research Institute, described a cult like this: “a group of people gathered about a specific persons interpretation of the Bible... from a theological view point, the cults contain not only a few major deviations from historic Christianity. They paradoxically continue to insist that they are entitled to be classified as Christians.”[iii]
Thus when we think of a cult we must take into account both the things which they teach (comparing it to historic Christianity through sound Bible interpretation) and the things which they do (comparing it to accepted societal norms).
Common Teachings of Cults
The primary way to identify
a cult is by what they believe in comparison to Scripture. While usually a cult
fails in many areas, there are eight major doctrines that define what is
or is not a cult. If a teaching fails in any one of these eight areas they are a cult and
must be guarded against!
1. Deify man -Teaching that man may become God, or is a part of God. Man needs to be a part of a certain group or church to learn a new revelation or knowledge to progress to godhood.
2. Humanize God - Some groups deny that God is eternal. Some believe in many gods, or that all is god (pantheism). Other groups such as Jehovah's Witnesses teach that God's nature or state of being must be understood and reasonable to the human mind to be true. In other words, if finite man cannot understand something about God then it is not true. This technique subtly elevates man's mental ability to that of God.
3. Minimize or eliminate sin - The biblical concept of sin is not taught, or is completely eliminated by some groups. They teach that man can overcome his sinful nature and that evil is a part of the physical and not the spiritual. This is seen in Christian Science, Mind Science, Religious Science, and new age groups.
4. Minimize the importance of the Bible - Most cults use “anointed” information, books, magazines or scriptures. These are believed to be just as or more important than the Bible. These are often times indispensable in understanding the Bible. Some groups strongly discourage their members from reading the Bible alone; telling them the group is the only one that can rightly interpret the Bible. Others use the Bible with their own unique interpretation unknown ever in church history or align themselves with what was considered heresy in the past. Meanings that are biblical are changed to their own personal interpretations, which support their teaching, rather interpreting through a historical, grammatical, cultural, or contextual approach which reveals the original intent of the author.
5. A different salvation - Many cults teach a "grace plus works" salvation. Many teach that man possesses at least some ability to earn eternal life by their own works or by grace perfected through their works. Salvation by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary is denied. The cross is not sufficient. A system of good works, dictated by the group, helps the members earn eternal life. Membership in their organization or church is usually a requirement for salvation in most of these cults.
6. A different Jesus - Virtually all cults deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They teach that Jesus is not the true God manifest in human form but something less, such as a created being, an angel, a prophet, an ascended master or just "a god"(secondary).
7. A different Spirit - Most cults teach that the Holy Spirit is not God but an impersonal force or energy that emanates from God to perform certain functions, much like the energy flowing from a battery to start a car. Some teach that it permeates everything and we can breathe it in rather than the Spirit being a person who is characterized as having a will, and who is able to be grieved and resisted.
8. The only true church - The one mark of a cult that is most common is their claim to be the only group or church ordained by God. They alone speak for God on earth today teaching that all others have lost the way and that they are a remnant of the “true church”. God directs only their organization, or church. If anyone comes to you claiming they represent the only true church of Christ or God, and deny anyone else outside himself or herself to be part, you can be sure that they are not from God. No organization, no matter how structured, has a corner on the truth.
Common Activities of Cults
While the primary way you can identify a cult is through its teachings there is one other significant way to identify a cult, by evaluating what they require of their members (the sociological definition). This usually relates to the level of authority the leaders have over the lives of the followers. While there are many examples of control, there are a few that are very common. When leaders dictate how much time you spend with the group, how much money you give to the group, who you can or can not associate with, or the continual teaching that you should never question their teaching or authority, are all examples. The following are a few questions that one could ask as they evaluate what is being required of them. If any of these sound familiar, I encourage you to look deeper at the group, which you belong to. After closer inspection of their teachings you may decide they are not a cult but might have undue influence over your life (commonly called cultic).
¨ Are you told not to question what is being taught because the leaders are honest and want the best for you so you must trust them?
¨ Are you not to ask reasons why anyone left, but rather you are to accept the answers the leaders give you such as: they fell into sin, they didn’t receive correction, they weren’t open or they had a bad heart and didn’t want to be disciples?
¨ If you want to leave are you being told there is no other church that practices truth and that if you leave you will go to hell?
¨ Are you made to feel your failures through excessive guilt and people continually telling you that your performance is not up to par for the Bible’s (actually the groups) standard?
¨ Are you being rebuked for things such as the way you say hello or how you respond to being asked to do something for a leader or disciple? Do they tell you it’s a matter of the heart how one complies?
¨ Are they putting down other churches and building themselves up. Do they sometimes use people as examples of what you are to be doing and others on what you are not to be doing?
¨ Do they bring attention to the good works that they are doing (evangelism, discipleship, commitment levels, etc.) ignoring others that may be doing the same outside their church?
¨ Do they put down others to make themselves look better?
¨ Do they call those who leave the church: "fall aways" and "enemies" or "dogs returning to their own vomit", using as examples Korah or Judas?
¨ Do they stop you from reading anything negative about themselves calling it spiritual pornography or recommend you not to read it for your own spiritual protection?
¨ Do they demand that you focus all your time toward the people of the group, live with those in the group, spend all your time with the group, or expect you to be at all the group activities, at the expense of other relationships or priorities? And if you choose otherwise do they question your spirituality and willingness to be obedient to God?
¨ Do they defend all that they do even though it can be harmful or wrong?
¨ Do they operate by humility or are they arrogant and demand you to obey if you are considering otherwise. Or is it done subtly by manipulating you into obeying by statements such as “real Christians obey their leaders” or “if you were following Jesus you would see what I’m saying is right”?
¨ Do they require you to attend studies, going through their program before you are allowed to be a Christian?
¨ Do people continually tell you how talented you are saying you can really go places?
¨ Do you find an instant bonding of friendship without your knowing who they are or they really knowing you? Do they immediately act as your best friend or claim that they are your discipler without having any previous contact with them?
¨ When you ask questions about their history are they vague in their answers or avoid answering all together?
¨ Do they emphasize following the church and it's leaders more than following Christ, always setting themselves as the model rather than Christ? Do they teach that one can only be a Christian by joining them and following a process outlined by them?
¨ Do they make you choose between allegiance to the church and family, career, school, or friends?
While this is not an exhaustive list of questions, they will be helpful as you evaluate what a cult is or is not. Again I want to mention that the primary way to identify a cult is through their teachings. The questions are only given to show an authority structure that could be cultic rather than revealing a cult. Ultimately doctrine is what seals the fate of those who are involved in a cult. So when you evaluate you must take into consideration, both the theological and sociological definition of a cult
So what about the International Churches of Christ. Should they be considered a cult? Lets look at the evidence.
The History of the International Churches of Christ
In the early 1970s Kip McKean, the founding evangelist and pastor of the Boston movement, was a student at the University of Florida in Gainesville. There he met Chuck Lucas, pastor of the Crossroads Church of Christ. Lucas was active in a campus outreach program for the Churches of Christ, developing "Campus Advance" principles. He recruited McKean and trained him in what was then and is now a radical version of discipleship developed primarily from Robert Coleman's book, The Master Plan of Evangelism. Lucas understood Coleman to teach that Jesus controlled the lives of His apostles and then taught His apostles to disciple others by controlling their lives. Therefore Christians today should use the same process Jesus taught His apostles when bringing people to Christ. Lucas put this teaching into practice in a discipleship process, which he taught to McKean and others.
In 1976 a number of Lucas's trainees, including McKean, were sent out to affiliate with Church of Christ congregations located near college campuses. The plan was that each would start a campus outreach using the local church for a base. McKean went to Heritage Chapel Church of Christ in Charleston, Illinois and initiated a campus outreach at Eastern Illinois University. Though he was successful, it wasn't long before some church members questioned his discipleship process and made charges regarding manipulation and control. In fact, several congregational splits occurred over the new discipling process being implemented on these campuses.
In 1979 McKean moved to the Boston suburb of Lexington where he became involved in the Lexington Church of Christ. Meeting on June 1st with thirty people -- each committing themselves to the Lord and His work -- McKean established an aggressive program of evangelism and discipleship. The result was phenomenal. The church went from 30 to 1,000 members in just a few years and outgrew its facilities. By 1983 the church had to rent the Boston Opera House for its meeting on Sunday and meet in homes ("house churches") for midweek services. Later that year the Lexington Church of Christ changed its name to the Boston Church of Christ.
In 1981 the Boston movement launched an aggressive missions program, sending out teams of people to establish churches throughout America and the world. These churches would be part of the Boston family of churches, under the authority and control of the Boston Church of Christ, and using the same discipling methods as the Boston church. As Jerusalem was the center from which Christianity spread throughout the world, so the Boston movement sees Boston as the modern-day center for "multiplying" worldwide ministry. Churches were established in many major cities, including London (1981), Chicago (1982), New York City (1983), Toronto and Providence (1985), Johannesburg, Paris, and Stockholm (1986), and Mexico City, Hong Kong, Bombay, and Cairo (1987-88). Each church in the Boston movement places the name of their city in front of "Church of Christ" -- for example, "Los Angeles Church of Christ" -- because they believe churches in the Bible were called by the names of their cities. Today there are churches on every continent (300 at last count in all) with a total membership of 80,000. While the church continually describes large numbers of baptisms and growing attendance (200,000 according to their estimates) each year the growth rate is actually very small because an equal number of people leave the organization for various reasons (some estimate for every individual converted, two leave).
Everything seemed to be going well for the Boston movement in regards to it’s worldwide vision of church planting and having a representative church in every major city in the United States by the year 2000. But in 1988 disagreement from within the movement surfaced, including breaks within the ranks. And all of a sudden, charges similar to those heard from outside the movement were now coming from within.
For example, the Crossroads Church of Christ (the Crossroads movement) voted to dissociate itself from the Boston movement. The Boston movement had been at the forefront of the larger Crossroads movement for years. When Lucas left the Crossroads church (and movement) in 1985, McKean assumed leadership of the movement and Boston became its center. Under his leadership, differences in emphasis between the Boston and other Crossroads churches became evident, leading to disagreement and finally dissociation. The differences cited included the following: 1) the usurping of congregational authority; 2) the exercise of excessive control; 3) the undue authority given to leaders; and 4) the teaching that one must obey one's discipler in all matters, even in areas of opinion.
Elders of the Tampa Bay Church of Christ also made a decision to break with the Boston movement over four major doctrinal practices: "1) their unscriptural authority and control; 2) their unscriptural leadership and organization; 3) their unscriptural exclusivity and elitism; and 4) their unscriptural self-approval by their successes." Of particular concern to them was a statement made on May 14, 1988 by McKean that a congregation must obey its evangelist: "The only time you don't obey him is if he violates scripture or violates your conscience. But, other than that, in all opinion areas, you...obey!"
McKean's ministry was accepted by the congregation of the Lexington Church of Christ and he was able to put into practice his improved version of "Crossroadism". McKean gathered from the Lexington Church of Christ those who would practice his interpretation of Scripture and began another sect. McKean says, "The Lord allowed me to begin the restoration of the New Testament Church from a small group of 30 would-be disciples in the Gampel's living room in June, 1979 in Boston." In 6 months, there were 68 baptisms, many of which were the original group that were re-baptized into a new commitment. In the first year - 170 baptisms; second year - 250 baptisms; third year - 365 baptisms; forth year - 402 baptisms; fifth year - 594 baptisms; sixth year - 703 baptisms; and the seventh year - 818 baptisms. This began what has come to be known as "the shot heard 'round the world" from Boston, according to McKean.
In 1980, McKean introduced Reconstructionism and gave a call of repentance to the mainline Churches of Christ. He advised them to commit to his discipleship program and be re-baptized. In response to this, the Churches of Christ labeled McKean as an apostate (false teacher). It is then that McKean pronounced the Boston Movement to be the family of God, God's true church, and God's only modern-day movement. In 1993, the name International Churches of Christ arose even though individual churches are still called by the name of the city that they are in.[iv]
How do people get involved in the International Churches of Christ?
Where does one begin when assessing a dynamic new church movement such as the International Church of Christ and it’s affiliates? Perhaps the place should be where one encounters -- or is encountered by -- this movement. From that point we may observe the process by which one becomes involved, is discipled, and eventually is baptized. It is here, that some of the controversial aspects of this movement can be noticed, both in doctrine and practice.
We shall therefore consider the initial encounter and ensuing relationship between Mary, an attractive lady in her mid twenties and a member of the Los Angeles Church of Christ movement, and Lisa, a young lady in her mid twenties who is an evangelical Christian.
A Story to Illustrate
Lisa is at school, sitting alone one day, eating her lunch and doing some reading for a class. Mary comes along, introduces herself, and asks if she can join her. During the conversation they discover that they have a number of things in common. They are both of Scandinavian descent and they grew up in the same part of the country. They also both plan to attend the same college after graduating from the present one; and both claim to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.
With a budding friendship initiated, Mary invites Lisa to a "Bible Talk" on Thursday night, one that she is attending. Lisa asks, "Who's teaching it? Who's involved?" Mary laughs and says, "It's just a group of believers meeting together to study the Bible. It's nondenominational." Lisa attends with Mary and there meets many wonderful people. These people are not only friendly but appear to be genuinely loving and caring. Lisa listens carefully to the lesson and finds nothing contrary to her knowledge of the Bible.
In the days following the Bible Talk, the people Lisa met there call her to talk with her and see how she's doing. She really appreciates their interest and concern. As she gets to know them she observes that these are people who really try to live out their faith -- not only on Sunday mornings, but also throughout the week. Encouraged by these people and especially by Mary, she begins to attend their church service and to participate in other activities.
Mary and Lisa (at Mary's suggestion) begin to meet together for a weekly Bible study. Since Lisa already believes the Bible, Mary skips the usual first lesson, The Word Study, and instead focuses on the subject of discipleship. Mary obviously knows more about this subject (having notes and other materials), and so she leads and teaches Lisa. Mary continually challenges Lisa to look back over her past religious experiences and decide whether she thought those who taught her or attended the church she went to were true disciples according to the Bible’s view of what discipleship is (Actually the ICC’s new definition). And then Mary helps Lisa realize that she was not a true disciple either. (At this point Mary becomes Lisa's spiritual mentor, her discipler.) In addition to studying the Bible, they pray together and confess sins (most of these being Lisa's). Mary calls Lisa every day, showing great interest in Lisa's life. She is always available to give help and always ready to provide some guidance and advice.
Though Lisa is attending this church and enjoying it’s life and fellowship; she has this feeling that she is not really a part of it. Perhaps this resulted from her observation that other women in the group are called "sisters," and she is not. Then one day she hears a Bible Talk on baptism in which the teacher says, "Unless one is baptized as a disciple, one is not saved." He goes on to say that true baptism is a "conscious baptism in which one believes in that baptism for the forgiveness of sins." The wheels in her mind begin to turn. She had been baptized shortly after she put her trust in Jesus Christ, but that was not a "conscious baptism" (as the Bible teacher had described it). Furthermore, she was not a disciple at the time of her baptism, at least as this church defines a disciple. Was her baptism valid? She begins to think that it wasn't. Then the thought crosses her mind: If it wasn't valid, was she really saved?
Lisa immediately calls Mary. Mary comes over as soon as she can and takes her through certain passages in the Bible regarding baptism, verse by verse. Lisa concludes, from all that was shown to her, that her baptism was not a true baptism and she was not saved. She reall