PERSECUTION AND BACKSLIDERS!
DO 2817
7/92
1. It sometimes mystifies me how some of the backsliders we have done the most for, could hate us so! Why do they hate us?--When we were unusually good to them and patient with them and put up with them for years, even when they were nothing but a problem all those years! (Maria: Maybe because we spoiled those people. We spoiled Watchman and put up with his tantrums, and we spoiled Mene and showered too much attention on her.) Maybe part of it is a guilty conscience on their part.
2. They say that one of the most automatic human reactions is self-defense. The minute you're accused of anything or you know you're guilty of something, you right away go on the defensive to defend yourself. And one of the usual human mechanisms of self-defense is counter-accusation. I have been over that with you in various Letters like "The DDDB" (ML #759), about the people who doubt, disobey, deny and betray! They finally are forced to betray us, because they have nowhere else to go but to our enemies. Nobody else will receive them, and they just can't stand to be ignored and not have some kind of fellowship.
3. Backsliders get a lot of sympathy from our enemies. Our enemies will always receive them with open arms, like the Scribes and Pharisees did with Judas, but then when their dirty work was done, what did they do? (Family: Got rid of him.) They paid him off, and when he tried to come back and repent and return the money, they just sneered in contempt and said, "You don't have anything to do with us any more." In other words, "We don't need you any more." And then they're really deserted! They've deserted the Lord, they've deserted us, their friends and their family, and they've gone to our enemies for comfort and fellowship and consolation and even usefulness. But then when our enemies finally get through using them and cast them aside, they have no place to go, and they're even ashamed to go to the Lord!
4. But a lot of our backsliders have remained loyal to the Family! When questioned, they've refused to say anything against the Family and have said their time in the Family did them a lot of good, that the Family was doing a lot of good, but that they just didn't feel like they were up to it or like they were soldiers enough themselves. They weren't willing to sacrifice that much, they weren't willing to really go all the way and forsake all, including their pride and their own will. They frankly felt so guilty, they couldn't stand to live with the Family any longer. They were so ashamed of themselves that they just couldn't take it and make it, but they didn't speak against us, and there have been a lot of those.
5. But some of them, being as weak as they were, sought other fellowship. They no longer had Family fellowship and they couldn't stand being by themselves, on their own, so they found out that our enemies gladly received them and really made a fuss over them and spoiled them and doted on them and glorified them and put them in places of glorification and used them as dandy bad examples of what the Family does and blah blah, and they have their moments of glory.
6. Even Judas had his moments of glory. When he went and kissed Jesus right in front of all those soldiers and the Scribes and Pharisees, His enemies, he had a moment of glory, with all these guys backing him (Mat.26:47-49). He was justifying his own sins, trying to justify and excuse himself, therefore he felt justified in doing what he did because the Devil had so deceived him into thinking that he was right about all the things he'd criticized Jesus about.
7. They're convinced by these enemies that they're right! They go to these supposed experts, even pastors and preachers and Christians who are posing as their friends and posing as wise counselors and agreeing with them, convincing them that they've done the right thing and giving them all kinds of ammunition to shoot at the Family and all the bad things they know about the Family. They tell them, "We know the Family's wrong and we know how bad they are, and you're right, you should have defected long ago! We sympathize with you and we're here to help you! We'll do everything we can for you! We receive you; we don't think you're bad. To us, you're not backsliders, you're just people who finally came to your senses and saw how bad the Family is and how bad they treated you. We agree with you and we're for you and we'll help you!"
8. So they use them against us and glorify them and get them to write books or go on TV and testify against us, and for a while they're stars, having their own self-glory, being appreciated the way they feel they weren't appreciated in the Family, being recognized the way they weren't recognized in the Family, being glorified and their talent used the way they feel it wasn't used in the Family! "Here are some people who really understand me and appreciate me and like me and don't talk about all my faults and pray with me about my doubts and fears. They praise me and glorify me for what I've done!"--And they convince our backsliders they've done a good thing, really deceive them! Because they've rejected the truth, the Lord says He'll send them strong delusion, that they might believe a lie, that they might be damned! (2Th.2:10-12).
9. And the Lord allows them to be sent this strong delusion because they've rejected the truth. What else is there for them to believe but lies? If you reject and leave the truth, what have you got left?--Nothing but the Devil and his friends and their lies and delusions, because that's what you've turned to! You didn't want to believe the truth, you didn't want to accept it, you didn't want to obey it, so you turn to people of the same kind who have also rejected it.
10. So these backsliders have hobnobbed with our enemies who are pretending to be their friends. And there's nothing those enemies want to do more than destroy them too, but they're just going to wait until they have used them and they've performed their dirty work with them, just like they did with Judas. He's a prime example of this whole principle. He betrayed Jesus, helped them find Him, kissed Him, and let them arrest Him and put Him in bonds and persecute Him and beat Him and everything else. The traditional story is that he only consented to betray Him and lead them to Him under the promise that they would not hurt Jesus or kill Him. That's the story from tradition or legend. I don't know whether it's true or not, but it sounds logical. In other words, he knew Jesus was right and a good man, but he was scared.--And that's another reason some people turn against us, because they're afraid of persecution.
11. Those who are in it for the money and the power, like some of our Chain leaders of the past, when those possibilities begin to fade, then they wonder, "What am I doing here, anyhow?" So they decide, like Judas, to get out while the gettin's good! They figure, "Well, the best thing for me to do is get out while I can! There's not anything more in it for me--no more power or glory or good publicity or money or position. Now it's too much sacrifice, it's too much persecution, it's too much gaff! Now it looks like I'm going to be suffering instead of rolling in the good things like I have been!"
This Work Is of God and You'll Go On No Matter What!
12. It's a purging! Gideon had his purge. The Lord wanted to show him what he could do with only 300 instead of 32,000!--That he didn't need that many men, they were more in the way and a drag. (See Judges 7:1-8.) So the Lord is certainly sifting out of the Family those who are only a drag, and He's certainly showing who are the real fighters and have real faith and testimonies, and He's making glorious victories out of seeming defeat, thank the Lord!
13. If I should depart and go on, I hope the Lord is your leader and you will go on strong, if not stronger, than ever!--Just like the true disciples did after Jesus was gone. They were never as strong before as they were after He was gone! They never really began to spread into all the world and convert the Roman Empire until after the Lord was gone! So don't ever think that just because I should go on to be with the Lord that you can't make it without me.
14. If this work is not of the Lord, we might as well quit!--But of course we can't, because it is of the Lord! And instead of being defeated, we've grown stronger and more prosperous and more fruitful! Our work has spread around the world and we have phenomenal statistics to prove it! We've distributed millions and millions of pieces of Gospel literature to the world, to billions of people, with millions of converts!
15. The Lord has blessed us and prospered us and made it possible for us to do things we never even dreamed of! So if this work is of the Lord, you'll go on, no matter what happens!--With or without me! Do you really believe that? (Peter: Definitely, no doubt about it.) You're sure? (Fam: Yes, sir!) Well, I know it, because I know what the Lord has done and shown us and shown you, and the results, the proof of the pudding! In several places now, they've brought out our young people, and there's such a difference between the teenagers you hear about in the System and our teenagers! Here are our teenagers in droves--happy, singing, testifying, witnessing, doing good instead of evil!--While the System's teenagers are often a bunch of drug-ridden, violence-infested criminals!
Our Tribulation Is Already Beginning!
16. Anyway, we were on the subject of what makes some of our people backslide and be used of the Devil like Judas was. They do it for all the same reasons that Judas did. He finally saw it was getting a little too hot and there was no prospect of a future position of being a glorified financial money-greedy counselor of the king of a restored Israel. He wasn't going to be in on the winning side, but instead it looked to him like his side was losing!--At least losing in the way he wanted it to win. So he decided the best thing to do was to get out, and the best way to get out was to prove he was no longer a member, by being willing to betray the Lord!
17. And you can bet there's usually money involved! They make those long trips to do their dirty work against us, so they're certainly getting all their fares paid and their hotel and restaurant bills paid. After all, they've got to feed them while they're there. Also when they get back, they've gotta keep'm on their side, so they've got to keep giving them some kind of assistance, if nothing more than to help them write the book and help'm get it out. (Maria: And to appear on TV and on the witness stand against us.) Yes.
18. (Fam: It seems like this is a fulfillment of prophecy too, where it says, "Some of them of understanding shall fall." And also, "Even the very elect could be deceived." It's Endtime prophecy being fulfilled [Dan.11:35; Mat.24:24].) Yes, it's all a part of the same horror of the Last Days. Our Tribulation is already beginning, because we've been in the vanguard, the forefront of the battle! We have been exposing the Devil and his dirty tricks and his people, and they don't like that at all! They don't like exposure! There's nothing the Devil hates like exposure! He does his best and his damnedest when he does it secretly as an "angel of light" (2Cor.11:14), and his ministers and agents pose as righteous people.
19. Look at all those child protection and community service agencies, robbing parents of their children under all kinds of excuses! On the slightest little anonymous phone call they can come in and snatch your children away just like that! These laws are part of the Antichrist dictatorship, just like the tactics the communists used. Anybody can complain about you, that you're supposedly abusing your children, and they'll raid your home and take away your children, like they took 140-some of ours! Just think of it!--With no proof whatsoever, absolutely no excuse whatsoever, except the dirty lies being told them by our enemies!
20. But instead, as the saying goes, "give the Devil enough rope and he'll hang himself," and they're now hanging themselves in Australia and places like that, where instead of exposing us, they're exposing themselves and discrediting themselves because of their evil conspiracy against us, which has shown itself to be nothing more than religious persecution! The agencies and the police and others involved are now on the hot seat and are getting criticized and debunked! Well, they're not going to like that, and they'll be even more furious! They don't like to be exposed; they don't like to be discredited; they don't like to be made fools of, embarrassed, scandalized and humiliated before the whole public and the world! So they're not done yet!
21. Do you wanna quit? (Fam: No! It's actually exciting to be back in the news!) Do you think I ought to quit? (Fam: No! Definitely not!) I was trying to think what would help our folks, that maybe I should send a resignation to be published to the media, so I could get out of the way and they couldn't blame me any more. Some of our enemies are even questioning whether I'm dead or alive! But it wouldn't really matter even if I were dead! The Devil wouldn't leave us alone just because I was dead, not as long as you, the Family, carry on! (Maria: There was a time in the early days when we never even mentioned you to the public. They didn't even know you existed! But we still got persecution for our beliefs and lifestyle.)
22. But the Lord is using this persecution! Just like the Devil is using those backsliders, God is getting His use out of them, believe it or not! How many times have I told you in the past that the Devil is working for the Lord! (See "The Sheepdogs," ML #1439, GN Book 3.) All the Devil's people are working for the Lord, they just don't know it. They're accomplishing His purposes. If it hadn't been for some of them, we wouldn't have been forced to come out and attack and proclaim the truth and show the sample and win the victories, because of the seeming defeats!
Don't Worry About It!
23. Have I made the point of why these backsliders do it and what the Lord is doing by it and what's going to be their fate in the long run? Don't worry about it! When their cup of iniquity is full and the Lord is through with them and the Devil is through with them, they'll get their just deserts and be damned--judged, punished, even killed, as the Lord sees fit!
24. The Antichrist will do as many a dictator has: Many a dictator has used people as his stooges and his instruments, like the [ACs], to fight his enemies, and then turned around and killed them, because they threatened the throne or were a danger to him! It's common policy with the Devil to do that sort of thing, to use people and then execute them, eliminate them, get rid of'm!
25. So don't worry about it. It's all in the Lord's hands and the Lord's taking good care of it. It will go no further than God wants it to go, as far as He wants it to do us good, for "all things work together for good to them that love the Lord" (Rom.8:28). And it's all working together for good! The greater the test, the greater the testimony! The greater the trial, the greater the triumph! The greater the battle, the greater the victory--and the greater the grace to bear it! Praise the Lord!
26. To close, why don't we join hands and pray the Lord's prayer. I think that prayer means more to me every time we pray it. It's a great prayer! So let's pray the prayer that He taught us to pray. (Prays the Lord's prayer.)
Loving Our Enemies!
27. Well, that part of the Lord's prayer about forgiveness brings up one more little point. That's always been a little problem with me: How can I forgive those who trespass so horribly against us? I have prayed for my enemies, so I've proved I can do it when the Lord gives me the grace and the faith for it. God knows, I prayed for Deb for years.
28. Maybe I haven't prayed enough for my enemies. I've cussed'm enough and cursed'm, and even said I wish the Lord would kill them! Maybe the Lord's trying to teach me a little more love and to be sorry for them, because they're such a mess! They are headed for real trouble! Of course, those who really had the truth like our backsliders--and even our enemies who have had the truth--they sicken me! I wonder how the Lord can stand them and why He doesn't just wipe'm out! Well, they sicken Him too. He says, "If any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him" (Heb.10:38). Some of those guys, as Jesus said, their "time is always ready" (John 7:6). He can wipe them out whenever their cup of iniquity is full, but apparently they've got a little ways to go yet. So maybe in the meantime we need to pray for them somehow, that if it be possible they will turn to the Lord and repent and forsake their evil ways; but if not, that the Lord will deal with them, punish and judge them.
29. However, for some of them, it looks like they've passed the point of no return. Some of them are so obviously demonic and set on destroying God's work and His children that the only way you can pray for them is to pray God's judgments upon them. I prayed against that first judge who was handling the case against us in Barcelona, and look what happened to him! I guess you heard he had a nervous breakdown! And the police there really got it too! And the citizens there are really getting it now!
30. May this little talk be a blessing to the Family and let them know that we're not worried and we know it's all in Your hands, Lord, and You'll do whatever You want to do to get glory out of these attacks of our enemies! Just help us to be willing to be used of Thee to do our part of the job, in Jesus' name. Amen!
GBAKY ALL!--KGFJ!--Tx!--WLY!--The End is near!
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family