Other Facts about the Iglesia ni Cristo

More things to think on

I realize that there needs to be more mentioned on how this church conducts itself. When one enters through the doors the woman are separated from the men, even if they are husband and wife or a child in the family. There is absolutely no Scriptural reason for this except for control.

Records are kept of attendance since attending when one is a member is compulsory. From what I have heard from former members they tell them who to vote for and many more areas of control are exercised.

When I was discussing with some gentleman from the church their teachings on their grounds, they were getting ready for a study which usually occurs Thursday. 5 minutes before the scheduled time cars pulled in like clockwork. It was obvious that they were expected to be punctual and not late. While this in itself is not alarming the motive for this control certainly is.

Marriage inside the church is expected since they are the only ones saved.

There is an attachment inside the Church for those of Filipino descent as not to leave because of their cultural understanding. So it is not as easy as it is for others who have found what they have been taught is untrue or have felt manipulated beyond what they would like.

Many members feel the pressure but ignore it because of the teaching of being God's only true Church.

We need to pray for the people as well as the leaders that reform would take place and lead them to the biblical truth. It has happened with other groups so it is not an impossibility.

How the Church teaches

Iglesia does believe that the words of God are found in the Bible. They hold to the infallibility of Scripture as long as it agrees with their own teaching. This is why they will use numerous Bibles, although their favorite is Lamsa’s and Moffatt's which deny the deity. They believe the common Christian cannot understand the Bible so it must be interpreted for them by authorized ministers. It is this similarity they have with the Catholic church. So the authority lies by Gods messenger and those found in their church alone.

"...some of the verses of the Bible were wrongly translated." (PASUGO, February 1973, p. 16).

"No, it is beyond man's power and intelligence to study and understand the truth, which is God's word (John 17:17), by himself, without the guidance of God's messenger." (PASUGO, November 1973, p. 19, 20).

"A doctrine is not of God if it is different from what is written in the Holy Scriptures, or even if found written but is not the present truth it becomes vain before God if used as the basis :or worshipping God." (PASUGO, Jan. 1976, p. 12).

It is common for authoritarian groups to undermine anything that might threaten their position as the ultimate source of truth in the life of the member. They teach the members to give total trust to those who are over them. Explaining that they should have confidence in their leaders since they would always tell the truth. To question any area of doctrine or their authority is grounds to be expelled. The difference is that the bible encourages honest questioning.

They are experts in taking scripture from one area and connecting it together with another, it is a cut and paste method that thrives on the biblically illiterate which are many in their Church. The reason for this is easily explained, since they are told only the authorized minister can read and interpret the scripture for them. So many do not read the bible on their own. this is similar to how the Catholic Church used to conduct themselves.

Friends and myself have ask members to discuss the bible, but they do not open it and will always defer us to their elders. This is not because they do not know what they believe but because they are unauthorized to speak. This exposes their attitude of not dialoguing for truth, since they have had their leaders make up their minds for them that they alone have it. 1 Pt.3:15 commands us to be able to defend and give answers for the faith and hope in us. The lack of ability in this area shows they may not have the truth.

Their doctrinal teaching is not deep but well thought through and is presented as humanly logical, but not scriptural, at least not to the overall teaching of the bible. They have a few basic themes they repeat over and over never to wander away from their structure, since they have been tried and work. They will never deal with the strengths of the opponents points, but ignore them. They will always speak from the position of strength with a self appointed authority. By doing this everyone else must defend themselves in their doctrine, and in having themselves called the church.

Their studies in homes are conducted without any schedule whenever someone is interested they will gladly show up. Church for them is Sundays and Thursdays at their chapels. People show up promptly and in an orderly fashion.Their teaching methods are what one would call repetition of a subject in a group setting. We call this cultism a form of brainwashing. Since it is done over to the saturation point and then more so the member would not consider entertaining the idea of another view. So when speaking to them on Christ they will immediately be repulsed since you have no authority to teach and have been pre warned of those who teach Christ is God from heaven.

They have become popular by doing debates which have become quite predictable since they implement the same rhetoric for each one. Their debaters are skilled and they bring the whole church out to listen. In doing this they have their own cheering squad and make it into a sport event instead of a pursuit of truth. When we were arranging to have a debate with the Church here they boasted how many would show up. He then told us they won the debate, I asked how can you say you won before it occurred, he replied because we will have more people there. I then replied this is not a vote. After hearing this attitude along with other reports we did not pursue it, we thought it would not be advantageous for anyone to debate with this kind of an attitude. After looking at their record in there magazine everytime they debate they write up how they won. They seem to be right and winners in their own opinions, always.

If one ever visits there meetings which are planned for the community outreach, they are orchestrated to put others down and to puff themselves up. When I went to one recently they spoke on faith in God alone cannot save you. Meaning you must join their Church.The Scripture clearly teaches each person makes a personal decision for Christ and he is the savior. no church, baptism or doctrine is able to do what only he can. When they then had a time for questions, they kept controll by not allowing personal ones with an open discussion. Questions are submitted onto paper so that there is no dialogue between the orator and the questioner just in case they get shut out. I had asked who is the mighty God of Isa.9:6 is and Heb.1:2 who is the Son that God made the universe through? They had said previously that they only had 15 minutes so they could not answer both of these. No doubt it takes longer to travel away from the truth then to succinctly explain it. He finished his explanation with over 5 minutes to spare with only addressing Isa.9:6. What I heard was probably the worst substitute explanation since I have been involved in cult evangelism. The bottom line was The mighty God was "The everlasting kingdom, instead of the Son, Go figure! Not far behind is the interpretation of God is your throne in Heb.1:8 which is the option of the NWT (JW's) as well as Goodspeed and Moffatt. When we discussed this afterwards I challenged him on his interpretation and it became heated not in dialogue but in his refusal to even answer the specific objections brought up. A few members gathered near to listen and were quickly lead away by another official. It is in this manner they keep control over their people by not allowing them to hear any contrary information that may lead them away from there teaching.

Pray for the people that are trapped in a system far removed from biblical teachings. Many are sincere seekers of truth that have been blinded by their own leadership that they trust and are told to obey.

Bible Translation

The George Lamsa translation is from the Aramaic language. Lamsa believed the original texts were written in Aramaic and were latter changed to Greek. That the Aramaic were more authoritative, but he is wrong. While it may be true that many things were spoken in the Aramaic language (though the bible makes the point of the Greek being used as well). There is no evidence for what Lamsa presupposes.

This is upheld despite all the manuscript evidence that contradicts his theories. Although the language principally spoken by Jesus was Aramaic almost all Jews were bi or tri lingual. This is even upheld by the fact that the Hebrew scriptures were translated into the Greek language ( Septuagint) 200 years before Christ. The Aramaic text (the Pershitta) is a later 4^th century Syriac translation, a Semitic language used in Syria. All the earliest manuscripts are of the Greek and the majority of manuscript scholars agree. Lamsa intentionally ignores this stating that Greek was never the language of Palestine saying" Josephus states that even though a number of Jews had tried to learn the language of the Greeks, hardly any of them were succeeded." (Lamsa p.9) This is not what Josephus said in his antiquities of the Jews. "What Josephus wrote was that he had failed to attain precision in the pronunciation of Greek. "Lamsa also claims" Indeed the teaching of Greek was forbidden by Jewish rabbis. It was said that it was better for a man to give his child meat of swine than to teach him the language of the Greek's." (Lamsa p.10) (Cited in Greek , Hebrew Aramaic, or Syriac? A critique of the claims of G.M Lamsa by Edwin M.Yamauchi)

Then how does he explain the Septuagint? All this is contradicted by the facts of Greek manuscript evidence found in the Quamrun caves and quotes from the Septuagint in the New testament which are more in number than quotes from the Masoretic text (the Hebrew)

Rabbi Hillel’s school is where Paul learned under rabbi Gamaliel who was the grandson of rabbi Hillel It is a fact the Paul who was versed in the Greek language and philosophy as well as Judaism learning this from his schooling. He certainly did not speak to those on mars hill in the Hebrew language which was reserved for and exclusive to the Jews. Neither did he converse to the roman rulers in Aramaic.

Proof that the Jews were bilingual, In AD 132-135 we find those who were nationals rebelling in Bar Kochba’s side wrote in Greek as well as Hebrew and Aramaic.

In 250 B.C. the Hebrew Scriptures were translated to Greek. The New Testament is written in Koine Greek (Common Greek), there were 4 languages used in the New Teatamenrt times Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin, of which Greek was the dominant language. We find the inscription over Christ as being the King of the Jews was written in Greek, Hebrew, Latin. The Greek language was spread by Alexander the Great after he defeated the Persian empire 323 B.C. He saw it as his divine mission to spread the Greek culture throughout the world ( he was Macedonian a Greek). His Hellenistic empire spread to Asia minor, Persia, India, Syria, Egypt, and Israel. He established 70 Greek cities of which half were in Israel. By 300 AD. from Alexander’s conquest Greek became the international language, the dominant language of Israel and the eastern world at the time of Christ.

John 12:20,23 Seems to strongly imply that Philip, Andrew and Jesus understood and spoke Greek as Greeks came up to worship.

When the Gospel writers quoted from the Old Testament it was mostly from the Greek Septuagint. EX: Isa.61:1 The Jews used Hebrew word patterns in the Greek. Acts and Hebrews used a blend of classical and koine Greek. There are Aramaic and Hebrew words in the Greek, words that were transposed.

There is no New Testament letter written in Hebrew originally, all are in (koine) the common Greek language.

In Mk.7:24 when Jesus spoke to the Syrophoenician woman The Greek word for dogs had no correlation in Hebrew or Aramaic. If Jesus did not speak Greek than the writer used an unnatural expression in translating his words. In Jn.7:35 The Jews question Jesus about going to a place where they will not be able to find him "He is not going to the dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks. Its obvious that as the Son of God he had the ability to converse in different languages. In Jn. 21 Jesus uses two Greek words for love and tending the flock that cannot be reproduced in the Hebrew nor Aramaic language. So it was likely a conversation carried on in the Greek. When Jesus spoke to Pilate I don't think it was in Hebrew since he was a pagan unwilling to learn the language of the Jews.

Who is George Lamsa?

He was a man who was into psychic phenomenon, this alone should disqualify him from being a reputable source for the Scriptures. He denied the Trinity which is clearly expressed in his translation, which is why it is accepted by certain churches. This is why it is the most popular translation among the cults. He believed sin was error and he was a universalist believing all would be saved (not even the Iglesia ni Cristo church would accept this). He also believed the Holy Spirit was a influence or power. Like the Sadducee's he denies a belief in personal angels or demons. He also had a view of Christ as 2 persons in one body (Nestorian heresy which some trace to his upbringing) not 2 natures in Christ the one person. Lamsa also claimed to be the sole competent interpreter of the scriptures. "Moreover, the author was educated under the care of learned priests of the church of the east who knew no other language but Aramaic,..the author, through God's grace, is the only one with the knowledge of Aramaic, the bible customs and idioms, and the knowledge of the English language who has ever translated the Holy bible from the original Aramaic texts into English and written commentaries on it, and his translation is now in pleasingly wide use" (G. Lamsa More light on the Gospel (NY 1968). Certainly Iglesia would not agree with Lamsa's position on salvation since they teach one MUST join their Church to be saved. So why use a man who they would discredit for these things as well? Because He's one of the few published authors they can find that can agree with their position.

Lamsa was anti supernatural and found natural explanations for his understanding Scripture. For example the floating axe head with Elisha Lamsa thought the axehead came to the top of the water because Elisha put the stick in its hole. He translates this verse, And he cut off a stick and thrust it in there; and it stuck in the hole of the axehead (George Lamsa, translator, The Holy Bible Translated from Ancient Eastern Manuscripts, 1961, p. 417).

The miracle was then one of divine guidance of Elisha putting the stick into the water and finding the axehead, and not the axehead floating to the top.

His Bible translation though tainted in areas is for the most part agreeable with other translations. But where Lamsa actually interprets the Scripture is found in his Idioms in the Bible explained and the key to the original gospels written by Lamsa in 1971 published by Harper Collins. He has a allegorical interpretation ignoring the plain literal translation. The back cover states that this book goes far in correcting such error that have crept into biblical scholarship. In this book he explains his interpretation of the scripture of his Bible --he believes these are figures of speech and not literal. Here are just a few examples.

Bible= Gen.1:3 "Let there be light"

Lamsa's interpretation ="Let there be enlightenment

Bible=Gen.2:9 "Tree of life in the midst of the Garden"

Lamsa interpretation = Sex , posterity

Bible= Gen.5:24 God took Enoch (Heb.11:5 States expressly he did not see death)

Lamsa interpretation= He died painlessly, he had a heart attack

Bible=Gen.3:24 wrestling with the angel of the Lord

Lamsa interpretation = Being suspicious of a pious person

Bible=Ex.3:2 the burning bush not consumed

Lamsa interpretation = difficulties ahead difficulties will be overcome

Bible= Ex.3:5 Take off your shoes for you are on Holy ground.

Lamsa interpretation =Disregard pagan teachings, cleanse your heart

Bible= John 1 the word was God

Lamsa interpretation = the word is - a utterance, a command

Bible= John 1:18 the only begotten son

Lamsa interpretation= The first one who recognized the fatherhood of God. The only God-like man; hence, a spiritual son of God.

Bible= John 3:3 Born again

Lamsa interpretation= to become like a child, to start all over.

Bible=Jn.10:36 I and my father are one

Lamsa interpretation = the father and I agree.

Bible= 1 Thess. 4:17 to meet him in the air

Lamsa interpretation = to hasten to greet him

Bible= Rev.1:18 was dead and behold I am Alive forevermore.

Lamsa interpretation= I was unknown and now I am well and successful

for more on the Bible in the Greek Language

Its obvious with only these few examples that the Lamsa's interpretation of the Bible is tainted by a certain view, of anti-supernaturalism. There are many other scriptures that can be cited on this, while not everything he says is wrong because he believes it all relates to Aramaic language and not Hebrew or Greek it becomes a wrong understanding in areas. This would show up in certain places of his Bible translation that is from the Aramaic.

Sources used- George Lamsa Christian Scholar or cultic torchbearer by John p. Juedes

Salvation

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved."

Jn.20:31 " But these things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that believing you may have life in his name."

Not so says Iglesia Ni Cristo!

They teach Christ's purpose was to establish his Church and since Christ is the savior of the Church for one to be saved we must be in the true Church. They have it backwards we become part of the Chrirch AFTER one is saved, not join the Church to be saved.

Manalo believed the true church was led astray by false prophets after the apostles, therefore a complete apostasy.

In their pamphlet "Are all the Christian churches ways to God" Throughout its writing it emphasizes that one must be in the true church to be in Christ in classic cultic fashion they cut and paste scriptures together to get their personal point across. "How could a baptized member of the church of Christ be certain of the promised salvation? According to the apostle Paul:

1 Cor. 15:1-2: "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you-- unless you believed in vain."

Notice they stopped short of quoting the very thing that Paul is about to address, the Gospel which saves. Its not obeying the commands that save, since this is done after one is saved. Just as it is not works that save but are done after the fact!

Paul continues Gods word 1 Cor. 15:3-4: "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures." Paul writes in Rom.1:16-17 " For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes."

In the attitude of promoting fear they go on to say, We should do what Christ commands us.What does he command? He commands us to enter the church of Christ to be saved (Jn.10:9) While they quote Jn.10:9 if we read through in context which they rarely ever do unless it serves their purposes .

John 10:9-11"I am the door.(Jesus) If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

Its not the church that dispenses salvation but Christ the person. Manalo took Jn10:16 applying to their church alone...

John 10:16"And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. He argued this is prophecy of guess who. But Christ is speaking of other sheep that are not immediately present with them, the Gentiles since he came first to his own the house of Israel. Jesus never meant that they will hear Christ through another but that they would hear his voice personally and that he would oversee their care as their personal shepherd. He would not depend on another to bring them into his fold Christ said I will build my church, no man no angel 'wanna be' can do this. He alone deserves the right to do this since as the verse before all this states John 10:15-"As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep." Felix Manalo did not lay his life down for the sheep no did his Son Erdie. He fulfilled it and for one to claim otherwise proves they are not submitted to Christ as the head.

The pamphlet ends with this note Dear reader, it is, therefore, Gods command that we all should enter the church of Christ or Iglesia ni Cristo , in Philippine, if we want to enter the kingdom of heaven to enjoy eternal life."

What of the apostles did they enter this church, was there even a church in ancient times in the Philippines? Obviously not.

In the same pamphlet it says "To be certain of salvation, every member of the church of Christ must obey the doctrines he heard and received all the days of his life, "For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life" (Prov.6:23) Obey always is commendable but hardly realistic.

INC teaches that membership in their organization plus complete submission to the Executive Minister and the rest of the Church administration is the only way to be saved:

"Each member ... should submit himself to the Administration of the Church in order to be saved."(PASUGO, January 1976, p. 9)

The following quotes confirm the INC requirement of total submission by all members.

"Unity in the Iglesia Ni Cristo ... transcends and encompasses all aspects of the life of an Iglesia Ni Cristo......(PASUGO, January 1976, p. 5)

"For opposing the Administration of the Church is tantamount to opposing not only Christ but also God."(PASUGO, January 1976, p. 190

"So we should therefore demonstrate complete submission, obedience and loyalty to the Administration..." (PASUGO, January 1976, p.1)

I find this no different than the Mormons or J W’s of which are only a few who claim restoration and being the only true church. Iglesia like others exercise unbiblical control over their members showing that the Christ of Scriptures cannot be their head. Jesus' model was by servanthood not as the gentiles rule by submission.

The author of Hebrews writes in 5:9 "He is the author of eternal salvation to ALL WHO OBEY HIM." The HIM is Jesus .

They hold to the infallibility of scripture as long as it agrees with their own teaching. This is why they will use numerous bibles although their favorite is Lamsa’s and Moffatts which deny the deity of christ. They believe the common Christian cannot understand the bible so it must be interpreted for them by authorized ministers. It is this similarity they have with the Catholic Church, as well as other aberrant groups

"...some of the verses of the Bible were wrongly translated." (PASUGO, February 1973, p. 16)

"No, it is beyond man's power and intelligence to study and understand the truth, which is God's word (John 17:17), by himself, without the guidance of God's messenger."(PASUGO, November 1973, p. 19, 20)

"A doctrine is not of God if it is different from what is written in the Holy Scriptures, or even if found written but is not the present truth it becomes vain before God if used as the basis :or worshipping God."(PASUGO, Jan. 1976, p. 12)

It is common for authoritarian groups to undermine anything that might threaten their position as the ultimate source of truth in the life of the member. They should take note to apply what they say to themselves.

What they have done is trained their people to hear the voice of their own shepherds. Christ says come unto me and it is through the gospel (his work on the cross for mankind). we enter the Church by Christ who is the door, and the way. we don't join the church to be in Christ.

Jn.10:27: "My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow Me." Jesus never said to join this Church or that one. Salvation is found in the person and work of Christ alone. There are many people who unfortunately have another shepherd other than Christ.

Sources used witnessing to the cults by Alex Wilson and Christine Tetley, Iglesia ni Christo A. Leanord Tuggy

The True Church

The INC organization claims to be ''The Church'' that Christ started. They claim that people cannot be saved without being members of their organization. The Bible does teach that people must be In Christ to be saved. However, the Bible does not teach that people must join the INC organization and be faithful to the current Executive Minister! Erano Manalo, to be saved. Nearly all organized heresies teach that their church is 'The Only True Church'' and that you must remain faithful to their leadership to be saved. For example, the Mormon Church states that, ''If it had not been for Joseph Smith and the restoration, there would be no salvation. There is no salvation outside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints." Likewise the J W’s as Does the International Churches of Christ and the list goes on infinitum.

They deny those who have truly received Christ as described in John 1:12 & 13: "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God. 'even to those who believe on His name: who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.''

You must remember that when the INC organization uses the term ''Church of Christ'' they are referring to their organization exclusively. The INC organization clearly believes that a person cannot truly be a believer or be saved outside their group.

Thus, outside the Church of Christ no one can be considered a true believer-''(PASUGO, September/October p.9 1981).

The Iglesia Ni Cristo organization improperly uses Scripture in their attempt to prove that they alone are the true church. For example:

''People who embraced the true church will be saved not because of the good deeds they have done, but through God's merciful act of commissioning messengers entrusted with words of reconciliation.'' (PASUGO September/October 1986, p. 20.)

On page 21 of this same issue of ''Pasugo'', the INC q uotes Titus 3:5 in an attempt to give biblical support to their belief. However, but they only quote part of the sentence. "It is not because of any good deeds that we ourselves had done, but because of his own mercy that he saved us...''' The INC end their quotation of scripture here because if the entire sentence was quoted the readers would see that it actually refutes the teaching of the INC organization. In reading the entire sentence we are able to learn what the Bible really says.

''But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us: through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:4-7)."

As you can see, When read completely and accurately this passage reveals something quite different from what the INC attempted to make it say.

the INC organizations view states we are saved, ''through God's merciful act of commissioning messengers entrusted with words of reconciliation.'' If one disproves this their authority crumbles.

Church of Christ

Iglesia takes great delight in pointing to its name as proof it is the true Church. The argument goes as follows: "What is the name of Christ's Church, as given in the Bible? It is the 'Church of Christ.' Our church is called the 'Church of Christ.' Therefore, ours is the Church Christ founded."

This reasoning is juvenile. Whether or not the exact words "Church of Christ" appear in the Bible is irrelevant, but since Iglesia makes it an issue, it is important to note that the phrase "Church of Christ," never once appears in the Bible. Not to mention all the others in history called church of Christ long before they came along. But even if the phrase "church of Christ" did appear in the Bible, it would not help Iglesia's argument. Before Felix Manalo started his church there were already churches which called themselves "the Church of Christ." Which came out of what is known as the Campbellite movement in the 1830's. They are not alone in this, there are several other Protestant denominations that call themselves Church of Christ and use exactly the same argument. They came before Iglesia so why aren't they the authentic church? Because they don’t want them to be!

The verse Iglesia most often quotes on this issue is Romans 16:16: "Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you " (Pasugo, November 1973, p. 6).

The exact phrase as found in the Bible is "churches of Christ"--plural, not singular. Paul is referring to a collection of local churches—specially a collection of local churches in Rome. He simply is not giving an organizational name here. Iglesia changes this to mean their church alone.

To get further "proof" of its name, Iglesia also cites from the Lamsa translation; (cited in Pasugo, April 1978) Acts 20:28: "Take heed therefore . . . to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood". The Lamsa translation is not based on the original language of Greek, the language in which the book of Acts and the NT were written, the phrase is "the Church of God" (ten ekklesian tou Theou) not "Church of Christ" (ten ekklesian tou Christou). Iglesia knows this, yet they purposely ignore this to mislead their members and others they proselytize.

Biblically there is not just one title that refers to the church, the church is called by many different names in scripture .Church of God (1 Cor. 1:2 and numerous other passages) Church of the living God (1 Tim. 3:15) kingdom of his dear Son (Col. 1:13) kingdom of Christ and of God (Eph. 5:5) Assembly of God (alternate translation of Church = assembly) general assembly and church of the firstborn (Heb. 12:23) Flock (Acts 20:28) Church (Acts 11:26 and many other passages) body (Eph. 1:23 and numerous other passages) body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27) kingdom of God (Col. 4:11 and many other passages) family of God, household of God, house of God (1 Tim. 3:15) The bride of Christ

What makes a church authentic is that they were founded by Christ. What one chooses to call themselves is irrelevant. Anyone can choose to call themselves anything they want, but proves nothing at all. The Bible never indicates that the Church will have one specific name. It is a matter of ownership not a title.

The doctrines upon which all Iglesia's other doctrines depend is its teaching that Christ's Church apostatized in the early centuries. Like Mormonism, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and other fringe groups, Iglesia asserts that the early Christian Church suffered a total apostasy. It believes in "the complete disappearance of the first-century Church of Christ and the emergence of the Catholic Church" (Pasugo, July-Aug. 1979, p. 8). This doctrine is essential because one can't take seriously Manalo's claim to have reintroduced the true Church if, in fact, the original true Church never died. You can't have a "restoration" without an apostasy.

The problem is that Jesus promised that his Church would not go into apostasy until the end of time. There is no church to be restored or rebuilt as Iglesia and others claim, since the church was never missing. He told Peter: "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it" (Matt. 16:18). Meaning it would not remove it nor hinder it's growth, work or people. If his Church had apostatized then the gates of hell would have prevailed against it, which makes Christ a liar, that is even uncomfortable for Iglesia despite their anti Christ stance.

The church is already made and continues to grow through history. No devil or man can stop or hinder it because Jesus is the architect, not man. While it is valid to claim that there needs to be reformation throughout the church's history, to restore a church from apostasy has quite a different meaning. If I had a dollar for everyone who claimed this calling I ‘d be rich! I’d love to gather all the people that claim this special ability and office into one room to hash it out. actually this will occur in the future at the white throne judgment certainly not the bema seat.

In other passages, Christ teaches the same truth. In Matthew 28:20 he said, "I am with you always even until the end of the world." And in John 14:16, 18 he said, "And I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you forever. . . . I will not leave you desolate." Christ promised that nothing would prevail against his Church, that he would be with it always, that the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the third person of the Holy Trinity would be with it always. How could Christ be with his Church always if, as Iglesia claims, his Church ceased to exist for 1800 years? How can a man do this. How can he be where 2 or 3 are gathered together he will be present. These are simple questions to be asked to any who deny the deity of Christ and the trinity.

The Bible does teach that there will be a great apostasy, or falling away from the Church not in its beginning. Paul prophesies: "to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion [Greek: apostasia] comes first" (2 Thess. 2:2-3), "Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons" (1 Tim. 4:1),

It does not say the early times but latter times and if one does enough research in this term they find it is tied in with Daniel's description of knowledge and traveling increasing, exactly what we have today so it did not happen in the beginning as restorationist's like Manalo claim.

Paul also writes "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own liking, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths" (2 Tim. 4:3-4).This is how Iglesia operates by. Setting up their own teachers that they claim are god ordained for people to learn from. If they are not from their church they are not from God. By falling away from the Church universal making themselves exclusive and denying the essential teachings that have been upheld from the beginning , members of Iglesia are committing precisely the kind of apostasy of which they accuse the Protestant and Catholic Church of.

No matter what they have to say about themselves if they do not have the biblical Christ it doesn’t matter how much success they have in numbers or what they name themselves they are not part of the true church.

In their pamphlet "If you want Christ to be your savior, then you should be in the true church of Christ" Under the sub title a faulty understanding "They realize that such faith is based on a faulty understanding of such passages in scripture, one of which is hereby quoted Jn.3:16 "People claim that the above phrase, whoever believe in him" is enough requirement for salvation. You need not join the church which Christ himself established…This type of rhetoric is monotonously strewn throughout their literature and outreaches. No apostle teaches to join a church to become part of Christ, Scripture says you must be born again into the spiritual church first. But their Interpretation of this is very much like Catholicism of which is repugnant to them.

Their thrust is to join the church which just so happens to be exclusively their own. They write outside the church of Christ people will be judged by God. this is the reason why we have been asking people who claim to be believers already to reconsider their position very carefully in light of biblical truth. Membership in the true church of Christ is essential to salvation, though again it is not the only condition. Among the many requirements, a member of the true church must obey Christ's teachings all the time Jn.8:31

What is the church ?

The first time we find the word church is in Mt.16:18 where Jesus says he will build his church upon the revelation the Father gave Peter which he openly confessed. It is called the church of God which he had purchased with his own blood. From this we can see the church began with Christ raising from the dead and ascending and sending the Holy Spirit to birth and bring together a new entity. The Greek word is ekklesia (which is used 114 times in the NT) which means a called out assembly (Ek = out of Kaleo= to call ) It is never used of a building or of the kingdom of God. the church is not he kingdom but included in it. The Church is s spiritual organism, invisible composing all believers world wide from the time of its inception on Pentecost until the taking away of the church at the rapture. The Holy Spirit gave it its birth Acts 2:33 and we become part by spirit baptism 1 Cor12:13 by being born again of the Spirit. No one joins the church unless they are joined to Christ first.

No one is told to join the church because it is an automatic placing of one in the body of which Christ is the head

Later when Paul was persecuting the church, Jesus said he was persecuting him. Because he was the owner of it, we are his body and his Spirit indwells those who he killed. By killing Christians he was fighting against Christ himself. The Church is called "the Church of God "which is at Corinth, which is a problem for Iglesia since they call it the church of Christ and he is not suppose to be God.1 Cor. 1:2 also 1 Cor. 10:32. Eph. 5:23 Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. V. 24 the church is subject to Christ, "Rom.16:16 calls them the Church’s of Christ. Rev.1:20 says Christ holds the seven golden lampstand's, the seven stars and the messengers (angels) of the seven churches in his hand showing his control. This would quote hard to accomplish being a human only.

Rev 2:23: "and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.

Jesus referred to those who were part of his church as "my sheep", you are the branches "I am the vine". All these relate to our connection to the Son who brings us to the Father and is the source of our eternal life. Christ said to follow him, that he was the way. Instead Iglesia has made a new found church the way, a poor substitute for the real thing.

Teachings...

Denying the deity of Christ

They teach Christ is only a man which had authority given to him using such scriptures Jn.8:40 and the numerous places Christ calls himself a man. Lk.24:36 where Jesus said to the mistaken disciples see a Spirit does not have flesh and bones so he is not a Spirit. He was correcting their wrong belief which proves he was not God (Also Hosea 11:9)

What they ignore is the context why they though the was a ghost, he just appeared in the room which no man can do. They argue against what we don’t believe. We do believe he was true man but he also was true God. Their argument is not with the church per se but the bible itself. Phil. 2 :5-11 solves all that challenges of his being subordinate. If one wants to look to Christ not being in this subordinate position the 2^nd coming should be clear enough in Rev.17:14 "These shall make war with the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them; for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings."

Deut.10:17 tells us that Yahweh is the LORD OF LORDS. Only if Christ IS Yahweh and the Father IS Yahweh do we have any consistency in scripture.

Undermining The Bibles authority and replacing it with mans

The INC organization constantly claims that the Bible is the sole source of their doctrines but they subtly undermine the Bible's reliability and ultimate authority. This is a common practice of organized heresies.

"...some of the verses of the Bible were wrongly translated." PASUGO, February 1973, p. 16.

"No, it is beyond man's power and intelligence to study and understand the truth, which is God's word (John 17:17), by himself, without the guidance of God's messenger." (PASUGO, November 1973, p., 19, 20.)

What they do is train people to hear the voice of their own shepherd instead of the true shepherd.

"A doctrine is not of God if it is different from what is written in the Holy Scriptures, or even if found written but is not the present truth it becomes vain before God if used as the basis for worshipping God." ( PASUGO, Jan. 1976, p. 12.)

It is common for authoritarian groups to undermine anything that might threaten their position as the ultimate source of truth in the, life of the member.

The INC organization teaches that Jesus is not the true God, nor is He God in bodily form. This does not make them different from other religions. Instead they become just one of the many religions to hold the view of denying the Deity of Jesus Christ.

"Revelation 12:9 reveals that Satan is the deceiver of the whole world. The belief that Jesus is God is worldwide. Coincidence?" (PASUGO, September/October 1979, p. 26)

The INC organization here implies that it is Satan that is deceiving the world into believing that Jesus is God. We have shown you facts that most of the world believes that Jesus is not the true God. What facts do the INC organization have to prove that the belief that Jesus is God in bodily form has been spread worldwide by Satan? In Satan's attempt to discredit Jesus he always gives Him less honor than He deserves, not.

The INC misquotes Dr. Charles C. Ryrie (A.B., Haverford College; T.M., TH.D, Dallas Theological Seminary; Ph.D., University Of Edinburgh). He served as professor of Systematic Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary for many years and is best known for his work on the Ryric Study Bible. We will now read what the INC organization said to make it appear that Dr. Ryrie agreed with them.

"In the annotations of his Ryrie Study Bible he had this to say about the phrase in John 1:1 'and the Word was with God."'

"In this verse the Word (Christ) is said to be with God (that is, in communion with and yet distinct from God) (p.1599)."

"Therefore, when Dr. Ryrie says, that the Word is distinct from God he is saying the Word is not the same, but rather separate or different from God." (PASUGO, May/June 1984, p. 14 & 15)

We will now see what Dr. Ryrie really has written in the annotations of his Ryrie Study Bible (page 1599):

"In this verse the Word (Christ) is said to be with God (i.e., in communion with and yet distinct from God) and to be God (i.e., identical in essence with God)."

The INC organization not only stopped Dr. Ryrie's quote in the middle of his statement, but they also placed a period after the word God which makes it appear that the statement stops there! This deliberate act of misquoting completely changes what Dr. Ryrie said. The INC organization claims that Dr. Ryrie says the Word (Christ) is different from God. That is not what Dr. Ryrie said! Dr. Ryrie said that in John 1:1 Christ is identical in essence with God and to be God.(Taken from the one book written on their movement The Only True church by Robert Eliff p.79-82)

There are many an organization that uses dishonest methods to prove their doctrines, what does that say about the organization and its doctrines? Is the INC doctrine that Jesus is not God in bodily form is so weak that they change the words of those they quote? In the same manner as the JW's they vainly attempt to explain away passages of the Bible that clearly teach that Jesus is in fact God in a human body. It’s easy to convince their own members when no one will look further than their own publication. Since their members do not read the Bible on their own, nor are they encouraged to pursue their own studies.e

"The true church is determined and can be singled out from the false, by evaluating her doctrines... Preachers of the true church do not explain away the passages of the Bible, they merely articulate on what is written... False preachers do the contrary they obscure what the bible teaches by their own preaching .(Pasugo nov.p19 1973)

Following in the footsteps of other organized heresies, the INC organization has used Colossians 1:15 to try to prove that Jesus was a created being. In actuality, this passage clearly demonstrates that Jesus is the Creator! Let's study what they have said and then compare it to what the Bible says.

"Colossians 1:15 states very clearly, Christ is 'the firstborn of every creature,' and is therefore not the Creator."(PASUGO, January/February 1980, p. 37.)

'Apostle Paul clearly taught that our Lord Jesus Christ is man. He is different from God. He is not God, neither is He God-Man. Rather, He is a man mediating between God and men."(GOD'S MESSAGE / July - September 1994)

"The scriptures do not teach that Christ is the creator of all things." (PASUGO, March/April 1982, p. 26.)

Really! Col.1:15 certainly does as well as Jn.1:3 and many other passages. The real problem is that they do not read their bibles unless they are inside the Church or a study with an instructor

John 1:2-3: " He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through through Him, and without Him nothing was made without Him nothing was made that was made." This does not exclude e Father and the Spirit. Just as it says in Gen.1, in the beginning God created, therefore if Christ created then Christ is God. How they avoid this is hard to understand, yet avoid it they do. Like the many other anti-deity cults they must jump through numerous hoops to prove this is not true

Col. 1:16-19: " For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,' the fullness of what? Col.2:9 says of deity." What makes God -God was pleasantly and completely in Christ.

Savior

They agree that mans basic problem is sin and they agree that Christ's death is the only solution to the problem. but they teach the only way to appropriate the benefits of Christ's death is through the Church and its messenger, so they are indirectly denying salvation is by Christ's atonement on the cross obtained through repentance and faith.

Isa.19:20: "And he shall send them a Savior." We find in Isa. 63:8 it states of God "so he became their Savior." When we come to the New Testament we find who that Savior is.

Lk.2:11: "For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord." Notice he says the Savior is born, God who is savior, meaning the Son of God came in the flesh. Emmanuel God with us. Titus 2:13 Jesus is called our great God and savior. (Titus 3:6; 2 Tim.1:10) "The Lord Jesus Christ our Savior." 1 Tim.4:10, 2 Pt.1:1 "Of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. "In the OT it is clear that God alone is Savoir.( Isa.41:3,11; 45:15, 49:26, Hos.13:4) their is no contradiction in the Scripture.

Passages such as Jn.17:3 That "this is eternal life that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." They claim the only true God is the father, not Christ. Despite the controversy over the only true God and Jesus being equal, there are other passages that clarify this. The same John also wrote 1 Jn.5:20: "And we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ this is the true God and eternal life." There is no father mentioned in this passage. If the Son is the true God then doesn’t that make him eternal, possessing eternal life as his personal nature? Of course it does, this is the clear teaching of scripture but this can’t be seen if one does not read the scripture. as they receive instruction only from their services, messengers and magazine. It works for the JW’s and it does for Iglesia.

Scriptures they camp on are Jn.10:29 and my father is Greater than all Jn.14:28, Showing that Christ cannot be God.

In Jn.13:16 it states "A servant is not greater than their master." If taken as they teach and one would use their own mind instead of what they were trained in, the flaw becomes evident. Since Jesus is less than the Father in nature this would mean the disciples are less in nature than Jesus who is to them only a man. But this verse is speaking of position not nature. This is found by the meaning of the word greater and in the Greek and in the logical context in those passage and the overall teaching of scripture. They then go to Jn.5:37 the father sent Jesus to prove he can’t be God if he is sent. Jn.20:21-22: "As the Father sent me, I also send you. Again if this were a statement of nature then when Jesus sends out the disciples who are different than himself they would be less in nature than him being not human. Once again all one has to do is show where Jesus was sent from (heaven) to solve this dilemma. Did Jesus as a man preexist in heaven, not likely that anyone would concede to this interpretation.

Jn.7:29: " I am from Him and He has sent me." John 16:16,17,:28 states, "I came forth from the Father and have come into the world, again I leave the world and go to the Father. "The Fathers location is in heaven.

John 6:38 Jesus states, "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of HIM WHO SENT ME."

Jn.6:33 "For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."

John 6:62: "What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? Jn. 8:23 "You are from beneath, I am from above, you are of this world, I am not of this world."Jn3:31 "He who comes from above is above all... 1 Cor.15:47: "the first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second man is the Lord from heaven. Here again is showing the origin of the Son coming from above. Who does Iglesia think came from heaven? For this they simply avoid an answer and go back to their stance Jesus is a man (only).

They consistently set up simple straw man arguments and knock them down with ease. They bring attention to the hard passages that take more time to explain and immediately dismiss them as they insert their meaning as plain and clear. Their teaching is basically to counter all of Christianity

Eph.4:6: "One Father in you all? Do they believe God is in someone? No.

Jer.23:6 calls a man the Lord our righteousness = In the NT we find Christ is our righteousness

Resurrection

Since God cannot die Jesus died therefore he is not God. But while we use the phrase God died what we mean is Christ the man did. God cannot die but gave up the body he lived in. They also claim who raised him Acts.2:32 God did Rom.6 the father did neglecting what Jesus said of himself Jn.2:19: "Destroy this temple and I will raise it up." v. 21 he was speaking of the temple of his body

Jn.10:17-18: "Therefore does my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father." It is inconsequential whether he received the instruction from the Father. He is involved in raising up himself in body, so for one to do this they must still be living as Spirit to accomplish this.

What of the clear statements that Christ said he is Lord of the Sabbath. Meaning he is the creator who rested on the 7th day. Why is it so crucial to know him and he to know us in Mt.7:21, does God want us to have a relationship with only a man or himself. Would God tell us to pray in a mans name or even a prophets no matter how great they were. Of course not, we invoke the name above all names in prayer, how could that be only a mans. Yes he is a man, but not only a man as he is deity as proven in the transfiguration.

Afterlife

They borrowed soul sleep from the 7th day Adventists where a person has no consciousness after death. This is directly traced to their influence Manalo had when he was trained. Not even in the early church did the false teachers came up with this one.

While they do teach the 2nd coming of Christ they do not teach any millennial reign on earth. It is these areas that there is little information on since no one leaves to tell about it except a few.

INC Who are they ?

When we think of prejudice we immediately image things about race or ethnic backgrounds. But there are other prejudices that are more harmful and that is of religion. Prejudice means to form an opinion before the facts are known, or to have a bias even to the point of dislike and the extreme of hatred. There is many groups who personify this under the banner of Christianity but none more extreme than the church known as Iglesia ni Cristo. They are all of these. What makes this church in my opinion diabolical is that they study tenaciously what we believe and completely disregard it to prove us wrong. There are many anti Trinitarians and anti grace churches that operate in seclusion which bring their message to individuals or to their church. Iglesia ni Christo is different, they are engaged in a aggressive public campaign with radio and TV to bring their heretical message to all. The are famous for debating Christians who are unable to stand up and defend scripture in that type of a format.

There are numerous books written to counter counterfeit groups. go to any bookstore and there are at last 6-10 on J W’s, Mormons and the differences can be readily apparent. But Iglesia has been growing with hardly a whisper from the apologist's and counter cult organizations. When researching this church I found next to nothing in numerous books on cults. I had to rely on my personal encounters, the materials I collected over the years and their TV programs .The reason little is found may be because their teachings are secretive. Not what they teach against, that is public, but what they teach their members is veiled in secrecy.

Igleslia Ni Cristo means Church Of Christ (in Philipino). We are not referring to the universal Church of Christ, as the body of Christ or the mainline Churches of Christ . This Particular Church was founded in 1914 by Felix Manalo in the Philippines, today they have expanded to at least 220 congregations in 67 countries outside the Philippines. In 1969 (over 30 years ago), this organization listed 2,415 congregations throughout the rest of the Philippines and in 1988 they reported 220 congregations outside the Philippines. In the Untied States INC has at least 77 congregations in 22 states with 30 congregations located in California alone. The INC organization has been acquiring regular broadcast time on radio and television stations in the United States. Here in Hawaii they have at least 4,000 members almost unanimously from the Filipino community.

When one tunes into their broadcast they will immediately see a single representative in an office setting, behind a desk with a bookshelf filled with books in the background. His speaking is very frank, dry and serious, he is point blank about what they call "the message." What is this message? To tear down the churches teaching of Christ being God and that he is not deity, that he is the Son not the father. The Father is almighty the Son is not. One better have their bible open and know what they believe when listening to them.

No one can deny their passion for what they believe is the truth. Nor that they can be nice people. Unfortunately they ignore the whole history of the Church in the zealous rebuttals against Catholicism. Nothing is out of reach of their researchers to demean and belittle. Some of the greatest scholars in languages and history are ignored or misrepresented as they present what they believe is correct. I suspect that many know better in what they teach.

They choose and train excellent orators to present their rebuttal against what the Church has believed since its inception. Everyone is trained in the same manner and all speak with similar gestures and content . Why change what has worked for over 50 years. In the same fashion as J W’s but with more intensity they challenge everyone to what they were taught as wrong. Their intention is to take people out from Catholic and Protestant wing of the church to join theirs which they claim is the only true church on earth.

In fact the majority of the Iglesia's members are ex-Catholics. The Philippines is a very religious country and probably the only dominantly Catholic nation in the Far East, with over eighty percent of its population belonging to the Church. Since this is its largest potential source of converts, Iglesia implements anti-Catholic scare tactics which cannot stand up to biblical scrutiny to support their own doctrines. The Iglesia sells its doctrines to the people not by proving they are right but only having to prove the Catholic Church's teachings are wrong. This is not a hard task to do since Protestants have been equally successful in doing this as well.

The Churches teaching which is under Iglesia's fire is the divinity of Jesus Christ. Like the Jehovah's Witnesses, Iglesia claims that Jesus Christ is not God but a created being. They also deny there is any Trinity using the same cliche' others do, you can't find the word "Trinity" in the Bible. Neither is the Island of the Philippines mentioned in the bible, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

The INC organization keeps the number of its members a secret. Operation Mobilization, however, determined that in 1974 the membership of Iglesia Ni Cristo in the Philippines was 1,400,000. We can get a fairly accurate idea of how many INC members there 'are in the Philippines today from some facts reported in a leading Filipino newspaper. The article, entitled "The Iglesia Factor In Manila's Poll", reported that 200,000 voters out of Manila's 1 million voters were INC members. Using this 20% figure it is possible to determine the approximate number of INC members living in the Metro Manila area (Metro Manila consists of Manila and the 12 cities that surround it). The population of Metro Manila easily exceeds 10 million, so we can assume there are at least 2 million adult INC members in Metro Manila alone. Considering all these factors, the worldwide membership of the INC organization could be 3 million or more, making it one of the largest un-exposed cult in the world!( estimates range as high as 6 million)

There are more people from the Philippines living In the United States than from any other Asian country. A recent study on Asian population stated that by 1990 the total number of Filipinos living in the United States will exceed 1.4 million. People living in a culture other than their own will normally seek other people from their home country. This makes the INC organization, a church with many ties to the Philippines, attractive to Filipinos living in the United States. Its strength is its nationalism.

How has such a large religious organization escaped the searchlight of research groups that investigate new religious organizations and organized heresies? Only a few books and tracts about the INC organization have been written but they are rarely seen outside the Philippines. Most of these research groups are located in the United States and in other countries thousands of miles from the Philippines. A major reason why INC has not received proper exposure is that their printed materials are difficult to obtain and very few people leave the church to speak out. The lack of "official" INC information has made research hard to come by.

The INC published the first issue of their official magazine, ''Pasugo'', in 1939. This monthly magazine was originally published entirely in Phillipino. This magazine is especially important as it is the only written source of spiritual instruction that INC encourages it's members to study. This is the primary source of indoctrination promoting their own unique claims of truth. During the time of World War 11 the ''Pasugo'' was no longer printed but publication resumed again in 1951.

In recent years, INC has been printing their magazine bi-monthly with about half of the articles in English. This magazine is now available in the U.S. in an all English version.

Short history of Felix Manalo

The founder of the Iglesia Ni Cristo organization was Felix Manalo. Born On May 10, 1886 to a Catholic family, near Manila in the Philippines. His name Felix (happy) was chosen from the roster of saints from that month. was baptized a Catholic, His mother a devout Roman Catholic who had Felix attend Catechism class where he learned the fundamentals of the Roman Catholic faith. When he became a teenager he went on a spiritual quest through five known denominations. He became a follower of the ''Colorum'' spiriting sect in the Philippines which was secretive and had pilgrimages to a sacred mountain. he left the Church as a teenager In 1904 after witnessing a debate between a Roman catholic priest and a Protestant minister on the use of images, he joined the Methodist Episcopalian Church, attended their Seminary and became a pastor. Iglesia puts it this way" He found that the arguments of the Protestant minister' seemed nearer to the biblical truth, than the pointless rambling of the priest." (GOD'S MESSAGE 1 July - September 1994)

His studies were interrupted by the death of his mother and when he returned he then began studying at the Presbyterian Bible School until he came upon the Christian Mission group (Church of Christ) where he studied at the manila college of the bible for four years. From this group he learned to respect immersion in baptism and received the Idea of restoring the NT Church. He became a local evangelist in a band called the "Society for the propagation of the Gospel." He also at this time married Tomasa Sereneo of Paco manila. In 1911 Felix Manalo attended a 7^th day meeting to debate Mr.L.V. Finster a missionary of the 7^th day Adventist church on their stance that Christians are under the law. He lost the debate with Him and admitted Finster was right and soon he left the Christian Mission group converting to Seventh Day Adventism. This became his last association with any establish church while he was in Adventism he began to think of starting his own church. During this time his wife died and he then eloped with Honorata de Gusman a 7^th day Adventist. In 1913. He was disciplines for his elopement and there were hints of moral indiscretion.

While there is not any proof of the accusations Iglesia tells it this way "Brother Felix remained with the Adventists until the time that he began to question their observance of the Sabbath during Saturdays. When the Adventists failed to respond to his queries, he resigned as minister and member in 1913." (GOD'S MESSAGE July - September 1994)

After leaving the Seventh Day Adventists, Felix Manalo claimed to experience a call like the ancient prophets.Manalo then closed himself in with his bible for three days and when he emerged He gave his shoe business to a friend took his wife and began his mission to start a new church."His exhaustive study of religions and the Bible led him to the conclusion that none of the existing churches then remained faithful with the biblical truth. Therefore, none of them is the true religion. His meditations assured him that God was commissioning him to preach the true Church of Christ." (GOD'S MESSAGE 1 July - September 1994)Like many others before him he has fallen into the trap since none are perfect by his own judgment he is to restore the true church.

In 1913 he started his own group which he incorporated in 1914 having 12 converts.

Iglesia likens their leader to Moses or the apostle Paul "Brother Felix joined other churches and religious beliefs in preparation for his God-given mission. In this respect, he was akin to Moses (who lived first as an Egyptian prince and as a wanderer in the wilderness before he led the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt) and Apostle Paul (who was formerly a member of the Jewish sect and a persecutor of Christians before being sent to evangelize the Gentiles). Brother Felix wandered into different religions always examining, in the light of scriptural truth, their various doctrines and religious practices." (GOD'S MESSAGE 1 July - September 1994 p.10)

According to reports and what is left out of the history from Iglesia's own printings is, In 1919 Manalo left the Philippines wanting to learn more about religion leaving his church in the hands of his assistant ministers. He went to all places America to study with Protestants, the very ones Iglesia would later declare to be apostates. It is for this reason the do not disclose this information. In California he reportedly enrolled in the Pacific School of Religion. This is five years after being called by God to be his "last messenger" Manalo goes to the U.S. to learn from apostates? What could God's messenger learn from a group that, according to Iglesia, had departed from the true faith? During that year he was away they enjoyed growth until a schism was led by Teogilo Ora, one of its pioneer ministers. (at the time there were 3,000 members). The Church in Bulcan had only 15 of the 80 members remain.

Manalo did not believe himself to be God's final messenger back in 1914. He didn't use the last messenger doctrine until 1922. There seems to be several instances that could have influenced him on this. The official date for the registration of his church was July 27 1914 which was the date of the beginning of the first world war. They were first known as Iglesia ni Kristo with an "K" now changed to C. It was later after his apocalyptic influence from 7^th day Adventism and all the education that he gave prophetic significance to this date. He claimed that it closed the period of the 6^th seal as related to Rev.7.another factor of his adopting the messenger doctrine is in response to a schism in the Iglesia movement. Manalo appears to have developed the messenger doctrine in an effort to maintain and re-assert his leadership in the church thereby having control.

When Manalo decided to start his own church he didn't begin with all current Iglesia doctrines and practices held. In the early days Manalo did not attack the deity of Christ. It was after 1930 he began to emphatically deny his pre-existence, as his being the beginning in purpose with God.

The war years hindered their growth it was afterwards within a 30 year period that they went from a small congregation to almost 40,000 which became possibly the 2^nd largest in the Philippines with only the Methodist as larger. There strength was strong indigenous character with a national speaking language. It appealed to the Filipino people, even with a strong anti Catholic stance attracted those that were looking outside that religion. By 1948 their membership was 60,000 in 1960 it rose up to 200,000. Today they are larger than any other Protestant denomination in the Philippines with only one larger the Roman church. Their foreign mission work began in the US Honolulu Hawaii on July 27 1968 by 1974 they had acquired 21 congregations in the US. This is the same date that Manalo used for his application of prophecy to himself.

The reason Iglesia is not better known, despite its numbers among their culture, is that the vast majority of Iglesia's members are Filipino which includes those in the U.S.. The only exceptions are very few non-Filipinos who have married into the Iglesia. Although they have focused as of late to outside their own people.

He returned to the Philippines after only one year. As Felix continued his leadership of the organization, the INC grew rapidly and spread throughout the Philippines. Felix Manalo again later traveled to the United States in 1938. During this trip he hoped to raise enough funds to build a main chapel for his church in Manila. As they grew they have accumulated much wealth.

According to the INC he was unable to fulfill this desire because of bad health which forced him to return to the Philippines. Felix Manalo died on April 12, 1963. Many thought the church would splinter with his leadership gone but he was prepared for this. More than 10 years earlier, on January 28, 1953, his son Erano Manalo (KA Erdy) was selected to be his successor as Executive Minister and leader of INC, He is the 5^th child born to Felix and Honorata. It was Erano who wrote a 64 page booklet attacking the Deity of Christ called Christ-God; investigated—false. So began their systematic campaign of attacking the Church.

What has become bewildering is that they attack by writing in their publications and public speaking but when someone challenges their beliefs they are labeled as attackers of God's (new) Church.