—By Father DavidJanuary 1979NRS9DO 759

—Will You Doubt, Disobey, Deny & Betray?

1. JESUS HELP US! GIVE US WISDOM, LORD! I don't like to spend so much time on the negative but when you people can't seem to get it through your thick skulls that the situation's gotten pretty negative, then I have to! When people are getting so shakey in their faith & obedience to the Lord & so far off the beam & out of tune that they want to "stay & fight it out," then they themselves become a poor security risk, you can't trust them or what they're going to do.

2. THEY BECOME ALMOST BACKSLIDDEN OR TEMPTED TO BACKSLIDE! Then you can't trust them anymore than the Lord could trust Judas, except to betray you to save their own necks! That's what you're talking about, that's what you really mean when you say, "Well, Dad‚ we wouldn't really betray you, even though we would tell the government that we no longer belong & we don't like the Letters either, & we don't believe in them, & we don't follow you anymore. Of course, Dad, that wouldn't really be the truth, but just to save the situation"—meaning your own necks!

3. THERE'S JUST SOMETHING ABOUT FALSE DENIAL THAT THE LORD DOESN'T LIKE! Even our attempt in Malta didn't work, although we were being technically honest: We were no longer "those people‚" officially, legally, by that name. But the Lord knew that in our own hearts we knew we were the people they were talking about, regardless of our name change! So in a way, although it was the truth, it was also a deceit!

4. IN A WAY IT WAS A LIE‚ & APPARENTLY GOD DIDN'T LIKE IT, BECAUSE IT DIDN'T WORK, Maybe it would have worked better if we'd been honest in the beginning & said so. At least, maybe we'd have left sooner & saved money & a lot of hassles! At least we would have known we had to leave & not wasted time & money dilly-dallying around there another month—trying to get extensions!

5. I DON'T BLAME [THE APOSTLE] PETER FOR WHAT HE DID. I think I might have done the same thing under the same circumstances. When the heat was on & they were out to crucify us, I'd sure have been tempted to deny that I was one of them, if I got caught! But did he get away with it?—It didn't do him much good! She still knew he was one of them.—And what kind of a testimony was it? What do you think the little maid thought about him after that?: "You're not only one of those bad people, but you're a bad liar in the bargain!" How about it? (Lk.22:54-62.)

6. AND WHAT DO YOU THINK THE LORD THOUGHT ABOUT IT? Obviously he sympathised with poor Peter & He was sorry for him, but do you think He approved of it?—Of his lying & denying Him thrice?—When Peter had just said: "I'm ready to go with Thee to prison & death!" (Lk.22:34.) He'd just gotten through saying‚ "Though all men be offended in Thee, yet will I never be offended!" (Mt.26:22.) "Peter," Jesus said, "before the cock crows, thou shalt deny Me thrice!"

7. HOW DO YOU THINK IT MADE THE LORD FEEL? He was willing to die for them, but at that moment Peter was too weak to suffer for the Lord, he was afraid to stand up for the Truth, so he denied the Lord & God's Word, Jesus! Jesus Himself had said before, "If you deny Me before men, I will also deny you before My Father which is in Heaven!" (Mt.10:33)—& Peter was denying Him!

8. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE SYSTEM IS GOING TO THINK IF YOU DENY ME?—If you say, "Well, we don't agree with all his Letters either." When you just start looking that direction & start doubting that much, I want to warn you ... —you're in trouble!—Don't ever forget that I told you that.—And when we're accused to our faces in the presence of witnesses that we are "those people," I don't think we're going to get away with it with either God or man, to deny it!

9. ... Once they catch us‚ & face to face they really know—and we wouldn't be caught if they didn't know, right?—We'd have a hard time denying it! They wouldn't be questioning us if they didn't have a pretty good reason to believe it‚ huh? ...

10. [In one situation] you put it in a way that you convinced them you're no longer part of that organisation, & you aren't!—Ha!—And probably the Lord spared you to spare me‚ because we would have been in a pretty tough spot without you. I was sure praying that the Lord would let you go, & He did, thank God! But I don't think, when it comes to the showdown & swearing under oath in court before witnesses & things like that, that we're going to get away with denying we belong to either one or the other‚ or that we're "those people"!

11. THE LORD HIMSELF SAID HE'S GOING TO LET US BE CALLED BEFORE COURTS & JUDGES & magistrates & kings & princes & so on (Mt.10:18), as a witness against them. So which way did the Lord figure the case was going to go?—Against you! But when it goes against you in their court, brother, in His court it'll go against them! He'll judge them according to how they judge you.

12. IF ... YOU GET CAUGHT, or by the design & will of God He lets you get caught, then when it comes to facing courts & judges & sworn testimonies & things like that, I don't think we're going to get away with denying Him before man, much less before God!—Like denying me or the Letters or the Family!

13. ... Jesus said [But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you‚ Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come.] (Mt.10:23.) But when the time comes, as it has already for some, I don't see how anybody can think that they are going to be able to deny us.

14. I THINK SOME OF THIS ANTI-CULTS PERSECUTION REALLY SHOOK YOU UP!—The lion roared with more lyin'‚ "seeking whom he may devour" (1Pe.5:8.), & it just about scared you out of your wits! When the showdown comes, & we're face to face with it, I don't think the Lord or the people would expect us to deny it, it wouldn't be a good witness for us to deny it before the law.

15. OF COURSE, THERE'S AN EXCEPTION TO EVERY RULE, IF THERE'S SOME VERY GOOD REASON. I know we were denying it [in several situations] to save me as much as yourselves, because we were in a pretty tough spot. But it didn't do much good ... it wasn't a court scene‚ with only one man swearing you out. Besides, I was at stake, & if they had gotten you‚ they might have gotten me too! So thank God you did! There's a time & an exception for every rule.

16. BUT FOR SOME OF YOU IN YOUR PROMINENT POSITIONS WITH YOUR WIDELY- PUBLICIZED RECORD & HISTORY WITH THE FAMILY, to have gotten to such a spiritual state that you think you're going to be able to now deny us to the System after all this, & try to be convincing that you have left the Family like Judas did, do you really think the System is going to believe you?

17. DO YOU THINK THEY EVEN BELIEVED JUDAS? They knew he was trying to buy his freedom, they knew he was trying to save his own neck! Did it do him any good? He couldn't even live with his conscience! He went out & committed suicide because he knew he'd betrayed the Lord‚ that he was guilty of His death! (Mt.27:3–5.)

18. —AND DO YOU THINK THE SYSTEM WOULD LET YOU STOP WITH A MERE DENIAL? What does the System usually do to make you prove your denial?—What do most backsliders do, even Jones' own son when he was nailed down by the System?—What follows denial?—Betrayal! The System demands it!:

19. "IF YOU ARE TRULY DENYING HIM, PROVE IT!—BETRAY HIM!" That's the only convincing proof you can give. Otherwise, it could be just words to save your own neck. But if they can get you to the point where you'll not only deny us or me or Jesus, the only way they'll believe it is if you betray us! Because, if you betray us, then you have really denied us‚ right? If you betray the Lord, then you have really denied Him!

20. THE FEAR OF MAN & THE DECEITFULNESS OF RICHES BRINGS DOUBT, & DOUBT IS EVENTUALLY FOLLOWED BY DISOBEDIENCE, & DISOBEDIENCE BY DENIAL, & DENIAL BY BETRAYAL! There is no compromise. There is no such thing as backsliding only a little way. There is no such thing as standing still. You're either progressing, improving, growing & getting better & stronger, or you're backsliding & getting worse! How many times do I have to say that?

21. AND IT LOOKS TO ME LIKE SOME OF YOU ARE NOW UNDER HEAVY ATTACK BY THE ENEMY BEING TEMPTED TO BACKSLIDE! I'm sure you are giving God all kinds of good, plausible excuses, that you're denying us to even maybe try to save the Family or save your property or your children or even your own necks. They're all pretty valuable!

22. SO IN SOME CASES MAYBE IT WOULD BE A GOOD THING TO DO: QUIT THE FAMILY, DENY US, claim that you're backsliders or defectors & have left us. But then you'd have to deny me & the Letters & say you didn't believe the Letters anymore, & didn't believe in the Family anymore.—And what kind of witness is that? What kind of a testimony would that be? Huh? Do you think the Lord would let you get away with it?—Much less even man!

23. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO CONVINCE THE AUTHORITIES OF THAT?—Not any more than some of those Jonestown people were able to convince the authorities that they had nothing to do with it or that they had no part in it, they'd already quit. Well, they're arresting them & putting them in court & grilling & grueling them anyway—the authorities don't believe it!

24. THEY FIGURE THEY JUST GOT OUT TO SAVE THEIR OWN NECKS, and they were just as responsible & just as guilty as the rest of them, but they merely quit because they saw the ship was sinking. Even if you got away with it like Judas did, you wouldn't be able to live with your own conscience‚ knowing you are a liar, denier & betrayer of both us & the Lord!

25. SO IF YOU WANT TO STAY IN THERE & FIGHT & GO DOWN WITH THE VISIBLE SHIP AFTER ALL THIS WARNING, THEN THAT'S YOUR FUNERAL! All the Prophet can do is warn the people of the facts & the Truth & the Word of God. But if they don't obey, they don't heed the warning, they don't repent, they don't do something about it, then that's not the Prophet's fault.

26. I'VE DELIVERED MY SOUL & I HAVE WASHED MY HANDS & I AM FREE FROM YOUR BLOOD or whatever happens to you, because I have warned you (Eze.3:17-19).—And this is your last warning, as far as I'm concerned. If you don't heed this, then you no longer believe me & in me nor the Letters nor the Family—if you don't believe this warning!

27. YOU WILL FEAR, DOUBT, DISOBEY, DENY & BETRAY US!—And may God have mercy on your soul!—Remember‚ I warned you! Some of you think, "Oh, I'll never go that far!—Just a little."—But there's no halfway‚ no in between, no compromise!—Jesus said, "You're either for Me or against Me!" (Lk.11:23.)

28. YOU CAN'T BE ON THE FENCE—it's too uncomfortable & dangerous & impossible! You'll fall for one or the other—either for Jesus or the System! "Ye cannot serve two masters!" (Mt.6:24.) Who will yours be?—Jesus or the Devilish System? Will you doubt, disobey, deny & betray for the System?—Or believe, obey, witness & die for the Lord?—Which will you do?—Which are you doing?—God help you!