Statement from Former Iglesia ni Cristo Member

Source Freedom Of Mind

by Marlowe Ranola

I'm a former Iglesia ni Cristo member. I was expelled from the church because of my question about the three angels written in Rev. 14:6-11. I chose to be expelled rather than remain with them because they want me to write a declaration that I am wrong, which is not so hard to do if I am wrong. My question to the doctrine of the three angels are this:

THE THREE ANGELS APOSTLE PAUL(Rev. 14:6-7)-

1) According to history, apostle Paul died about 68 AD., and the book of Revelation was written about 96 AD. My question is how can a dead man fulfill a prophecy? Although a few scholars date the book of Revelation about 68 or 69 AD, this could never change the burden of proof. The New Hunger's Bible Dict., p. 1078, states: "REVELATION, BOOK OF THE -Occasion and Date. Quite a few scholars date the book about A.D. 68 or 69 (Westcott, Lightfoot, Hort, and Salmon). The reasons for this, however are not convincing. The best date seems to be A.D. 95 or 96 (cf. Swete, Milligan, Moffatt, and Zand). This date accords with evidence from Iraneus, Clement of Alexandria, and Eusebius to the effect that the banishment to Patmos was in the later reign of Domitian, 81-96. This view is in agreement with the fact that the Domitian persecution, unlike the Neronic, was the result of the Christians' refusal to worship the emperors (cf. 1:9; 13:1-19,12)."

2) The book of Revelation is a book of prophecy (Rev. 22:18, NRSV). According to their book, Mga Leksiyong Ministeryal, p. 20: The Mission of Written Prophecy - "Written prophecy therefore, has a two-fold mission, one for the immediate present, and the other the remote future."

Because the book of Revelation is a book of prophecy, therefore, in the book of Revelation are things that must soon take place (Rev. 1:1, 19; 22:6).

Rev. 1:19(NIV) "Write therefore, what you have seen, what is now, and what will take place later."

What you have seen - "I turned round to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned *I saw seven golden lampstands*" (Rev. 1:12,Ibid.)

What is now in the seven churches - See Rev. 1:20; 2:1-29; 3:1-22.

What will take place - "The angel said to me. 'These words are trustworty and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, *sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place*" (Rev. 22:6, Ibid.)

Therefore, no prophecy in the book of Revelation fulfilled before 96 AD, the time it was written.

MARTIN LUTHER (Rev. 14:8; 18:1-3)-

To their book, Isang Pagbubunyag sa Iglesia ni Cristo, pp. 157-160, 163-164, clearly said there that there are two kinds of angels in nature, Spirit in nature (Heb. 1:13-14), and Man in nature (Rev. 1:20). Angel in nature of man has a two fold mission, one to proclaim the good news (2 Cor. 5:20), and the other is to govern (1 Pet. 2:13-14). The very question is, if Martin Luther is the second angel (Rev. 14:8), clearly the belief of Martin Luther is right, and his followers have salvation. If that so, how could they claim that they are the only true church? Isn't that a contradiction? See http://www.examineiglesianicristo.com/intro03.html, which reads:

"3. "God reveals the meaning of his words to his messengers by means of the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-22), and the proof that the messengers were taught by the Holy Spirit is that *their teachings never contradict one another*." (Church Of Christ: 25 Years In The West, page 24.)

FELIX MANALO (Rev. 14:9; 18:4-5)-

If the teaching of the first and second angel are wrong, surely the teaching of the third angel is also wrong. There are two bases why they said that the prophecy to the third angel was fulfilled to Bro. Felix Manalo:

1) Felix Manalo proclaimed that the sign of the cross practice by the Catholics is the sign of the cross mentioned in Rev. 14.9. See God's Message, Int. Ed., Jan. 99, p. 8. If this is the basis, we can also say that the third angel is fulfilled to Erano Manalo, because he proclaimed who is the beast mention in Rev. 14:9. See Doktrina Ikatlong Taon, Blg. 21. Therefore this is not a good reason to prove to be the third angel.

2) Felix Manalo proclaimed that the Catholic church is the apostatize church. Do you think this is a good proof that must be show to claim he is the third angel? Is he the only one who teach that the Catholic church is the apostatize church? What is the reason why did he need to prove that the Catholic church is the apostatize church? Here inhttp://www.catholic.com/answers/tracts/iglesia.htm:

Did Christ's Church Apostatize?

The doctrines upon which all Iglesia's other doctrines depend is its teaching that the 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's to have reintroduced the true Church if, in fact, the original true Church never died. *You can't have a "restoration" without an apostasy*.