“I was ready to adopt without question what these leaders offered me because I believed they were living faithful, mature, committed lives. So I read what they read. I went to the conferences and classes they recommended. I learned to disdain the “weaker believers” who didn’t swim in the same cultish stream we did. My former church leaders created a culture that celebrated a perpetual state of middle-school followerhood among members.”

and…

“I did grow spiritually – to the point where my husband and I realized that preserving our faith and family meant leaving the dysfunctional congregation and reclaiming our identities…”

PRECISELY! As I have said repeatedly the past 3 years– We left not because we were spiritually *weak* but beacuse we became spiritually *strong*! We are now strong enough to throw off the ubf entanglements.

“Despite all of this (spiritually abusive shepherding) and because of God’s faithfulness, I did grow spiritually – to the point where my husband and I realized that preserving our faith and family meant leaving the dysfunctional congregation and reclaiming our identities, parts of which had been put on hold during the years we belonged to the church.”

“I had to unlearn my mistrust of all those who weren’t in our former theological camp, and learn to trust the Holy Spirit to teach me. I left the church sadly deficient in understanding how to hear God’s voice, or value my own.”

I pray that our leaders may someday realize the stark veracity of the above statements, instead of continuing to caricature and demonize and explain away “you ingrates” for leaving UBF, and bragging to the world what you have done, and then bashing your former church.

These two paragraphs expound on some key topics:

“Leaders aren’t immune to the imitation bug. During a conversation with several staff members from a large local church, I noticed each one of them spoke with the same gee-whiz speech pattern and aw-shucks mannerisms of their head pastor. One of them joked about it, noting that like the Borg characters in Star Trek, resistance to the clone trend in their church culture was futile.”

Once I joked to my friend who left ubf that ubf Koreans seem like the Klingons on Star Trek. He said, No they’re not! Clearly they are like the Borg. ubf missionaries not only *allow* imitation, they *teach* imitation as the most important means of passing on the ubf heritage. This “imitate me” proof-text teaching is done verbally and silently by behavoir modification. This is *so* easy to see now that I am farther and father away from ubf people. It is SO hard to sit and listen to someone imitating RW’s voice….

“Admiring the words and lifestyle of a teacher, preacher or leader is one thing, but if we allow the words or an idealized image of a local or national Christian celeb to form both boundary and substance of our own faith experience, we will drift from the person God has called us to become. He doesn’t need a fleet of Nancy Leigh DeMoss wannabes to do his will. He just wants you.”

Yes, yes, and a thousand Amins!

http://www.christianitytoday.com/women/2014/january/god-doesnt-want-christian-clones.html?paging=off

The ubf directors never compare themselves to the ‘religious leaders’ (they say that nowadays the Orthodox and the Catholic priests are like the religous leaders) and they always call themselves ‘spiritual leaders’ as those spiritually right and ‘good shepherds’ whom none can ever critique. In ubf you might critique ‘the religious leaders’ but never ‘the spiritual leaders’ who are like Jesus and the prophets and the apostles.

The Scripture he is speaking about has a sense that we *must* be good citizens in regard to governments. But the ubf lecture says we *should* all be exemplary citizens, and attaches *must* to other kinds of authority not mentioned here.

The Scripture he is speaking about mentions 4 things to do in regard to governments (Romans 13:7) taxes, revenue, respect, honor. But the ubf lecture springboards in to paying bills (incorrect understanding of “revenue”), children obeying parents, etc.

“It contains many helpful truths on respect, honor and obedience to authority…”

“However, the fatal flaw of the book continues the pervasive view in the body of Christ of the improper power flow of authority from God to the leader and then to the people. It is paternalism all over again, failing to distinguish jurisdictions and the differing nature of authority as well as leaving out the proper bottom-up lawful appeals process in each governmental institution, with virtually all discernment left at the leadership and hierarchy level of governmental control.”

(Source: http://www.tntchurch.net/images/Image/user/undercover.pdf)

I heard this many times in Toledo ubf. We argued about that verse many times in our leader bible studies Saturday mornings. The official, published lectures from ubf generally talk about Romans 13 in terms of government (correctly so).

But as we can see in this 2011 Columbus ubf lecture on Romans 13, the ubf mindset blurs the lines here and hence we get the typical dual nature of ubf teachings (cleaned up for public use, implied for private verbal use).

The title of their lecture conveys the main thought: “First, submit to the authorities (1-7).”

Notice “governing” has been dropped quietly from the title, but most ubf sheep have been trained to listen only for the titles, because they are immediately asked after every lecture “What did you learn?” A ubf sheep quickly learns to answer instantly with one of the title phrases. So in this way the Romans 13 passage is tied to just “authorities” in the sheep’s mind, but publicly taught as “governing authorities”.

The subtle straying from “governing authority” to other kinds of authority is seen also in this lecture:

“Usually we are not happy to pay taxes, but eager to get bountiful tax returns. But as Christians we must be willing to pay taxes. We must pay all kinds of bills. As students, we must study hard and strive to get all A’s. At our working places, we must respect our bosses and be exemplary employees. Children must respect their parents and parents must educate their children with love and hope. We Christians should all be exemplary citizens in order to give glory to God. When we live as law-abiding, exemplary citizens, we can also enjoy the privilege to serve God freely.”

Notice that this ubf messenger takes the liberty to insert teaching about paying bills (creditor authority) and also parental authority. This is a clue to ubf sheep who understand that a ubf shepherd is supposed to be offering to ubf absolutely. It is a loud clue to ubf sheep that their shepherd is supposed to be a parent to them. Notice the addition of a professor’s authority and a boss’ authority at work. All these clue in the ubf sheep to the loud, implicit, subtle, manipluative ubf teaching to submit to your shepherd’s authority.

I do not see creditor/debtor authority in Romans 13. I do not see parent/child authority in Romans 13. I do not see boss/employee authority in Romans 13. I do not see professor/student authority in Romans 13. So why does this ubf lecturer (and many lecturers in ubf also) add those things in?

The “keep spiritual order, just obey” teaching, I believe comes from the way we in UBF have studied, taught, implied and applied certain passages: Abraham’s servant obeying Abraham, Noah cursed his disrespectful son Ham, Miriam stricken with leprosy when she questioned/challenged Moses’ authority, David not striking Saul because he was the Lord’s anointed, young men are to humble themselves (1 Pet 5), obey your leaders (Heb 13), which in the new NIV says have confidence and submit to your leaders, etc.

btw, I believe you know that I am not and have not in any way suggested or encouraged disobedience to church leaders or disrespecting them. I am just answering your question as to why UBF has promoted such an unhealthy unbiblical unquestioning obedience to leaders for 50 years, who then expect that anything short of unquestioning obedience to them is unacceptable and regarded as rebellion, childish, immature, disobedient, etc.

We can now more clearly see the ties here.

ubf teaching #6 “Spiritual order” relates to both “delegated authority” and “covering theology”, which likely explains the multiple ways “spiritual order” is taught in various chapters of ubf.

And when teaching #5 “A spirit of giving” is combined with #6 “Spiritual order”, we get a huge mess of unbiblical teachings that form unnecessary bonds around the lives of both young bible students and longtime leaders. (btw, teaching #5 “A spirit of giving” is why I cannot accept the “100/0” principle we recently discussed.)

Having spent 24 years in ubf, I can confirm that ubf bible teachers (including myself) have often used Romans 13 to justify their “spiritual order” teachings.

Perhaps to the Confucian mind such loyalty and obedience to leaders makes for a natural teaching from Romans 13. But bible students in ubf simply must start noticing this stuff and pointing it out. I was glad to hear some reports of this starting to happen last year– bible students in ubf have started correcting their Korean bible teachers.