Let us distinguish the truth from the lies using the Bible
Although people are sinners and have been continually hostile toward God, he loved us sinners so much that he gave us his son (Jn 3:16). The son of God bore the cross on our behalf (Jn 1:29) and now he lives within us (Gal 2:20). Jesus taught us to love our enemies (Mt 5:44) and to forgive others their sins (Mt 6:14-15). People who believe these words of Jesus and put them into practice are true believers. Those who refuse to act upon Jesus’ words are not believers at all. Anyone who strays from Jesus’ teachings is acting according to his or her own personal thoughts, opinions, and judgments.
The contents of the 66 books of the Bible can be divided into history, teaching, prophecy, and fulfillment.
Biblical history can be divided into several time periods that lead up to today. The period of the judges followed the time of Adam, Noah, Moses (Exodus), and Joshua (the entry into the land of Canaan). The period of the judges was followed by the period of the kings and prophets, the period of the gospel of heaven, during which the Old Testament was fulfilled, and the period of the epistles written by Jesus’ apostles. Now is the time the New Testament is being fulfilled – the period of Revelation. Now is the time of judgment when the good grain is separated from the weeds. Those who believe the word are separated from those who do not believe it (Mt 13:24-30, 36-43, Mt 25).
It is not by human standards that groups of people are judged as being orthodox or heretical (cult members). The only standard that should distinguish orthodoxy from heresy is the Bible. Present-day churches are not orthodox; they are merely holding onto their traditions. The Jewish people (the Pharisees and teachers of the law) stigmatized Jesus as a cult leader and ended up killing him (1Th 2:15; Mt 23:29-35). Was Jesus, who preached the revealed word of God (Jn 14:10, 24), a true cult leader? The Jewish people judged Jesus and killed him using their own standards and opinions, which deviated from the Bible (Ac 7:51-54; Mt 27). Pontius Pilate, on the other, realized that Jesus was innocent (Mt 27:24).
Although Shinchonji (SCJ) proclaims only the revealed word of God, a certain person has been calling SCJ a cult. At one point I gave that person 40 questions about the Bible and asked him to answer them and explain. Now, although it has been a few years, I have not received any response. Yet, he is still claiming that SCJ is a cult. Just as Jesus, his disciples, and the prophets of old were denounced as heretics, SCJ is also being denounced as a cult. The New Testament indicates that, at the end of the age, all churches will belong to demons, and the pastors and congregation members of those churches will not even realize that they have united with Satan (Rev 17, 18, and Rev 13). In the midst of such a situation, only believers that are sealed with the word and that belong to the promised twelve tribes of the New Testament will become God’s kingdom and priests (Rev 7, Rev 14). Let us speak of what is written in the Bible and answer only according to the Bible. Have those who persecuted SCJ ever willingly accepted our demand for a serious conversation?
I, as chairman of Shincheonji, Church of Jesus, do not even own one square meter of property, and neither does my wife or my son. Why would God’s children, who will eventually receive God’s inheritance, be greedy about such trivial possessions? I would never do anything to jeopardize God’s greater reward. I only act according to the word of God. I teach people about justice and fairness, but I also put these principles into practice. How can someone like this be a cult leader? People who do not stand God’s word – people who tell lies and persecute others – they are the real cult leaders. What does the Bible say about those who will receive salvation in this generation? Those who escape the group of the persecutors to join the group that is being persecuted are the ones who flee from Satan and receive salvation. Let us not forsake the truth.
If you are living in Korea the chances are that you have recently been faced with a ton of ”information” – if one could call it that – online after the huge joint Shinchonji and Mannam Volunteer Association event called “The World Peace Festival”. There is plenty that could be said about those who are so eagerly smearing the names of both groups with false accusations and insults but let me just say this, regarding the facts – Shinchonji is the Church of Jesus Christ, founded on the truth of the Bible, and no other teaching.
We do not think that Man Hee Lee is Jesus
We do not think he is the Messiah
We are Christians – we study ONLY the Bible.
Will he live forever? We believe that God’s word promises us this, but his humble response to the question is: “God willing” …
If you are one of the above mentioned people who have been unfortunate enough to be bombarded by the hatred others aim towards Shinchonji, you might have also come across this very moving testimony of a person who happens to be both a member of Shinchonji Church and Mannam Volunteer Association. This is a section of what he had to say to those who accused SCJ Christians of being cowards for not openly proclaiming the name of their faith to everyone they meet.
Ask yourself what century we are living in where people can still hurl such narrow-minded statements around (“cult” or “sect”) and discriminate to this degree.
Walk a day in these shoes… I dare you. Truth is truth, nothing can destroy it… and God will see to it that truth will be made known across the earth. Shinchonji’s doors will remain open to all who ever care to hear answers from those who are part of the church. Thank you for reading this blog.
“Please….
Go around Korea and talk to Koreans about Shinchonji, not for a day, not for a week, but for a month or more. Tell them you want to know about Shinchonji, that you have friends in this church and are really interested in learning, see their reactions.
Say the word out loud in restaurants and on the subway, say it to your kids teachers and see the reaction you get. Let people yell at you and call you a cult member, let them spit on you and hurl insults at you, your family and friends, let them spread lies about you and your lived ones, and don’t do anything to defend yourself, because if you do, it will be taken as a sign of aggression and thrust in the news.
Live as a Shinchonji member here in Korea for a time, and then you can have the right to ask me why I’m not open about my faith.
Watch your friends get fired from their jobs, and threatened to be kicked out of the country. Go to service and watch as they scream cult in your face and just smile and walk by, because if you don’t, then you are just proving that you are as violent as they say you are.
Try visiting a friends church and be asked what church you belong to, only to be asked to leave (not in a nice way) because you belong to Shinconji, when all you wanted to do was be with a friend in their service, not evangelize anyone.
Try having your family read the evil lies on the Internet and call you a murderer, and a cult member and cut all ties from you, while warning the rest of your family to stay away from you.
Live like this in this Country for the past 8 years, and then you can ask me why I’m not open about my faith the moment I meet someone new…”
Religion and faith have always been the themes of controversy and the causes of heated discussions that create disharmony even to this day. We do not know by whose name the Crusades waged war, but it has not yet ended. Nonetheless, the number of congregation members in large churches of the West is decreasing. Contrary to these events, one religious organization introduced itself by hosting a seminar last Saturday evening at the Ernst Reuter. A reporter from North Berlin had the opportunity for an exclusive interview with the spiritual leader of this organization, Pastor Man Hee Lee. This is the content regarding the religious organization called Shinchonji.
We often used to the word “cult” to label other religious organizations. The word “cult“ is originally a neutral term referring to sects that cause controversy due to differences in philosophical, religious, or political teachings and customs. This concept is used in particular to label religious organizations that have been separated from their own religious parent. This organization, Shinchonji, has been undermined by rumors and hearsay from other churches, branded with a negative image as if it were a danger to previously-established religious organizations, churches and societies. The word “cult“, in modern religious studies and sociology, is not a term used to point out special groups or new religious organizations; it is characterized as a neutral party in addition to being used to describe a “new religious movement.“ When viewed in such context, this place called Shinchonji does not match the title of “cult.”
*Who is Chairman Lee?
Chairman Man Hee Lee of Shinchonji was born in today’s Republic of Korea in 1931, in a poor farming household of the countryside. During that time, not many people believed in the religion of Christianity. In spite of this, he was baptized by a foreign Baptist missionary from Seoul. In 1984, he established “Shinchonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony,“ based on his various personal experiences.
* What does this organization do?
The first thing that caught my eye in Ernst Reuter Hall was how full it was of people, even to the last seat. There were several photojournalists and people of different broadcasting stations bustling about for this big occasion. The event, introduced as the “Open Bible Seminar”, began with a charismatic presider who ignited excitement with praise songs. Then, Chairman Man Hee Lee approached the pulpit, lecturing close to three hours in Korean regarding religious organizations and denominations. The careful preparation of translation equipment accommodated several ongoing translations in multiple languages throughout the night.
[Exclusive Interview]
North Berlin Newspaper Company had an exclusive interview, conducted through simultaneous translations between a Korean broadcast station associate and Mr. Man Hee Lee’s answers in Korean. Here is the summary of the interview that lasted about two hours.
Newspaper: Why is it a new church and what change is there in faith?
Chairman Lee: I testify to the Book of Revelation, to what I have seen and heard in its regard.
Newspaper: What you have seen and heard?
Chairman Lee: Yes, as everyone knows, the Book of Revelation is a revelation given in vision, and is recorded with many parables. Today, we are finally able to fully understand Revelation. I testify to what I have seen, heard, and with what I was commanded according to the command in Revelation chapter 10. This testimony is not a prophecy, but the reality of the fulfillment of the prophecies. Only through these words of testimony about the fulfillment of Revelation can people see its reality and know the true God and Jesus, understand all the events and the meaning of Revelation and receive salvation.
Newspaper: For me, as well?
Chairman Lee: One must eat the food at the proper time to receive salvation.
Newspaper: What purpose do you have for Germany?
Chairman Lee: My purpose is for all the believers who believe in the New Testament of the Bible to know through this lecture that the prophecies have been fulfilled. The seed of the gospel of the heavens came from Europe and reached all the way to the ends of the earth in the east, and it has been fulfilled there as promised.
Newspaper: What events will take place when the Book of Revelation is fulfilled?
Chairman Lee: Revelation, which is a book of God, has opened and has been fulfilled. Come and confirm this for yourself! And if it is true, it means heaven is already here. Then you must repent and believe it. Then you will be reborn and will become the people of God.
Newspaper: What should I confirm?
Chairman Lee: Look around you. Wherever you look there are violence, terror, misfortune, and crises. In Revelation it says, “I saw seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets… Revelation is fulfilled when the seventh angel sounds his trumpet.“
Newspaper: Then what trumpet number are we in?
Chairman Lee: This is the seventh trumpet.
Newspaper: Teacher Lee, what do you personally desire?
Chairman Lee: Receive the Revealed Word and be thankful to God. The end of religion is the time of the harvest. The “war“ that takes place at the end of age is a spiritual war, fought with religious authorities. Only the One Who Overcomes has the food for eternal life and the authority to judge. Only the One who Overcomes can rule over all nations.
Newspaper: Teacher Lee, thank you for the conversation you shared and for the Revealed Word.
- Reporter: Professor Dirk Laudahn -
Mr. Man Hee Lee is the leader and the founder of approximately 300 seminary schools throughout the world. About 85,000 students have graduated since the establishment of the seminary schools which are free to attend. These seminary schools instruct with the Bible as the standard. To further elaborate, they teach the unraveling of the Book of Revelation. Revelation is the last book of the Bible and is also referred to as the Mystery of Revelation, the Book of Vision of John, and the Book of Vision. This book is a book of comfort for the holy churches. There are 22 chapters in Revelation, all of which are recordings of the content of revelation Apostle John received on the Island of Patmos.
Currently, there is a Shinchonji church in Berlin with approximately 50 congregation members, managed with the offerings from their members. 10,000 people in Korea received this seminar through the Internet and television.
