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I had to try to explain The Way to a colleague today. It was tough to get through. I do not need to explain it to any readers here; you lived it too. But, in the interest of our Lord Jesus, I would share some of my reflections on what I have learned since becoming DFAC in 1988.

I was impacted by the story in the PFAL class of the "man of God" saying to the cripple in India "now lift your arm," and he was healed. From that point on I have been very interested in the healing ministry. So, even while in the Corps, I met BG Leonard and got his book, "The Gifts of the Spirit," knowing that he was the one Wierwille had learned from. I recall Mrs. Wierwille talking about how great Leonard's instruction was and how she was able to excel in the healing ministry upon taking his class.

I believe the story of the cripple's healing was true and saw numerous other genuine miracles of grace in the Way.(Ephesians 1:6a) Yes, even with all the error, God's grace proved to be that great.

About 1991, three years after leaving the Way, I heard the story of an ex-Way lady with advanced MS who had been healed by Leonard's use of spiritual gifts over the phone. I ended up taking his course on the Gifts of the Spirit in 1992; which was very good.

Then in 1993-94 I moved to Brownsville, TX and took Leonard's full year long Bible Course.

BTW, Wierwille did indeed plagiarize Leonard. Even friends like Johnny Jump-Up, Maggie Muggins, and Henry Baloko were original to BG Leonard.

Also, it was also from Leonard that Wierwille took "The word of God is the will of God," and the statement, "Jesus Christ is not God," of which I will say more about in a moment.

So, Leonard was the source of a lot of material. He was 83 when I was with him in Brownsville in '93 and struggling with his short term memory. Leonard loved the Lord Jesus and exalted Christ to the heavens in his preaching. I loved him for it.

It seems to me that Wierwille set out to do what he did, to be the big man to a group of faithful followers. He very cleverly took great teaching from others and changed it just slightly enough that it still rang true, but enough so that by buying into it you were of necessity separated out from all other Christians, in effect giving you nowhere else to go for 'truth.'

The greatest switch up of all in this deal was "Jesus Christ is not God."

BG Leonard was not anti-Trinitarian. Wierwille was.

Often in his preaching and teaching, BG Leonard sounded as if he believed God became man. Wierwille took "JC is not God" further, enough so to effectively build a wall around us, using our love for God against us that it would be 'devilish' to go to a church believed in the Trinity. That's the fence that served Wierwille so well, keeping us bound to him as "the man of God, the Teacher."

In Way culture we often mockingly Trinitarians for believing in "three gods," which is another fallacy.

Bear with me, especially if you still feel fenced in away from other Christians because of their doctrine of the Trinity. But in classical Trinitarian theology it is commonly explained that there is one God who expresses himself in three persons, and (this is where it gets good) in the Trinity "the Father is 'not' the Son, and the Son is 'not' the Father." That is very near to what BG Leonard was saying, and a bit further removed, but so was Wierwille. 

(If you have no interest in theology, skip the next four paragraphs)

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Though I am now a Trinitarian and a pastor, I could almost agree with the statement "Jesus Christ is not God," but with a common at the end, not an exclamation point; because I would have to add, "yet he was." Jesus had his own will, but he had two natures, human and divine. BG Leonard pointed out in his teaching that sometimes Jesus spoke as a man and sometimes as God. When Jesus died in the flesh, God did not die; so in that sense yes, Jesus is not God. But there is more to consider.

In prophetic speech, Jesus was referenced as "the arm of the Lord (Yahweh)." If your arm was cut off would you die? Not necessarily; but a part of you would. It would hurt like hell, and personally, it would be a great loss; it would cost you dearly.

Though much about God is beyond our ability to comprehend, of necessity, he must be morally perfect, without flaw. IF Jesus were only a creation of God, independent and separate from him, then it was grossly immoral of God to require him to go to the cross for us to pay our debt. If I made one of my sons empty his bank account to pay my neighbor's debt, you would think me barbaric, and rightly so.

But if God did join himself to Mary's ovum and became fully man (having to learn, grow, bathe...), while still being fully God in the Spirit, then even though Jesus retained his free will in the necessary separation that exists between flesh and spirit, when Jesus died it did cost God dearly and he is indeed "God our Savior." (the phrase shows up 5X in Timothy and Titus) Can you conceive of any reason God could not join himself to humanity? He designed the reproductive system. And by doing sinking himself into humanity and going to the cross he accomplished his greatest purpose, proving to all that at the core of his being he is altogether love: real love, sacrificial love.

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This kind of very slight turn of a phrase--that minor twist--was gold to Wierwille. He made himself sound like a genius and convinced us that it was all original to him.

He did his little twist with everything Christian: faith, grace, peace, and even love (boy howdy). All very slightly distorted, yet true enough to sell well.

Another example: Wierwille turned the nine gifts of the Spirit into the nine manifestations. Manifestations only exist when in evidence, but Wierwille (borrowing from Leonard's definition) defined them as abilities. That is nonsensical. But a spiritual gift is yours always whether in manifestation or not. 1 Corinthians 12 lists manifestations, indeed, and by doing so clearly infers the existence of the nine gifts, which are truly, by definition, God-given abilities.

The apostle Paul said, "Knowledge puffs up." That was me in the Way. A wee little man with what I was sure was superior knowledge and a greater commitment than other idol worshipping Christians. God forgive me.

"Knowledge is power," another BG Leonard phrase, and is a great thing but it is also intoxicating, the knowing of something others do not, and it is always toxic if it is wrong, even if only slightly so.

"But charity (divine sacrificial love) edifies."

No one has "the accurate knowledge of the truth" on earth, and no one ever will. But, when I was lost and alone, living in insecurity and spiritual darkness, a young man from the Way International opened his Bible to Romans 10:9 and 10 and asked me if I believed God raised Jesus from the dead. I looked in my heart and was surprised to discover that I did. Had I not been asked I would not have known what the Lord had already put in me. I said it with my mouth, "Jesus, you're my Lord!" and was dramatically saved. It was like turning to finally see a friend who had always been with me through everything and has patiently been waiting to be acknowledged. My depression fled away in an instant. I was as free as any man who ever lived.

It was not the accuracy of the Word that saved me. Jesus did; by two verses. I now know that "the Word," is not a letter or a truth that can be taught or dug up; the Truth is a person. Jesus is yet as good and faithful a friend as he has ever been.

I wrote a short Bible study called "The Hub." If you will e-mail me your snail-mail address it would be an honor to send you a free copy. Metaphorically, Christ is the hub and all other Bible topics are like spokes; they're only important if kept connected to him and serving his purpose. I think you'd enjoy it.

Thank you for reading, and for a lot of great years together.

Stephen   s307kingsley@yahoo.com