CCOG 2020 Hindsight: 8 Years of Philadelphian Restoration
Has there been 8 years of Philadelphian restoration in the Continuing Church of God? What has happened over the past 8 years. What happened in 2020? Was there any interference from censorship by Vimeo or YouTube? What are the plans for the future? Has God poured out His Spirit in the last days consistent with the Apostle Peter’s sermon in Acts 2:17-18? Has the CCOG taken more seriously performing the teachings of Deuteronomy 31:10-12 and Matthew 28:19-20 than any …
Let's Talk About Christmas
The New Testament teaches that Christians are to "contend earnestly" (NKJV) or "fight hard" (NJB) for the faith given once for all of God's saintly people (Jude 3). Was Christmas part of the original faith? Did early Christians observe Jesus' birthday? Did the custom of gift giving come from the 'three wise men' or from pagan observances? Did Tertullian of Alexandria warn that Greco-Romans who professed Christianity were compromising with the heathen by participating in …
English Versions of the Bible and How Did We Get Them?
When did we get the New Testament in English? What was the involvement of John Wycliffe and William Tyndale? What about the Great Bible and the Geneva Bible? Is the best New Testament text the Traditional Text? Were the Apostles Paul, Peter, and John involved in putting together the New Testament? Were the canons passed on to Polycarp …
CCOG Q&A: OMG, Europe, German Identity, Vaccines, & More!
In this sermon, Dr. Thiel answers questions that have been submitted to the Church of God on many topics, such as: What about using expressions like gosh and OMG? Can Europe get together? Is mercy killing (euthanasia) allowable? What about stopping medical life support? Is it alright to become pregnant during this time?..
The Apostle Philip
The New Testament Canon From the Beginning
Were most of the New Testament books written to and from Asia Minor? Which ones? Do any scholars accept that the “Apostolic Canon of scripture first formed … in Asia Minor”? Was it the Church of God and not the Church of Rome? Is it possible that the Church of God in Asia Minor had the New Testament canon from the beginning? Is there any historical evidence suggesting that the Apostle John passed the knowledge of the canon to Polycarp of Smyrna? What about the Harris Fragments? …
Purgatory or Apocatastasis?
The Church of Rome teaches about a place of punishment that comes after death to believers who have not truly repented of "venial sins" or who have not paid the "temporal punishment" for sins called Purgatory. The Continuing Church of God, Eastern Orthodox Church, and most Protestants do not teach the purgatorial doctrine. Is the idea of the "great news of Purgatory," the "gospel of Purgatory" the true gospel of the kingdom? Does the Bible teach the idea of a place called purgatory or does it teach about a restoration (Greek: apokatastasis)? Does the Bible teach Purgatory? What about 1 Peter 3:19, 1 Peter 4:6, and 1 Corinthians 3:15? What did early Christians believe? …
Let's Talk About the New Testament
In this sermon Dr. Thiel goes over information related to the New Testament (NT) and answers questions many want to know. Are there really only 27 books of the NT? Was the New Testament predicted in the Old Testament? Was the New Testament intended to be published? Could the New Testament been canonized in the first century A.D.? When were the New Testament books written? What about the role of Mark, Peter, Paul, and John? Were the four gospels known …
Ecclesiastes 9-12: Joyful Living, Youth, Aging, and the Commandments
This sermon is the last in a series covering the entire Book of Ecclesiastes. In it, Dr. Thiel begins with chapter 9 and goes over all the verses until the end of the 12th and last chapter. Topics covered include living joyfully, money answering all, giving, youth, human work, the work of God, laziness, the day of small things, aspects of marriage, worry, seeking first the kingdom, …