I was Googling up Danny Layne to show a person his picture only to find out there was no picture for him in Google Images. Google indexes my posts about 3 minutes after I make them public so there will be a picture of Layne in Google Images shortly.
Danny Layne is the apostle (chief elder) of the Church of God Restoration movement. He was raised in the Church of God Anderson movement and several years after he was converted he left that movement and associated with the Church of God Guthrie movement. Church of God Guthrie is a minority group that dissolved fellowship with Church of God Anderson around 1910 to 1915.
After being with the Church of God Guthrie group Ron Walters (Chilliwack, BC) and Layne (Ontario, California) withdrew their congregations and became what is known as the Church of God Restoration. The Restoration has 2 congregations in Canada, 5 or 6 in the United States, 4 in Mexico, 1 or 2 in Germany, and a number of mission stations in other countries.
I have known Layne for over 25 years and met him shortly after he had been saved and was not yet preaching. He is a gifted organizer, has above average preaching ability, and is an all around very personable person.
There are a lot of rumors that have been circulated about Layne and the Restoration which for the most part are just not true. These have been mostly started by people who have been put out or left the Restoration group and have become bitter, or from groups that the Restoration has proselytized members from.
No group is perfect and the Restoration is no exception. While I don’t agree with all of their doctrines and many of the things the leadership has done, I have found when I checked out the other side of most of the rumors that they just were not true.
I make it a point to stand up from Layne and the Restoration when I hear rumors that are not true. At the same time I am clear in pointing out what I feel like are the groups errors.
Having been with the Guthrie and Restoration groups for around 23 years I am to some degree a produce of that environment.
Danny I love you and am praying for you!
Danny Layne — Don’t You Think He Has A Beautiful Beard!
December 26th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
This post brings back memories …
To the days when neither Bob Mutch, Danny Layne, not Mike Atnip were fighting against their beards every day with a razor. When I quit shaving my beard out of conviction, you told me that you had considered letting yours grow, and Danny had (when you asked his advice) told you that it would not be a sin, but advised against it since “some brothers in the South would be offended.” Remember that? (Probably not …)
Well, about 18 years passed, and I met Danny in Ohio after not having seen him for about 15 years. I said to him, “Well, I thought maybe the COGR had won some old German Baptist, and here it was Danny Layne with a beard.”
Danny just chuckled, and said, “The Church of God is changing.”
Anyways, I am with you in that some of the stories (lies) that people circulate about the COGR are more disgusting than the real errors of the group. That reminds me of what one popular Conservative Mennonite preacher told me once, about 20 years ago, about what some of his people were saying against Charity Christian Fellowship. He told me that whenever he heard someone unjustly slam Charity, he would tell them, “The reason we talk bad about them, is that they are what we should be.”
Well, I think the same applies to the COGR and some of the slander that floats around about them. No, I dont think they are perfect (I obviously have some serious disagreement with them on a few issues), but they are doing and living in a way that a lot of other churches should be.
Mike
December 28th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Hi Mike,
Yes I clearly remember that conversation. I when ahead and grew a bread anyway and it was suggest that I shave it off and I did. Also when I first started wearing a hat 15 years ago it was suggest that I put that off also. Since then Layne got a head and grew his beard and many have followed his example.
I am not going to be as generous with the R as you are as they are bigoted and sectarian toward other believer that will not join their movement and confess that the R movement has the only congregations in the world that have a lampstand. Also I have been around them long enough (~24 years) to learn that many of their members are not living as high as they profess.
The group as a whole is also loose with the truth. They excuse carnality in their own members but are quick to condemn the lacks and faults of others. Their practice of hiding from prospective members their teaching of the one true visible church, their anti-doctor non-medical teaching, and their teaching of seperation for pre-conversation adulterous marriages comes very close to deceit.
Also their practice of claiming that the body of Christ and Christ himself can’t be separated has lead them to the verge of idol worship. Their praise for Christ body (the Restoration) is really nothing more than self praise. Well I could go on and on but just re-read my 16 objections and you will see where I stand.
Lots of loving Christians but not some nice a system nor leadership.
Christian love and prayers,
Bob.
January 12th, 2010 at 2:44 am
I’ve been a part of the group now called the restoration since it’s beginning in Chilliwack. In fact I started the Gospel Trumpet in my home. I have written many tracts and booklets, mostly all negative, I loved the Lord but was in error for many years.
To my shame I say that with all of my scriptural knowledge I never really saw the beast forming. The angel had to grab me by the hand and pull me out. In the year 2000 many of us got spit out of the beast we created. I was devastated when I realized how far we had fallen. I realized it was not a man or ideology that was all to blame, there was something wrong in me or I would not have so easily fallen prey to error.
The Restoration today is nothing like what it started out as, although the seeds of deception were already there in the beginning. The whole foundation was off to start with.
I have noticed that those who lean toward a Mennonite or outward dress type of religion tend to give much more charity to others that have a similar golden calf. And yet will be quick to condemn groups who look and worship differently or don’t subscribe to their list of rules.
Jesus was the opposite in his discerning and condemnation, He condemned the pharisees who thought they had the one true “standard” and were God’s chosen few. In the book of Acts we don’t find anything resembling a “Conservative Mennonite” or COGR religion unless it was the judaizers or pharisees. The followers of Jesus who loved him the most and were busy winning the world more closely resembled the “Baptist” and “Pentecostal” groups of today.
To call Danny Layne an Apostle is to betray an ignorance of the definition. What an insult to those who were! There are no real “ministers” of any kind in that group. You can’t be God’s man and man’s man at the same time. God will use them just as he used Baalam to bless his children, but that just means they will be judged that much more severely.
And yes, there are some very rotten things that are most definitely true hidden behind these white-washed fronts. It’s not all just slander. You will not hear the worst of it broadcast because those who have been the most affected have generally had more grace and maturity or just wanted nothing more to do with church ever again.
When I think back to when we were still in there I can’t help picturing a group of little children in a sandbox playing games, thinking we are the big firemen and telling ourselves how much better understanding of the truth of fire fighting we have than those out in the worldly fire stations. Or an ugly deformed abusive woman who either beats her poor little children to keep them obedient to her or sits in front of her fogged mirror telling herself how beautiful she is.
A picture of Danny on anyone’s wall reminds me of the followers of William Branham who still do that with their prophet. At best it is gross ignorance. I would also suggest that a picture of “Jesus” on our walls is not in the realm of possibility. It is not Jesus. It is immature to want to see some fleshly likeness when even the apostles who knew him “after the flesh” did not know him that way any more after their baptism of fire at Pentecost.
The beard could only be beautiful to someone in need of a vision correction.
Ed
January 12th, 2010 at 10:25 am
Hi Ed,
Thanks for you comments. I made some changes in the I Love Jesus post. I also changed the titles of all the pictures to “A Person Depicting Jesus”. I will try to find time to go over your other points and perhaps respond later.
Christian love and prayers,
Bob.
January 12th, 2010 at 1:47 pm
Hi Ed,
I will try to make further comments on your post later. I have taken the following statement and changed it into a question and answered at Bob There Was Some Thing Wrong With You.
>>>I realized it was not a man or ideology that was all to blame, there was something wrong in me or I would not have so easily fallen prey to error.
Thanks!
Bob.
January 14th, 2010 at 11:31 pm
Hi Ed,
I am just getting around to finishing answering the rest of your above post.
>>>I have noticed that those who lean toward a Mennonite or outward dress type of religion tend to give much more charity to others that have a similar golden calf.
With the help of the Lord I try to give charity where charity is due. While I am very clear about the errors I see in the Restoration I am also charible toward them. With the help of the Lord I think I am more balanced in that area than you are. You are far to judgmental and I would fear to be you on the judgment day because God has promised to judge you like you judge others. I have feeling that you are going to need a lot of mercy on that day and you should consider working on an adjustment in that area.
>>>There are no real “ministers” of any kind in that group.
Amazing! None. You know them all that well that you can say there are no real ministers of any kind in the R.
>>>It’s not all just slander.
I agree.
>>>A picture of Danny on anyone’s wall reminds me of the followers of William Branham who still do that with their prophet. At best it is gross ignorance.
Ya, I never liked it and Susan and I never did it.
>>>The beard could only be beautiful to someone in need of a vision correction.
Sorry, I like beards. I know this one Amish man that had this long long thick beard. I should have taken a picture. He even let me run my fingers through it.
Thanks!
Bob.
January 15th, 2010 at 2:37 am
Charity or blindness? Paul said his gospel was “not of men,” and that “if he pleased men he would not be the servant of Christ.” It is an impossibility for someone to be a Restoration minister without being one of Danny’s men. You know that. Therefore they can not be true ministers of Christ. Read Galatians, it would be good for you.