Shincheonji Perspective

Shincheonji Believes that the “Faithful and Wise” servant is Lee Manhee.

The Faithful and Wise servant is a prophecy about Lee Manhee, as Lee Manhee is the one who overcomes, the Promised Pastor who gives food at the proper time, and the one who overcomes.

Shincheonji believes that their leader, Lee Manhee, is the “faithful and wise servant”, and the fulfillment of Matthew 24:45-47, and that Lee Manhee is the “Promised Pastor who comes in Jesus’s name”, since he is the one who received the hidden manna and has the name only Jesus knows (Revelation 2:17).

Shincheonji teaches that Lee Manhee cannot betray God. They interpret the ‘wicked servant’ in the parable as representing the leaders of the Tabernacle Temple, who they claim betrayed God and Jesus in 1967 by usurping King Immanuel (Yu Senior) from power.

Christian Response

A new “Promised Pastor?”

First, within the start of the chapter of Matthew 24, we can see Jesus make a plain and straight-forward warning about people who are coming on his behalf, and claim a “messianic” role of any kind, whether direct or indirect.

In Matthew 24:5, Jesus plainly warns us:

For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. (NIV)

Even though SCJ does not directly call Lee Manhee the “Messiah”, he does have a messianic role in the sense that if one does not believe in the testimony of Lee Manhee, then you are rejecting God.

The Physical Fulfillment of Revelation, page 10 – “This means that no one can come to Jesus, gain eternal life, or enter heaven except through the one who overcomes (Rv10).”

The Creation of Heaven & Earth, Page 399: “To attain salvation, believers must recognize the true identities of the chosen people who are destroyed due to betrayal, the enemies of God who bring about this destruction, and the promised pastor who emerges as the savior.”

In Lee Manhee’s own books, it is clear that without the testimony of Lee Manhee, one cannot come to God and Jesus.

This, by the definition of a Messiah, fits the description of what Jesus clearly warned us about in both Matthew 24:5, and Matthew 24:23-24.

While an SCJ member may try to say that we are supposed to “spiritually perceive” the second coming of Jesus Christ and his “Promised Pastor of the New Testament”, the direct text of the Bible does not support this claim, and instead, refutes the very idea.

Context of the Parables

There are a few doctrinal issues with the above interpretation.

When reading the parable of the Faithful and Wise Servant, you need to take into account the context of the parable. From Matthew 24:40 – Matthew 25, we can see that there is a “setup” of the dichotomy between people who faithfully followed Jesus, and those who weren’t.

Not going beyond what the Biblical text is saying, we can see this dichotomy being setup below:

Using the context of the parable of the Faithful and Wise Servant, and the surrounding verses, it is pretty obvious that the same servant has the potential to “betray” God.

Taking a closer look at the verse, we can see the following:

Matthew 24:45-51:

45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

We can also rewrite the same parable as the following logical condition:

If the faithful servant is wise and faithful, then the LORD will put him in charge of all of his possessions.

If the faithful servant is wicked, then the servant will be cut into pieces and be assigned to the place with hypocrites.

This also aligns with the rest of the parables, where Jesus is reiterating the importance of being ready for his return, and to always be diligent with your faith in Christ.

If Shincheonji were to be faithful with the context of the verses, then they should also admit that their leader, Lee Manhee, can also betray, but there are some difficulties with that interpretation for the Shincheonji member.

Can Lee Manhee Betray?

If Lee Manhee did “betray”, that would also mean that the “New Heavens and New Earth” also betrayed, since he is the leader who God, Jesus, and the Angels exclusively work through, and is the water fountain and the one who provides food at the proper time. 

This means that the “water fountain” or the servant who gives the food at the proper time is poisoned, and that the rest of the followers are also poisoned and corrupt as well.

Since salvation is found through the one who overcomes, this would also mean that salvation for all of mankind would be lost.

The Physical Fulfillment of Revelation, page 10 – “This means that no one can come to Jesus, gain eternal life, or enter heaven except through the one who overcomes (Rv10).”

The Physical Fulfillment of Revelation, page 11 – “Today, Revelation is being fulfilled, and salvation can only be obtained through the promised one who overcomes.”

Unfortunately, Shincheonji paints themselves into a corner with the Faithful and wise servant parable.

Either they admit that there is a chance that their leader can betray; something that would be more biblical, and thus all of humanity would be doomed since the “one who overcomes” defected, or they can continue adding to what the Bible says about the Faithful and Wise Servant, and continue putting the commentary of Lee Manhee over what the Bible is actually saying.

Potential Shincheonji Response – God wouldn’t allow Lee Manhee to betray

There are a few doctrinal issues with the above statement:

Limiting God’s Sovereignty:

Claiming that God would not allow Lee Manhee to betray implies a limitation on God’s sovereignty and human free will. This stance suggests that God’s plans are dependent on a single individual’s unwavering faithfulness, which is not supported by biblical theology.

We have to recall that salvation comes through God alone, and that he receives the glory, not a man. 

Romans 9:16 – 16 It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.

Isaiah 43:11 – I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.

Jonah 2:9 – But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”

For SCJ to suggest that God wouldn’t allow Lee Manhee to betray, because God needs Lee Manhee to carry out the work of salvation, contradicts the Bible.

Circular Reasoning

Circular Reasoning: The argument that God wouldn’t allow Lee Manhee to betray because he is the “promised pastor” is circular. It assumes the conclusion (Lee Manhee’s infallibility) in its premise.

The issue is that Shincheonji now admits that Lee Manhee is no longer infallible, and can make mistakes, despite him being in direct touch with God, Jesus, and the Angels. There are plenty of examples of Lee Manhee changing and updating the “fulfillment” in the past, present, and future, throughout the Little Bird’s assessment of Shincheonji.

What does the parable mean, then?

So, then what does the parable mean? It’s for those who are in leadership position to be careful about what God has gave them, including their stewardship. If the leader is not faithful, then God will punish him. We can see how God also holds different people of different “duties” if you must to higher standards, as seen with James 3:1 for example.