Judaizers Tried to "Un-Alive" Me

This is a cautionary tale about the dangers of Judaizing, and a word of caution about over-emphasizing the Jewishness of Jesus.

In 2018, I popped into Chris Rosebrough’s church for a conference. I was politely sitting outside the sanctuary while the lady spoke from the pulpit, and got a text from a congregant, John. It was vague, but unsettling. I told Chris I needed to go home, 6.5 hours west. And that day significantly changed my perspective on both life and heresy.

THE STORY IS NUTS. BUCKLE UP.

On the drive, I was receiving a flurry of texts from John, who had cc’d a number on those messages I didn’t recognize. He was conversing back-and-forth with a man named Eugene and another, named “Kepha.” The messages seemed erratic and angry, and he seemed to have been having a mental breakdown.

A few weeks before, John had approached me with accusations about Paul Washer, which he had heard from an online personality named Servus Christi. He was insistent that I use Pulpit & Pen to launch attacks against Washer. He had also insisted that because P&P was a ministry of the church, that as a church member, he could dictate who I criticized.

I patiently explained to him the nature and character of this particular critic, who I’ve always called Servetus Diablos, and what I personally knew about the nature and character of Washer. But ever since that conversation, it seemed as though a switch was flipped.

By the time I had made it to the Watford City, ND - about an hour from home - John was settled down and the rage-texting had subsided. I stopped in for a regularly-scheduled home Bible study there, at a church member’s house, and just as we got started, I got a text.

I’m coming. I’m coming to [un-alive] you. I’m coming to [un-alive] your family. And you can’t stop me.

I immediately texted my wife and told her to get the kids into the car and leave right this second and head to a rendezvous spot detailed in our pre-existing “Emergency Action Plan” (something preppers often have that can be referenced in a crisis situation). As is often demonstrated in the plots of Hollywood movies, she did the typical womanly thing and packed bags first. By the time she got in the car, John was driving slowly by the house.

In her panic, with the children all in the vehicle, she had left her keys inside the house. And then she realized that she had locked the house. In a nightmare scenario, he drove by the house several times tauntingly, making gun gestures out the window with a maniacal grin. When Mandy called, I instructed her to go the armory in the back yard (which could be opened with a code), grab any long gun off the rack, all pre-loaded, and fire into anyone who tried to kick in the door until the weapon was empty.

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Meanwhile, I had already called my neighbor, the local Justice of the Peace, who headed to my house with a weapon. I had also called our church security team captain, who dispatched others to the home. Both the neighbor and the church team got there before the local police.

By the time I got to the house, the family had been evacuated to a secure and undisclosed location, and the security team was guarding the residence. I then went to the police station and showed them my texts. But according to the police, he “hadn’t committed any crimes yet” and wouldn’t arrest him. I instantly dialed the county prosecutor (a friend of mine) and put her on speaker, who conversed with the officer, cited the offense, and ordered him arrested as soon as possible.

THE CULT OF THE YELLOW DELI

Eventually, we were able to piece together what happened.

The man John was cc’ing on the texts, Eugene, was Elbert ‘Eugene’ Spriggs, Jr. He died in 2021, but was the founder of the Twelve Tribes Cult headquartered in Chattanooga (but with compounds and cell-groups spread throughout the United States). They also go by the names Vine Community, Northeast Kingdom Community, the Community Apostolic Order, and known by everyone else as The Cult of the Yellow Deli.

You might not have heard of them, but they were big, back in the day. Consider this mini-documentary from A Current Affair, only a few years ago.

They’re colloquially called “The Cult of the Yellow Deli” because they begin, in each community, by starting a deli by that name. They’re 24/7 diners, placed near university campuses. When college kids are done with a night of partying and looking for something to eat, it’s one of the few places open.

The problem is, many of those college kids disappear for months afterward, never to be seen again until they pop up at a different Yellow Deli location, serving sandwiches and essentially, lobotomized.

In the early 2000s, they got attention from state and federal authorities for conscripted labor (the spiritually lobotomized converts), child abuse, and some other cultish stuff. They fled Vermont, where the heat was on, and went to Chattanooga. Sadly, Facebook shows myriads of Christians flocking to the Yellow Deli to eat after church on Sunday, having no idea that it’s a front organization for a literal cult.

If you’re interested in cults, just Google them. I’ve also seen a ton of new material put out on YouTube since I first told this tale in 2019. They appear to becoming more active since Sprigg’s death.

The doctrine of the Cult of the Yellow Deli is pretty common Judaizing. Judaizing, if you’re unaware, is the heresy the Apostle Paul constantly struggled with in his ministry. Chiefly, it’s the teaching of Jewish Supremacy, that Jews have a unique attachment to God or can access unique blessings unavailable to Gentiles.

And this Jewish Supremacy takes two forms. The first (1) is taught to Gentiles, that in order to be obedient to God, they must become Jewish or take on Jewish customs, ceremonies, and rites. Often this is in the form of circumcision, dietary laws, or mandatory feast observance. The second (2) is taught to Jews, and demands that they maintain their Jewishness and continue to follow the Ceremonial Law given to Moses, which fundamentally contradicts the teachings of the New Testament. Often, but not always, this form of Judaizing teaches that Jews can be saved by obedience to Old Testament laws.

In short, Judaizing is the heresy of denying Sola Fide, or salvation by Faith Alone, and mixing with it the merit of obedience to the Mosaic law as a justifying ingredient.

IT WAS AN ACTUAL HIT

For one reason or another, Eugene Spriggs had me on his radar. I’m sure it was something I said, or had written, at Pulpit & Pen or Polemics Report. The crazy thing is, at that point, I had not yet gone on any anti-Judaizing tirades but I’m sure at some point there was an exposition of Galatians (or something) he didn’t like.

John, and his wife, had been sent to the cult compound from Tennessee to Colorado, where they spent a period of months or years.

Then, John showed up at our church, quoting our doctrine as a hard-core and committed believer in our Confession of Faith. He knew the doctrines. He affirmed the Confession. He knew the central figures in our religious circles; Washer, MacArthur, Sproul, et al. And he was a big, big fan of my work.

It was not uncommon, in those days, for someone to move to our area for the purpose of joining our church and I thought nothing of it. He seemed like a great fit.

There was one - and only one - warning sign that I picked up on at the time. On their children’s AWANA forms, under ‘dietary restrictions and food allergies,’ he had put “no pork products, jello, marshmallows, etc.”

It did make me raise an eyebrow, and I took him aside to ask, “Brother, is this because you keep the dietary code or is this a health thing?” He dismissed the former, and expressed the latter, alleging that they just had a reason to believe that pork was not healthy. And I didn’t agree, but I’m not the idea police and don’t want to tell a man what to eat. And so, I considered the answer the truth.

Looking back at my years in ministry, despite being known for having a discerning spirit, I believe that on at least three specific occasions, the devil slipped in men for the purpose of sabotage, and for whatever reason, God blinded me to their schemes. One was this man, another was Dave (who died alone in his bed weeks after dying, frozen solid in the cold, what part of him wasn’t eaten by own dogs), and another, whose name I don’t want to speak, lest I give God a reason not to deal with him. May the Lord have his way, and do what is just.

I believe that John had several tasks and contingencies given him by Spriggs. The first, was to see if he could talk me into using Pulpit & Pen’s influence to attack ministers like Paul Washer. And if that didn’t work, his next task was to “take me out” (as his text messages showed).

John was arrested, and resisted. He then tore up the jail facility and received an additional charge for that. According to the Justice of the Peace, John used the name Kepha, when in the jail and court room upon his initial arraignment.

And then I realized, there was no fourth person in the text string. The Kepha, being referred to by Spriggs, was John. Like many cults, new names are issued to break the former identity of the brainwashed convert. He was renamed Kepha (Aramaic, for “Rock”). Upon his arrest, his wife requested of the court (and received) a legal name change to Sunshine. Apparently, they were not permitted to share their cult names with us, until after their task was complete (probably because it would raise suspicion).

Ultimately, with only the threats that were unrealized, John got away with minimal charges. The Justice of the Peace, the neighbor who went to my home that night, wasn’t satisfied that his hands were tied. But he did the best he could, and gave him the longest restraining order in state history - 20 years - so that “the youngest Hall child will turn of age before she has to worry about you.”

He was slapped with a GPS monitoring bracelet that would alert the authorities if he got within 1.5 miles of my home or church.

At the restraining order hearing, John asked repeatedly if he could “continue” to speak with Servetus Diablos, and perhaps take him up on his offer to be interviewed on his YouTube webcast. The judge told him in no uncertain terms, “Absolutely not. And I will put you directly into prison if you speak his (my) name again.”

The judge also removed his right to own a firearm, which I’m fairly confident was not constitutional, but even my civil libertarian tendencies took a back seat to the safety of my family, and I wasn’t about to complain.

John didn’t know that I was out of town that day. I believe that when he went to my house, his plan was to un-alive me, or perhaps even better, to have me un-alive him. Doing so, which I would’ve done in a heartbeat had I been home and felt my family in jeopardy (and he knew that), would have certainly turned my life upside down.

Regarding Servetus Diablos, there was an incident with John that nobody understood, shortly before all this transpired. John had implemented church discipline on me with vague and bizarre claims (like, really bizarre). Following our polity, he was allowed to select two witnesses, and take them his accusations. They investigated his complaints and determined that they were not true, but even if they were true, wouldn’t be worthy of discipline. Upon a review of his text messages, it became clear that Murphy was coordinating the discipline attempt with Servetus Diablos, providing counsel on how to toss me out.

Diablos, or whatever you want to call him, is a dark, dark dude.

IT WASN’T ISOLATED

If you spend some time on Google and YouTube, you’ll see that there are countless similar testimonials from those who’ve tangled with the Cult of the Yellow Deli. They are truly dangerous.

But the most dangerous aspect of their cult, is not their threats of physical harm, but their insistence that the shed blood of Christ, received by faith, is not sufficient to save sinners. Judaizers opposed me, but long before, Judaizers and their “Super Apostles” opposed St. Paul and, on numerous occasions, did him worse than they did me.

In the current debate on X, about the Jewishness of Jesus, there’s an undercurrent of latent (or overt) Judaizing doctrines that are a dangerous poison in the bloodstream of the church (yeah, I used that phrase on purpose). Jesus was a Jew, we know that. He was of the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David. He was prophesied to Eve. But he is not only the Jewish Messiah. He is the Gentile Messiah. And he’s not only the Jewish Savior, but the Gentile Savior. He is not only the Son of David, or Son of Abraham, but the Son of Man…because he represents all men of the New Covenant.

I’ve learned to tolerate Dispensational eccentricities, including their unwarranted love for the Body Politic of the Israeli State, their conflation of Talmudic Judaism with Mosaic Judaism, and their references to Israel as “God’s Nation” and references to Jews as “God’s People.” I really do love everybody, and want to overlook imperfections in doctrine. My own church has this view, and I’m happy to overlook it because I love them and don’t have to sing Hillsong.

However, by the chest-thumping anti-anti-Semitic proclamations (which are warranted in some instances), the message is often sent unknowingly that Jews have an approximate blessing to God and special favor that is unavailable to Gentiles who believe in Jesus. And this is the heart of the Judaizing heresy.

We are, of course, adopted into Abraham as believers. But that doesn’t make us second-class children. We are, according to the Scriptures, “joint heirs” in the inheritance and share an equal part in Abraham’s blessings. And anything short of that, can lead to damnable heresy that condemns souls and places them under the curse of the law.

This ordeal with John, made me seriously reevaluate the real-world consequences of ancient heresies that have come alive again in the modern day. We joked, at the time, that before someone joins the church they have to eat a piece of bacon, just to prove they aren’t a secret Judaizer.

But let me tell you, I was only half joking.

While the other side is worried about secret Neo-Nazis, I’m very worried about secret Judaizers, which unlike bigotry, will flat-out send the adherent to hell. And yes, I’m saying that it’s worse.

Over the years, I received more death threats for my polemical work than I can recall. Five times I requested police protection, and three times I received it. Twice the church security team slept over at my house, while I was under threats. And three times, the FBI was involved, and once told me to shelter in place because a credible threat was coming from a nearby hotel (they later determined the phone number was ‘spoofed’). Twice, I was followed by private detectives (that I know of) trying to find whatever they could, hired by political opponents.

If you wonder why I’ve seemed so paranoid for personal protection over the years, and generally distrusting, I’ve been through a few things. And I’ll tell you this…

Nothing beats a good night’s sleep in a midwestern farm house, out in the boonies, while the conflicts and controversies of the past are far behind me. I plan to keep it that way.