Marsha West is the owner and managing editor of Christian Research Network, Apprising Ministries (the late Ken Silva’s blog) and On Solid Rock Resources. She is also co-founder of Berean Research.
For two decades Marsha was the owner and managing editor of Email Brigade website as well as the EMB News Report, a bi-weekly email report for conservative people of faith.
For many years Marsha was a regular contributor to several blogs including CRN, RenewAmerica, News With Views and Web Commantary as well as popular websites she no longer endorses: American Family Association, Worldview Weekend, Stand Up For The Truth, The Christian Post and Christian Headlines.
Although Marsha still blogs, her primary focus is CRN. Marsha also writes Research Papers (White Papers) on various topics that are published on CRN, Berean Research and On Solid Rock Resources.
Visit Marsha’s other sites:
On Solid Rock Resources https://www.onsolidrockresources.com/
Apprising Ministries http://apprising.org
Marsha’s RenewAmerica Column http://renewamerica.com/columns/mwest
Marsha’s Facebook Page http://facebook.com/marsha.west.77
Berean Research warns women that there are some serious problems with hi-profile speaker and teacher Jen Hatmaker’s theology. BR writes:
It’s no surprise to me that last week’s book review post, “7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess” by Jen Hatmaker, received a mixed response. Along with the many women who thanked me for posting the review, a number were also upset that I would dare to question anything about this popular speaker and teacher. Let me clear up one thing: the review was a warning not against the woman, but about how she is handling God’s Word to an international audience.
In addition to her numerous books (often used as “Bible” studies in women’s ministries), Jen Hatmaker is known for her presentations at a women’s gathering called “IF”, which I’ve warned about in the past.
According to Baptist News Global, Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, was a contributor to an online symposium on why conservatives should not support Donald Trump. Other symposium contributors included Glenn Beck, Brent Bozell, Mona Charen, Erick Erickson, William Kristol, Michael Medved, Edwin Meese and Cal Thomas.
The Republican National Committee disinvited the National Review from moderating an upcoming pre-Super Tuesday debate after the conservative magazine carried an online symposium with messages denouncing Donald Trump, including one by a Southern Baptist Convention official.
Publisher Jack Fowler reported Jan. 21 that after asking the National Review to help moderate a debate to be held Feb. 26 in Houston, the RNC withdrew the invitation because of the magazine’s “Against Trump“ editorial and symposium that appeared online Jan. 21.
“We expected this was coming,” said Fowler, publisher since 1983 of the magazine founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. “Small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald.”
On January 18, Jerry Falwell, Jr., president of Liberty University (LU), rolled out what was called a “hero’s welcome” for GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump when he spoke at a mandatory convocation service. LU’s motto is “Training Champions for Christ.” Falwell received flak for giving what many felt was a personal endorsement of Trump. He told the crowd that he admired Trump’s willingness to be politically incorrect and compared him to his father and founder of LU the late Jerry Falwell, Sr. Regrettably, LU’s president wanted the students to believe that Donald Trump is a Christian, even though there is scant evidence that he’s truly born again. (Visit this post to learn more on Trump’s faith claim.) Two days later controversial “pastor” Rich Wilkerson, Jr. spoke at the university. LU is no stranger to controversy. Browse the 2016 speakers and you will see the names of other problematic high profile pastors, authors and entertainers. For example: Erwin McManus, Jentezen Franklin,Francis Chan, James MacDonald,Ann Voskamp, Jesus Culture and more.
Before I get to Kim Olsen’s blog post, those who are unfamiliar with Sozo prayer need to know more about it. First of all, Sozo prayer is the brain child of husband and wife team Bill (self-proclaimed modern-day apostle) and Beni (New Age guru) Johnson, both of whom are pastors of the infamous Bethel Church in Redding CA. The word comes from the Greek “save” or “deliver.” Allegedly Sozo is “a unique inner healing and deliverance ministry in which the main aim is to get to the root of those things hindering your personal connection with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.”
The Berean Call describes Sozo thusly:
Although claiming to be biblical, Sozo is a problem-solving approach based upon discovering root issues that are blocking spiritual growth. The issues supposedly reside in the subconscious memories of the individual and are identified as a person is regressed by the use of guided imagery and suggestion by the Sozo therapist. Of course, the Sozo therapist is trained to believe that the guided visualization is superintended by the Holy Spirit. This again is spiritualized psychotherapy, using techniques drawn from occult methodologies. (Source)
Sozo is decidedly unbiblical. And it is dangerous!
Now to Kim’s piece over at DiscernIt.
Sozo – The Seeking of the False Jesus
Learning about SOZO occurred when I was working with a woman who was dealing with oppression and darkness. Many are deceived when they enter into a spiritual realm that they have no business delving into.
Today we easily find mysticism, false teaching, divination, abuse of spiritual gifts, and love of experience trumping the Word of God. When you fall into this area the problem is that the spirit world will deliver. Those seeking to be in the “presence of Jesus” will indeed find themselves in the company of a entity but it will not be Jesus of the Bible. Remember that “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” 2 Corinthians 11:14.
Satan is the prince of darkness and well-meaning Christians will fall into the trap and deceitful workmen will also masquerade as “apostles of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 11:13
There are so many who love the Lord and want to serve Him with all their hearts but the way we do this is laid out in the Epistles to the church in the New Testament. We also find many warnings of false teachers in the scriptures.
When we read about Jesus as our shepherd and recognize ourselves as the flock, it must be remembered that sheep are not very smart. They need to be led. They often cannot discern the enemy among who are clothed in sheepskin but inwardly are wolves. These wolves will be found IN the church, they are among God’s people.
For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
The false self-claimed apostles, Bill Johnson, Mike Bickle, Todd Bentley, John Arnott, Todd White, just to name a few, are promising that people can walk among the streets and in the power of the Holy Spirit, heal people of their diseases. Of course this speaks of the pride of man, to be just like the apostles in the book of Acts. These early men were hand selected by Jesus and therefore Apostles. Paul was the last Apostle. God does still does heal today but not like what we are seeing in these false ministries. Continue reading
According to Christian Examiner Russell Moore is under fire for, among other things, likening Donald Trump to the “golden calf.”
When the head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission Russell Moore just a few weeks ago opined that Texas Sen. Ted Cruz represented the “Jerry Falwell” wing of evangelical voters, he couldn’t have known Donald Trump would be the keynote speaker at Falwell’s Southern-Baptist affiliated Liberty University Monday, January 18.
Moore didn’t acknowledge his characterizations, however, in a blistering string of one-line tweets aimed at both GOP presidential frontrunner Trump and Liberty University’s president Jerry Falwell Jr., who introduced Trump as similar to his late father, long considered a leader of America’s moral majority.
“Absolutely unbelievable,” Moore responded to a comment he re-tweeted in which Falwell said in his introduction of Trump, “By their fruits ye shall know them. Donald Trump’s life has born fruit.”
CBC News reports new government guidelines for Canadian schools which goes to show the power the LGBT movement has.
Schools should erase old divides that force students into male and female roles, according to new guidelines released Wednesday by the Alberta government that advise teachers to let kids choose which washroom they want to use and what name appears on their report cards.
A 21-page document, introduced by Education Minister David Eggen, advised educators that students have the right to self-identify when it comes to their gender identity and gender expression.
Some Wheaton College alumni say they’re reconsidering future donations to their alma mater in a show of support for a professor who faces termination after declaring she would wear a hijab because Christians and Muslims worship the same God.
Alumni submitted a petition to college administrators and board members Friday requesting the school reconcile with tenured political science professor Larycia Hawkins, 43, who last month announced she would wear a head scarf as part of her Advent devotion to show solidarity with Muslims.
According to Denny Burk, Professor of Biblical Studies at Boyce College, “Donald Trump doesn’t have to be a Christian in order to run for president or to speak at Liberty University. But Liberty University—as a Christian institution of higher learning—has a responsibility not to confuse people about what Christianity is. And today they fell short of that in a big way.” Burk writes:
Perhaps the best way to explain what went wrong with Donald Trump’s appearance at Liberty University earlier today is to clarify what wasn’t wrong with it.
There’s nothing wrong per se with a Christian university hosting a presidential candidate for a speech on their campus. In a university setting—even in a Christian one—a speech need not equal an endorsement. If other candidates are given equal access and if it is clear how such a visit might contribute to robust Christian thinking and conviction, there is no necessary offense in this. In fact, it could be a win.
There’s nothing wrong per se with a Christian university hosting a non-Christian for a speech or a lecture on campus. We should encourage a robust exchange of ideas—even with voices we might otherwise disagree with. And there is no necessary violation of principle to have, for example, an atheist participate in a symposium on the plausibility of belief. In fact, in that setting it would be profoundly beneficial to have an actual atheist come and make his case alongside that of Christians and to hear each side hash the issues out in reasoned debate. We can imagine any number of scenarios in which it might be helpful to hear from a non-Christian on a Christian campus. And I can even imagine a setting in which hearing from a non-Christian politician might actually be helpful and in keeping with a school’s mission.
A Madison man has taken issue with some of Morris County’s historic preservation grants going to the preservation of churches and other houses of worship — and is pursuing that issue in court.
The county is the subject of a lawsuit filed by David Steketee, of Ferndale Road, Madison, and the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation on Dec. 1 in state Superior Court in Morristown, asking the courts to bar Morris County from presenting historic preservation grants to churches and other houses of worship. The group’s stated purpose is to “promote the constitutional principle of separation of state and church.”
Iran has prepared almost 200,000 young men in countries across the Middle East to help with the arrival of the Mahdi, a Muslim leader who will usher in justice prior to the Day of Judgment, a Revolutionary Guard commander said earlier this week. Maj. Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said recent violence across the region, including the rise of the Islamic State group, was a sign the arrival of the messianic Muslim leader was imminent, the Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah reported.
The blog post below addresses the astonishing lack of discernment among self-professed Christians when it comes to contemporary Christian music (CCM). The truth of the matter is that most CCM really isn’t Christian at all — not even close! How do I know that? By listening to the lyrics. More often than not CCM is unbiblical, even blasphemous! But many Christians don’t have the spiritual discernment to pick up on it. Sadly, some people who profess Christ really don’t care about the words that go from their lips to God’s ears. Why? Mainly because worship is all about me, not about God, so little or no attention is paid to the words we sing to Him.
But words matter, and what we say to God should matter a lot. Instead, Christians are focusing on themselves — their feelings and experiences….have I hit a nerve?
So now to Learning the Path’s post. Some of the videos are disturbing to watch. I urge you to watch them anyway.
Purity In Worship
Think of this scenario. A pastor is reading Alistair Begg’s book, “Preaching for God’s Glory”. He sees a point that he would really like to make the next Sunday. When he’s done reading, he picks up Brian Houston’s “You Need More Money” from the heresy shelf, in which the same point is made (This is a hypothetical). He gets up in the pulpit, and instead of using quotes from “Preaching for God’s Glory”, he uses the quotes from “You Need More Money”. What is wrong with this?
I can think of two major things:
1. This gives credence to Brian Houston. It will likely cause his undiscerning congregation to listen to Brian Houston, quote Brian Houston, read Brian Houston, and even recommend Brian Houston to others.
2. Brian Houston’s writings reflect his theology. What he said will be said leaning towards the point he wanted to make, using the same hermeneutic (Way of reading the Bible) he usually uses, and showing the same errors common in his theology.
Now, can we agree that a Church-goer’s theology is usually relatively similar to that of the pastor? So let’s look at the congregants at Hillsong Australia (Brian Houston) and Parkside Church of Cleveland (Alistair Begg). In this case, Hillsong Music and the Gettys (Who are former members of Parkside).
Let’s say someone is given an option of who to sing in Church. They can choose between Hillsong’s “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” and Keith and Krystin Getty’s “In Christ Alone”. What if that person were to go with the Hillsong song? Would it be just as wrong as quoting Brian Houston above Alistair Begg? I would say yes. The same two points still stand. Hillsong’s music still reflects their theology, and it is still endorsing a group that preaches the Word of Faith heresy and false Prosperity Gospel. It would be as if you had Brian Houston come in and write your worship music for you.
What’s sad is that some of the most popular music groups out there have some of the most terrible theologies. Hillsong promotes Word of Faith heresy. Jesus Culture happens to be under Bill Johnson, a Hyper-Charismatic who denies Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) and stated that Jesus ceased to be God on the cross. This comes out not only in their music, but at their concerts (I will discuss this further later on). Jars of Clay’s singer and songwriter, Dan Haseltine, said, “I just don’t see a negative effect to allowing gay marriage. No societal breakdown, no war on traditional marriage. ?? Anyone?”. Amy Grant isn’t much better, as she has knowingly preformed alongside Lesbians and has known about her Gay Fanbase since she was 18 without calling any of them to repentance. Matt Maher is a devout Roman Catholic who has preformed for Pope Francis. Do we really trust these people to write our worship music? To write the songs we sing when worshiping a Holy God? These people wrote these songs to idols, so why would we repeat them?
Furthermore, the music has taken a grip on people my age. Most of the teenagers who claim to be Christian would prefer to sing a Hillsong song over hearing a theologically solid sermon. It has went from a Local Church to a full denomination with 15 churches just in the city of Sydney alone. The denomination has 100,000 weekly attenders. Many celebrities are a part of this denomination. It can almost exclusively be attributed to their music program. Bethel Church in Redding, CA is another megachurch that has benefited from this. It is the Home Church of the band Jesus Culture, and the spearhead of what is called the New Apostolic Reformation, which is a cultic movement. They have promoted Benny Hinn, Todd Bentley, Kris Vallotton, and T.D. Jakes. If you don’t understand the corruption of the Music Industry here, watch this:
Despite a ban on federal funding for “Chimera” research – or the mixing of human genes with those of other members of the animal kingdom – several research centers and universities in the U.S. are moving forward with the process, MIT Technology Review has reported.
Scientists involved in the research claim they are looking for ways to create and harvest human organs from other animals, such as sheep and goats, by inserting human DNA (“pluripotent cells”) in animal embryos. Critics see the potential for disaster – the creation of a beast like the mythical Chimera, made up of a lion, a goat and a serpent (or dragon).
Dr. Brown is one of the most respected members of the Christian Charismatic world; he’s a brilliant debater, an actual Biblical scholar and someone who has been warning (to some extent) about false teachers in the Church. In this article he says that he, too, was appalled by the worldly and obnoxious Silent Night video that has gotten so much attention, but he refrained from making a judgment about it until he could get more information. But after he saw a Twitter comment from a pastor at Hillsong he could understand why they did the song the way they did.
There are a couple of really interesting things to note from this article: First of all, Brown makes a pretty amazing statement about how he couldn’t talk to anyone from Hillsong, because he didn’t have an “open door to interact directly with Hillsongs leaders (despite my attempts to do so in the past).” Please take note, everyone who says something like this: “You shouldn’t say anything bad about paster so and so until you talk to him face to face! Have you met with him and heard his side of the story?? Well then stop judging him!!”
Joel James of The Expositors Blog lays out the unintended consequences of adopting worldliness as an evangelistic technique.
Never in its history has the evangelical church been more intentional and more systematic in its efforts to imitate the world than in our day. In fact, worldliness, which used to be a sin-to-be-avoided, has not only become an obsession for the church, today it has become the evangelistic technique of choice.
In the Old Testament, God told Israel, “You shall not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived, nor are you to do what is done in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you” (Lev 18:3). In the New Testament, the apostle Paul told the church, “Do not be conformed to this world” (Rom 12:2). Nonetheless, today’s self-appointed evangelical relevance experts tell us that the only way to reach the world is to be like the world: we must talk like them, dress like them, be entertained like them, sport tattoos like them, address human sexuality like them, and so on.
Jesus said, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own” (John 15:18). Clearly Jesus expected His followers not to be mirrors of the world. However, today in a bizarre inversion of Jesus’ intention, the goal of many evangelicals is to be as much like the world as possible in order to be loved by the world, purportedly as a precursor to evangelism.
In the words of John MacArthur, we are being told that, “If we can convince them that our message poses no threat to their way of life and that they have nothing to fear from Christ, perhaps we can then…reach them…. [We must persuade] them that church is fun, Christians are just like everyone else, and they have nothing whatsoever to fear from God” (Ashamed of the Gospel, 3rd ed., 214). of adopting worldliness as an evangelistic technique.
Pastrix Christine Caine from heretical Hillsong Church Australia is a teacher that the serious Christian should steer clear of. In spite of the fact that Caine teaches ubiblical word-faith/prosperity theology and engages in New Age practices, she has been a featured speaker for Louis Giglio’s Passion conferences and has preached with prominent Reformed pastor John Piper. (Here and Here) Piper, who holds to a complementarian view, has received a lot of heat for sharing teaching duties with a woman who claims false teacher Joyce Meyer as her mentor. Elizabeth Prata of The End Times lays out six reasons why Caine must be avoided like the plague.
An American pastor who has been imprisoned in Iran for over three years as part of an eight-year prison sentence has been set free in a prisoner swap between the U.S. and Iran.
“It is confirmed: Saeed is released!” Saeed Abedini’s wife Naghmeh posted on social media this morning.
The influential Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga has acknowledged the presence of a “gay lobby” in the Vatican. In a new interview, he says that Pope Francis has adopted a gradual approach to address it – and that Catholic teaching won’t change.
The Honduran newspaper El Heraldo asked the cardinal whether there actually was an attempted or successful “infiltration of the gay community in the Vatican.”
According to Church Times conservative Primates, or heads of churches, unexpectedly won in their push to censure the US Church because of its violation of Scripture’s teaching on marriage by allowing same-sex couples to marry:
The Episcopal Church in the United States is to spend three years out in the cold because of its support for same-sex marriage, the Primates have decided at their gathering in Canterbury.
In a surprise move, a statement was posted on the Primates’ website at 5.30 p.m. on Thursday, a day before the planned press conference, in order to counter speculation that had begun to circulate during the afternoon.
A New York appeals court has unanimously upheld a $13,000 fine against a couple who declined to host a same-sex “wedding” at their farm because of their religious convictions not to facilitate the sins of others.
National Review columnist David French says that the secular Left is taking direct aim at Christian academic freedom and institutional liberty. Since the Left sees no value in Christian educational institutions they’ve become targets in the culture wars. The Left’s motto is: Reform of die. French writes:
One of the nation’s premier evangelical educational institutions — Wheaton College — is under intense fire for its decision to begin termination proceedings against Larycia Hawkins after she publicly declared her belief that Christians and Muslims “worship the same God.” (I wrote about the controversy on the home page last year and outlined the traditional Protestant argument that Muslims do not, in fact, worship the God of the Bible.) Terminating a Christian professor — or any other employee of a Christian institution — for expressing beliefs out of line with the organization’s statement of faith is common and should be uncontroversial. Christian organizations have the same right to define their mission and message as any other expressive organization. Does anyone think it’s unjust that the Sierra Club won’t hire fracking advocates or that LGBT activist organizations aren’t open to Christian conservatives?
According to The Daily Signal, Health and Human Services has a “Gender Identity Mandate” in the works that will be paid for by our hard earned tax dollars:
You’ve heard about the Obamacare Individual Mandate. That’s the one that requires every person in America to get government-approved health insurance or face significant IRS penalties.
You’ve heard about the Health and Human Services (HHS) contraception mandate. That’s the one that requires private employers, including religious institutions like the Little Sisters of the Poor, to help provide insurance coverage for abortion-inducing drugs or face millions in IRS fines.
Christian Examiner reviews a new documentary, “3801 Lancaster: American Tragedy,” that examines how abortion doctor Herman Gosnell was able to get away with murder for many years:
When a Philadelphia abortion doctor in 2010 was caught delivering live, viable late-term babies and “snipping” their necks to kill them, many pro-lifers thought it would be a turning point in the abortion discussion.
Many were certain it was a time when Americans would collectively examine the issue and realize there really isn’t any moral difference in ending the life of an eight-month-old baby inches out of the birth canal or inches inside the birth canal, even though the former is illegal and the latter is not.
Sadly, though, the case of the abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell didn’t receive the wall-to-wall mainstream media coverage it deserved — not in 2010 when he was caught, or in 2011 when he was charged, or in 2013 when he was sent to prison. His case wasn’t on the front page and didn’t even make any of those Top 10 stories-of-the-year lists.
We are posting the letter in the hope that Anne Graham Lotz will re-consider promoting a “new way of praying” she came across in The Circle Maker. What she’s passing off as prayer is decidedly unbiblical. Promoting an cccult book indicates an absence of spiritual discernment.
Recently Anne posted this on her blog:
As I look ahead into 2016, I feel compelled to draw a circle around this city, this state, this nation” and pray! Until God answers. Do the same. Please. On this first day of the New Year, draw your own circle. Then pray for everything that’s inside of it. (Source)
What follows is a prayer she wrote that she encourages people to pray. The prayer is disappointing, as it is more like a political statement than a prayer. Many Christians would have trouble parroting that prayer.
But the prayer she wrote is not the point. The point is that Anne Graham Lotz has failed to test the spirits. And as result she is dabbling in the world of the occult. Worse, she invites other Christians to join her! Which brings me to the letter…
Breitbart columnist Thomas D. Williams reports on a statement made by Christian basher Richard Dawkins in 2010 that has “taken on a second life, being sent to and fro on Facebook and Twitter and providing fodder for discussions, even among atheists, of the benefits of Christianity for modern society.”
In a text that is coursing about on social media, professional God-slayer Richard Dawkins begrudgingly admitted that Christianity may actually be our best defense against aberrant forms of religion that threaten the world.
“There are no Christians, as far as I know, blowing up buildings,” Dawkins said. “I am not aware of any Christian suicide bombers. I am not aware of any major Christian denomination that believes the penalty for apostasy is death.”
In a rare moment of candor, Dawkins reluctantly accepted that the teachings of Jesus Christ do not lead to a world of terror, whereas followers of radical Islam perpetrate the very atrocities that he laments.
During his last State of the Union address of his presidency, Barack Obama again condemned what he called the “lie” that the barbaric terror group ISIS is representative of the Islamic religion.
While speaking on a variety of issues during his Tuesday night speech before members of Congress, the U.S. Supreme Court, representatives of the U.S. Department of Defense and other members of his cabinet, Obama addressed what he called a “dangerous time” in American history.
“Priority number one is protecting the American people and going after terrorist networks,” he said. “Both al Qaeda and now ISIL pose a direct threat to our people, because in today’s world, even a handful of terrorists who place no value on human life, including their own, can do a lot of damage.”
Schools should erase old divides that force students into male and female roles, according to 
Pastrix Christine Caine from heretical 
We are posting the letter in the hope that Anne Graham Lotz will re-consider promoting a “new way of praying” she came across in The Circle Maker. What she’s passing off as prayer is decidedly unbiblical. Promoting an cccult book indicates an absence of spiritual discernment.