Commentary, analysis and opinion.

Three Reasons God is a Cessationist

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Jordan Standrich has some thoughts on cessationism vs. continuationism to help us think through this challenging topic. “An important part of cessationism,” says Standridge “is God Himself and what He has done in history.”

In this piece over at The Cripplegate, Standrich offers three reasons to bolster his argument that God is a cessationist and not a continuationist. He writes:

Lord I believe that Jordan will play in the NBA! No! I declare Jordan will play in the NBA!

That was a sentence that a guy prayed over me as we were leaving a basketball camp I attended in high school. He said that sentence as he alternated between speaking in tongues and speaking in English. I wanted to say, “have you not seen me play this whole week? I’ll be lucky to start on my high school team this year!” That was the first time I was exposed to the modern version of the gift tongues. Over the years I’ve had a chance to attend quite a few pentecostal churches and events but it wasn’t until I got to seminary that I really started gaining interest in Charismatic theology.

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Research: New Apostolic Reformation

 

You Might Be a Pharisee If . . .

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Those of us who are involved in online discernment ministries (ODM) regularly take on Scripture twisters and outright heretics.  Professing Christians who’ve fallen into false teaching come back at us with “take the log out of your own eye,” as if bringing truth to light means we’re judging. ODM’s have been labeled “Heresy Hunter,” “Legalist,” “Pharisee” and we’re charged with “quenching the Holy Spirit” for doing what we’re commanded to do: “test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1) False prophets hate being tested.  So their response is to turn the tables and make ODM’s out to be the villain. I mean, how dare commoners judge Christians who’ve reached rock star status, right?

Over at Grace to You, Cameron Buettel tackles this very subject.  He lays out three biblical earmarks of a Pharisee, beginning with the person who supplements Scripture with all sorts of man-made rules.  He writes:

The odds are good that someone, somewhere, at some point has called you a Pharisee. The odds are even better that you’ve slapped that label on someone else.

It’s no surprise that the name “Pharisee” carries a leprous stigma. They’re the villains virtually every time they appear in the pages of Scripture. Jesus never had anything good to say about them. And their heavy-handed, legalistic authority made them a scourge to all of Israel—even other pious Jews.

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The aim of AIM and the World Race

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Berean Research reports:

Some red flags to warn you about regarding a popular missions trip for youth called AIM- Adventures in Missions, and an event called the World Race,  in which students travel to 11 countries in 11 months.

Young people have been exposed to the New Apostolic Reformation, along with contemplative spirituality and New Age mysticism.

One of my readers contributed her testimony to my series, Leaving the NAR Church, in which she writes:

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Why calling Rick Warren a ‘General’ is significant

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Berean Research responds to the question many in the Christian community are asking: How do I know if my church is part of the New Apostolic Reformation?  Here’s their says:

What’s in a name? When the name and title of “General” is used in a church leadership context, it’s a rank that ought to be a red flag for you.  After reading this article, I hope it will be in the future.

First, the photo. Hillsong’s Brian Houston posted this on his Facebook profile:

The rank title in this case may be easily dismissed as nothing more than just a friendly term of endearment. But did you know that “General” is code word for Apostle within the New Apostolic Reformation movement?

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Visible Church In An Accelerating Apostasy

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Apprising Ministries has an excerpt of a lecture Dr. Walter Martin did in the 1980’s entitled The Cult of Liberal Theology, which is just as true today:

Let me tell you something that I have learned; I know the liberals. I know them well; I was one of them. And they are the most dangerous, insidious, and all-pervading cult that’s loose in the United States right at this moment.

They make the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the Mormons, and all of the Mind Sciences, and the Occult, look like Sunday School teachers. Do you know why? Because these other people are outside the Church; and these devils are in it! And they’re doing it in Jesus’ Name.

They do not believe the Trinity; they do not believe the Deity of Christ; they do not believe the Virgin Birth; they do not believe the vicarious atonement; they do not believe the Bodily resurrection, and they have grave doubts about whether Jesus will ever come back again, and that the Bible is itself the Word of God. Yet I could give you a list of them that infest—and that’s the proper word—infest our theological seminaries; and our church related schools, and our denominations.

And this theological flea infestation is ruining the lifeblood of the Church, which is evangelism. And, you think these are very strong statements; I intend to back them up in—if necessary—excruciating details. For any person who does not know that today in the United States,  and in denominational structures world-around, we are in an accelerating apostasy does not know—I repeat—does not know what’s going on…

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Where Do We Go When We Die?

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In this piece over at The Watchman’s Bagpipes, Glenn Chatfield examines what the scriptures teach about the soul after death.  He writes:

Many teachings about where we go when dead can be totally unbiblical, including the ideas of “soul sleep” and annihilation, as promoted by cults such as the Seventh-day Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses, as well as by many individual false teachers.  Along with these teachings is usually the claim that there is no hell (as the place of eternal torment and separation from God).
If the scripture tells us the abode of the soul after death, that it is still conscious and aware, then the idea of the soul sleeping until resurrection is proven wrong, as is the idea that the souls of unbelievers are annihilated.  One could actually write a whole book on the topic in order to cover what the Bible says about the grave, the afterlife before and after Christ, etc, but here I can only highlight the most important and concise arguments against the “anti-Hell”, “soul sleep” and “annihilation” teachings.

Heaven, Hillsong, and Heresy

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Costi Hinn has a warning for parents: Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be…..targets.  Targets? Yes.  Young people are being targeted by “Christian” bands like Hillsong and Jesus Culture.  Jesus Culture is known for their “prophetic worship.” Their aim is to “ignite revival in the nations of the earth” through global events. But how will this come about when their message obscures the true Gospel of Jesus Christ?

What are groups like Hillsong and Jesus Culture actually accomplishing through their music?  Multitudes are being drawn into counterfeit Christianity!

As the nephew of Word of Faith televangelist Benny Hinn, Costi knows first hand what it is like to be lured into a heretical movement at an early age. But the Lord in His mercy delivered Costi Hinn out of Satan’s clutches and now Costi’s on a mission to prevent others from being manipulated the way he was.  “Christians who are clueless to enemy strategies are sitting ducks,” he warns, “and churches who can’t confidently explain to their young people why they must avoid these types of conferences are unable to effectively keep watch over the souls of their sheep (Hebrews 13:17).”

In his piece over at Pulpit & Pen, Costi Hinn lists five ways pastors and parents can protect young people, and the rest of the church, from being enticed by the enemy of God.

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Related: Jesus Culture’s Kim Walker Smith’s Alleged Encounter With Jesus Christ And God the Father by Ken Silva

Marriage Doctrine Alone Disqualifies Pro-Gay Theology

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Alan Shlemon of Stand to Reason reminds us that, “There have been different understandings of the Lord’s supper, baptism, eschatology, etc. When it comes to marriage, however, there is universal agreement on its definition as a heterosexual union. That’s amazing and significant.” He writes:

I really appreciate a point that Preston Sprinkle made when I interviewed him on the Stand to Reason broadcast recently. Even if you set aside the (at least) five biblical texts that prohibit same-sex relations, you can still make a solid case against pro-gay theology by simply looking at Scripture’s teaching on marriage.

It turns out that 3,500 years of Judaic teaching and nearly 2,000 years of Christian teaching have unequivocally upheld that marriage is only between a man and a woman. The Genesis account of creation, where God establishes marriage as a heterosexual union (Gen. 1:27–28, 2:22–24), alone rules out the possibility of man-man or woman-woman marriage. Jesus even cited the Genesis definition and upheld this view during the New Testament era (Matt. 19:4–6). Since the closing of the canon, the Church uniformly taught that marriage was between a man and a woman.

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‘Sanctuary’ mayors have American blood on their hands

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Those are strong words.  Todd Starnes, host of Fox News and Commentary, feels justified in saying them.  Here’s why:

In 2015 Kate Steinle was gunned down by an illegal alien in San Francisco – a sanctuary city. The man charged with her murder was a seven-time felon who had been deported five times.

Five times.

There was an immigration hold on the suspect, meaning the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement wanted to come get him and ship him out of the country. But San Francisco authorities set the man free. Just a few months later, Steinle was dead.

Steinle’s blood is not only on the hands of her killer, it’s also on the hands of San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee.

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Hillsong’s Brian Houston faces sex abuse cover-up inquiry

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Berean Research has the latest on the sex abuse cover-up inquiry involving Hillsong Church’s celebrity pastor Brian Houston.  According to BR, Houston once blamed a victim of Frank Houston’s sexual assault saying, “It’s your fault this happened, you tempted my father.”  Here’s the story:

Brian Houston’s hearings before the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse are underway, as Houston faces questions about the safety of his Hillsong empire after the original charge: that Houston failed to tell police his father was a child sex abuser.

“Frank Houston had abused up to nine boys in Australia and New Zealand, and in its final report on the case released on Monday, the commission found multiple failings within the church executive – at the time led by Frank Houston’s son Brian – in responding.   Source

Many of you remember this from 2014:

“After the allegations became public within the church during 1999, Frank Houston met his victim offering him $10,000 and saying: “I want your forgiveness for this. I don’t want to die and have to face God with this on my head,” the commission heard.

Months later, when the money had not arrived, his victim called Frank Houston’s son Brian, who was then the national president of the Assemblies of God in Australia Pentecostal movement.

The victim said Brian told him: “You know, it’s your fault all this happened. You tempted my father”.

“Brian got very angry after that. He slammed the phone down after saying words to the effect of ‘You’ll be getting your money’,” the victim told the commission. He received a cheque for $10,000 about two weeks later. 

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7 False Teachers in the Church Today

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“Satan’s greatest ambassadors are not pimps, politicians, or power-brokers, but pastors,” warns Tim Challies. “His priests do not peddle a different religion, but a deadly perversion of the true one. His troops do not make a full-out frontal assault, but work as agents, sneaking into the opposing army. Satan’s tactics are studied, clever, predictable, effective.”

Who are the heretics, charlatans, abusers, etc.? Hint: Popes, Pentecostals, prominent scholars and prophets who prophesy falsely.

The following is from Tim Challies’ Deadly Doctrines series:

The history of Christ’s church is inseparable from the history of Satan’s attempts to destroy her. While difficult challenges have arisen from outside the church, the most dangerous have always been from within. For from within arise the false teachers, the peddlers of error who masquerade as teachers of truth. False teachers take on many forms, custom-crafted to times, cultures, and contexts. Here are seven of them you will find carrying out their deceptive, destructive work in the church today. Please note that while I have followed the biblical texts in describing them in masculine terms, each of these false teachers can as easily be female.

The Heretic

The Heretic is the most prominent and perhaps the most dangerous of the false teachers. Peter warned against him in his second letter. “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction” (2 Peter 2:1). The Heretic is the person who teaches what blatantly contradicts an essential teaching of the Christian faith. He is a gregarious figure, a natural leader teaching just enough truth to mask his deadly error. Yet in denying the faith and celebrating what is false, he leads his followers from the safety of orthodoxy to the peril of heresy.

From the church’s earliest days, she has been afflicted by the Heretic in his various forms. He continues his evil work today, sometimes by contradicting the truth and sometimes by adding to it. He may reframe the doctrine of the Trinity, as Arius did in the third century and as Oneness Pentecostals do today. He may, like Marcus Borg and other prominent scholars, deny the virgin birth or the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Like Jehovah’s Witnesses, he may alter God’s finished word, or like Mormons, he may add to it. Always, he boldly tampers with “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 1:3).

The Charlatan

The Charlatan is only interested in the Christian faith to the extent that it can fill his wallet.

The Charlatan is the person who uses Christianity as a means of personal enrichment. Paul charged Timothy to be on guard against him. “If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain” (1 Timothy 6:3-5). The Charlatan is only interested in the Christian faith to the extent that it can fill his wallet. He uses his leadership position to benefit from others’ wealth.

Simon Magus was motivated by the love of money when he tried to purchase the power of the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:9-24). Since him, the Charlatan has appeared in many forms, always seeking prominence in the church so that he can live in extravagance. When Pope Leo X famously commissioned Tetzel to sell indulgences, the profits not only funded the reconstruction of St. Peter’s Basilica, but also his luxurious lifestyle. In the 1990s, televangelist Robert Tilton brought in tens of millions of dollars each year by exploiting the vulnerable and gullible. Today Benny Hinn, Creflo Dollar, and a host of others peddle the prosperity gospel to enrich themselves from their followers’ gifts.

The Prophet

The Prophet claims to be gifted by God to speak fresh revelation outside of Scripture—new, authoritative words of prediction, teaching, rebuke, or encouragement. In reality, though, he is commissioned and empowered by Satan for the purpose of misleading and disrupting Christ’s church. John offered an urgent warning about him. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). Christians must “test the spirits” to determine if they originate with the Holy Spirit or with a demonic spirit. Later, John declared that God has spoken fully and finally in Scripture and offered the most solemn warning against anyone who claims to bring revelation equal or contrary to Scripture. “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book” (Revelation 22:18-19).

The Prophet appears throughout the history of the church. As early as the second century, Montanus and his disciples claimed to speak on behalf of the Holy Spirit. In the nineteenth century, Joseph Smith claimed to receive The Book of Mormon from the angel Moroni. Today the airwaves are chock-full of people claiming to speak in the name of God through the power of the Spirit. Personal prophecies are just a phone call away. Sarah Young, author of the top Christian bestseller of the decade, boldly claims that her book contains the very words of Jesus. The Prophet continues to speak, to lead astray.  Continue reading

 

 

Preemptive Discernment Alert! New Heretic-Authored Book Forthcoming

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In a piece over at Pulpit & Pen, Bud Ahlheim gives us a glimpse of “rock star icon of the Emerging Church” Rob Bell’s latest attempt to rewrite the Bible. In his new book, the former pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, MI looks at the Bible in a “fresh, new way.”

One of Rob Bell’s annoying traits is to ask questions in order to “drive his hearer to a pre-determined position,” says Ahlheim. “And, most often with Bell, that position has been known in the annals of orthodox Christian history as HERESY.”  So with this in mind, would it surprise you to learn that in 2011 Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church used Bell’s heretical teaching?

But this is not about Rick Warren corrupting the minds of his congregants; it’s about what Bud Alheim refers to as “Bell-eneutics.” He writes:

Check the batteries in your heresy detectors!

Sound the Berean warning bells!

Let the discernment warning tocsins be sounded!

Signal all to take Caution! Caution! Caution!

There’s a new Rob Bell book soon to be released.

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Learn more about Rob Bell over at Apprising Ministries

Health-Care Reform Won’t Fix What Really Hurts American Health

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According to David French of National Review “deaths of despair” are “surging” in the United States among middle-aged white non-hispanics.  French includes some stunning statistics:

In 2016, two truths were revealed at once. First, the percentage of uninsured Americans hit a record low — a mere 8.6 percent. In 2010, almost 50 million Americans lacked health insurance. By the beginning of 2016 that number had plunged to 27.3 million. This is, truth be told, the fruit of Obamacare and indeed is the very reason why the GOP is having so much difficulty in its struggle to repeal and replace it. People like having health insurance, and health insurance makes us healthier, right?

But that brings us to the second truth that was revealed in 2016. Even though Americans allegedly enjoyed unprecedented access to insured health care, the nation’s death rate in 2015 actually increased. More Americans were insured, but more Americans died. Why?

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How Does the Holy Spirit Lead Us?

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It is not uncommon to hear Christians say that they’re hearing from God via whispers…leadings…prompts…impressions…or even angels. What we need to understand is that when people claim “God told me very clearly that…” they’re claiming prophet status “which elevates the person to a position they do not have,” reminds Elizabeth Prata. “Moreover,” says Prata, “it discourages other[s] who have not had the privilege of ‘hearing directly from God’. They begin to doubt their situations when they aren’t given such personal, clear commands.”

In this piece over at The End Time, Elizabeth Prata addresses a disturbing tweet sent from Beth Moore to her adoring fans. She writes:

On Facebook last night I’d posted a mini-discernment lesson regarding a tweet Beth Moore had written advocating a process for distilling whether a prompt from the Holy Spirit is legitimate or if it’s your own imagination. I wrote the following in response to her tweet:

Beth Moore is an alleged ‘Bible teacher’. She has 753,000 followers on Twitter alone. The following comment is something she taught a few hours ago on Twitter. Nothing in the Bible says what she taught and teaches. What solid and credible Bible teachers do is teach their pupils to go externally and seek the source of all truth, the Word of God. Moore teachers women to go internally and rely on mystical warnings, feelings, and prompts. What Moore is actually teaching is the insufficiency of scripture and the sufficiency of ourselves in obeying personal feelings.

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Research Shows Majority of Americans Want to Read the Bible

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Ken Ham of Answers In Genesis has some advice for Bible believing Christians: Don’t shy away from boldly yet gently appealing to the Bible as your source of authority for issues of morality, history, philosophy, science, and theology. According to Ham:

Biblical illiteracy has been growing here in America. Most people don’t know what the Bible says. They may know a few isolated Bible “stories” here and there, but they don’t understand the scope or flow of the biblical text, largely because they have never read most of it! Though the growing biblical illiteracy epidemic is very sobering, here’s an encouraging report from new research—the majority of Americans still want to read their Bibles.

According to a recent study, 61% of Americans answered “yes” to the question, “Do you wish that you read the Bible more or not?” Surprisingly, this number has remained fairly stable for over half a decade now. And when the respondents were asked, “Would you say that your own personal use of the Bible has increased, decreased or is about the same as one year ago?” 66% answered “stayed the same.”

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‘Is Aglow affiliated with the New Apostolic Reformation?’

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Yes! says Berean Research: 

Aglow International is full-on New Apostolic Reformation, with president Jane Hansen Hoyt being a member of C. Peter Wagner’s “International Coalition of Apostles.” Its international advisors include prominent “apostles” and “prophets” like Che Ahn, Rick Joyner, Cindy Jacobs and the late Wagner.

AGLOW  has more than 200,000 members meeting together each month through local Aglow groups in 171 nations. More than 21,000 Aglow leaders worldwide minister in their communities. Within the United States, local Aglow groups are called Lighthouses. Outside the US, these groups are called Candlelight groups.

Now to the letter that prompted Amy’s response, along with some must watch videos:

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School orders boy to ‘tolerate’ undressing with girl and make it ‘natural’

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Todd Starnes, host of Fox News and Commentary, reports that a teenage boy was in his underwear inside a locker room preparing to change for a PE class when he noticed a girl close by wearing nothing but shorts and a bra. According to Starnes, when the boy reported the incident “he was told by school leaders that he had to ‘tolerate’ undressing in front of a female student and to make it as ‘natural’ as possible, according to a blockbuster lawsuit filed in a Pennsylvania federal district court.”

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday by Alliance Defending Freedom and Independence Law Center, alleges the Boyertown Area School District shamed the teenage boy and violated his personal privacy. They are also alleging sexual harassment.

“No school should rob any student of this legally protected personal privacy,” ILC attorney Randall Wenger said. “We trust that our children won’t be forced into emotionally vulnerable situations like this when they are in the care of our schools because it’s a school’s duty to protect and respect the bodily privacy and dignity of all students.”

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Furtick, Elevation Church activate NAR Apostles

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According to Berean Research:

“Prophetic Activations” will happen next week at Steven Furtick’s Elevation Church, a clear indicator that Furtick is not just affiliating, but becoming one with the heretical New Apostolic Reformation.

I first noticed Furtick dipping his toe into the signs-and-wonders New Apostolic Reformation movement five years ago when he traveled to Australia for the Presence 2012 Conference with John Bevere, for “a golden fire of anointing, vision and miracles.”

Next Thursday, Friday and Saturday (March 30 – April 1), Elevation’s downtown location is hosting RESET Charlotte, multi-city Apostles and Prophets tour for RESET/ACTIVATE AMERICA. Attendees will be exposed to the activations and prophetic utterances of Apostle John Eckhardt, Pastorix and Apostle G. Marie Carroll, and several other Apostles.

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More Hillsong victims appearing at Royal Commission: Brian Houston summoned again?

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Churchwatch Central reports:

More victims of Frank Houston are coming forward and appearing this Friday (the 24th) at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse as well as the Australian Christian Church (ACC) (formerly known as the Assemblies of God (AOG)) and other “Pentecostal” churches. This means there is a high probability that Brian Houston will be there again.

Before looking at the details of the upcoming case study at the Royal Commission, it is important people understand what the AOG actually is.

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Scientific atheism: a frivolous exercise in intellectual contempt

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Jesse Johnson of The Cripplegate reminds creationists that we’re not the ones who have to prove or disprove evolutionist’s theories because we’re not making substantive claims. “The burden of proof is on those postulating with certainty that they know the scientific secrets of life,” says Johnson.  He writes:

Last week I reviewed The Kingdom of Speech, by Tom Wolfe. Wolfe is not religious (the New York Times calls him an atheist, for whatever that’s worth), but he delivers a stunning critique of modern evolutionary theory as being entirely devoid of substantial evidence.

Which in turn reminded me of David Berlinski’s book The Devils Delusion: Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions. Berlinski, despite himself being an atheist, cannot tolerate the intellectual arrogance demonstrated by today’s atheistic evolutionists. While I don’t want to review the whole book, I will pass on its main point: a scientific theory should only claim what it can prove. The problem with evolution is that it claims to explain everything, while it actually is able to prove nothing.

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Army of Bots Constantly Building Your Digital Profile

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Steve King warns that social media, apps, smart devices, etc. are collecting data and invading our privacy. Is your TV in the “Fake Off” mode? LifeZette has the story:

If you are worried about your smart TV recording your most intimate conversations in its “Fake Off” mode and sending those over the internet to a covert CIA server, you are right to be worried.

As we saw in the WikiLeaks’ Vault 7 dump, the CIA’s malware known as “Weeping Angel” places the target television in a “Fake Off” mode, so that the owner falsely believes the TV is off when it is on. In “Fake Off” mode, the TV operates as a “wiretap,” recording conversations in the room and streaming them back to the CIA.

But as worried as you may be right now, the future will be far more frightening.

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T.D. Jakes and Joyce Meyer Teaching Word of Faith ‘Little Gods’

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The late Ken Silva of Apprising Ministries penned this piece in 2014. In it he deals with the word-faith “little gods” doctrine. (Follow the link to his piece and scroll down to the end and check out the video of wolves teaching “little gods” heresy.)  Ken also reveals the names of several highly regarded evangelicals who have had no problem promoting word-faith prosperity preachers such as Jakes and Meyer.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’”

But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God.” (Genesis 3:1-5)

This Type Of Lunacy In The Lord’s Name Is On Its Way Into The Heart Of The Visible Church

Apprising Ministries has long been sounding the warning about the growing acceptance of straight-up Word Faith prosperity preachers even within the very mainstream of rapidly apostatizing evangelicalism itself.

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The Pharisees Weren’t Concerned With Sound Doctrine

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Were the Pharisees Jesus confronted concerned with keeping God’s law and doing good as some people think? According to Brandon Hines of Pulpit & Pen, that isn’t necessarily the case. He writes:

Whenever someone plays the Pharisee Card, they often seem to think that the Pharisees were more concerned with sound doctrine and personal holiness than loving God and loving people. For one thing, loving God and loving people is a part of personal holiness, so this idea is already a self-refuting idea. However, if we look deeper into Scripture, we can see that the Pharisees, for the most part, were not doctrinally sound at all.

The Pharisees Did Not Understand Regeneration

In John 3, Jesus famously expresses the doctrine of Regeneration and being born again to the Pharisee named Nicodemus. When Jesus says in verse 3 (ESV), “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God,” Nicodemus responds by asking, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Interestingly enough, it is actually Jesus who seems more concerned with doctrinal accuracy. In verse 10 (ESV), Jesus says, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?” implying both that regeneration is a doctrine that should’ve been understood even at that time and that Nicodemus, a Pharisee, did not know it.

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Reclaiming Patrick for Protestants

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Was Saint Patrick a Roman Catholic?  Was he even Irish?  According to JD Hall of Polemics Report, neither one of these things is true about Patrick. Hall writes:

This Friday, revelers from across the western world will gather with their Irish friends, clad in green, to celebrate the “Patron Saint” of Ireland. Wherever the Irish diaspora can be found, you’ll be able to smell the wafting odor of corned beef, Guinness beer and hear the sound of raucous laughter or perhaps an Irish drinking song. “Kiss me, I’m Irish” will be said more times than ladies will have interest, and shamrocks will hang from tavern ceilings. In spite of the popularity of this holiday, few grasp the significance of its namesake.

In irony, the Saint who by God’s power expelled paganism from Ireland will be celebrated by displays of pagan celebratory rituals around the world. It’s time to reclaim Patrick for Christianity, and furthermore, it’s time to reclaim Patrick for Protestantism.

A high-ranking Irish politician in the Democractic Unionist Party (DUP) called Patrick a Protestant back in January, and it was scandalous enough a claim to make the national papers. Granted, Patrick lived a millennium before the Reformation – and thus the chortles and snickers from the Roman Catholic Irish majority – but the ‘social development minister’ was only trying to make the point that their Patron Saint wasn’t beholden to the Pope or the Pope’s religion. A similar comment by another notable DUP politician in Ireland came the same month, and it was equally as scandalous. Of course, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland has made the claim for years, and perhaps none as articulate as one of our most favorite fiery Protestants, Ian Paisley.

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See our Research Paper on Roman Catholicism