Bill Muehlenbeg of Culture Watch fills us in on what’s going on in Australia, where he makes his home. He has included a must read newspaper report that gives us a glimpse of the far left’s direct assault on Christians, as well as on all religious and cultural groups “which may have any unease about the homosexual lifestyle.” No one had better defy the LGBT police! Muehlenberg warns: “The totalitarian implications of all this should be lost on none of us.”
What you’re about to read is chilling.
Berean Examiner reports:
Whatever happened to that 2007 “A Common Word Between Us” initiative, signed by pastors like Rick Warren Bill Hybels and Leith Anderson of the National Association of Evangelicals? Remember when hundreds of Christian pastors and Catholic priests signed on to call for interfaith dialogue that would build relations and reshape the Christian and Islam communities? Remember how these Christian leaders also asked for forgiveness of sins committed against Muslims in the Crusades? Remember?
That Muslim/Christian interfaith agreement is not only alive and well these days, it has blossomed into an international United Nations effort to blend all religions. And this week we’re going to see the fruit of that effort in the U.N.’s annual World Interfaith Harmony Week, February 1 – 7. It’s website states: The World Interfaith Harmony Week is based on the pioneering work of The Common Word Initiative:
Will Hall of Baptist Message believes that many Southern Baptists are asking whether the ERLC, under the leadership of Russell Moore, truly represents them. Has Moore shown contempt for Christians who think differently than him, as Hall suggests? He asserts that “Moore’s scale for assessing one’s biblical bona fides appears politically calculated to raise his own stock at the expense of other evangelical conservatives.”
See if you agree:
When an unnamed staffer “boasted” to the online media outlet Think Progress in October 2014 that Russell Moore had “completely rebranded” the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, few could have imagined what this meant.
However, Moore’s all-in campaign against presidential candidate Donald Trump, highlighted by his most recent attacks on Liberty University for hosting Trump at a student convocation, reveals something quite unexpected about Moore when he was elected to lead the ERLC in 2013—a penchant for disdain for Christians who think differently than him.
Moore rightly points out Trump’s moral flaws—and character should count—and he has a right and responsibility to comment on Trump’s policies and to share his view of what these might mean in terms of Christian values.
But Moore’s dislike for Trump goes beyond the pale, translating into disrespect and even contempt for any Christian who might weigh these considerations differently than Moore when comparing the range of personal beliefs and behaviors as well as public records of ability and achievement within such a large field of candidates for the White House.
The following is an article from fellow online apologetics and discernment ministry Herescope contributor Sarah Leslie. Sarah brings to light an attempt to censor free speech by some in the Christian community. For instance, Laura Turner of the “Her.meneutics” blog over at Christianity Today has labeled spiritual discernment “theology policing.” In a piece she wrote, Turner went after two Christian writers that she deems theology police, Tim Challies and Warren B. Smith, for criticizing Sarah Young’s best-selling book, Jesus Calling. Challies and Smith share the view that Jesus Calling is decidedly unbiblical and have given numerous reasons for saying that it’s not a book Christian should be reading. So they’re under attack for telling the truth.
With all this in mind, we hope you’ll listen to Sarah Leslie express her concerns over some of the frightening things that are going on in the Christian community:
Peggy Noonan wrote in her weekly Wall Street Journal column this past December 4th her concerns that
The censorship movement is radical. It is starting to make everyone in the country feel harassed and anxious. It is odd to see candidates miss a rising issue that is giving pause to so many Americans.
I pray someone will address it. Literally, I just did.
This Herescope post is an answer to her prayers. It may be an unexpected answer and a politically incorrect answer, but nevertheless it is a response. It represents an exercise in the right of free speech and freedom of religion.
Noonan, a former speechwriter to President Reagan with conservative credentials, titled her article “The First Amendment Needs Your Prayers.” She was upset about social media reactions during the San Bernardino massacre, “even while it is happening,” especially from a U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (CT) who sent out a message stating, “Your ‘thoughts’ should be about steps to take to stop this carnage. Your ‘prayers’ should be for forgiveness if you do nothing—again.” According to Noonan this heavy-handed ridiculing of people who were praying during the massacre “immediately won a name: ‘prayer shaming.’” Noonan then expressed more concerns:
…Americans are growing weary of being told what they can and cannot publicly say, proclaim and think. We all know what’s going on at the colleges, with the mad little Marats and Robespierres who are telling students and administrators what they are and are not allowed to say or do. This is not just kids acting up at this point, it’s a real censorship movement backed by an ideology that is hostile to the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It is led by students who, though they managed to get into the greatest universities in the country, seem never to have been taught to love the little amendment that guarantees free speech and free religious observance, the two pillars without which America collapses. And too bad, because when you don’t love something you lose it.
It is my impression that what is happening on the campuses is starting to break through as a real threat to what used to be called normal Americans.
From Berean Research:
Spirit of Error reports on Ted Cruz’s big endorsement — Mike Bickle (details below). Before I get to their report, I need to remind readers that in 2011 the NAR arranged The Response: A Call to Prayer for then Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Not only did NAR self-professed prophets declare Gov. Perry God’s anointed president, they also proclaimed that Texas would lead the U.S. to an economic and spiritual recovery.
Turned out the “prophets” were mistaken about Perry. During the first debate he made a couple of huge blunders and was unable to recover from them. Soon thereafter he bowed out of the race. Perhaps someone on the campaign trail will remind Sen. Cruz that Rick Perry was once the anointed president.
From Berean Research:
One must wonder why Christian historian David Barton and Mormon Glenn Beck have been spending so much time together. And when they pray, what are they praying for? Is it Beck’s repentance and salvation in Jesus Christ of the Bible?
Well, not exactly.
As a follow up to Marsha’s must-read article, Controversial Christian historian David Barton…misinterpretations…errors…and Glenn Beck, Warren Throckmorton emailed us to share this interesting video and article. Notice what Barton is praying, and how afterward Beck is deeply affected.
From the Museum of Idolatry:
Jonathan Cahn’s transition to the dark side is now complete. He has now taken his eschatologically indefensible prognostications to the Dark Lord of the Heretical Sith, Ken Copeland.
“I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.” — Romans 16:17–18
Need we say more?
By Marsha West
“If your family homeschools, or if you send your kids to a Christian school, or even if you are actively involved in Republican politics, listen to talk radio, and consider yourself a TEA party oriented person, the name David Barton has circled around your orbit at least a few times.” ~ Fred Butler, Hip & Thigh
“America’s favorite historian” (at one time) has become a controversial figure. A few years ago David Barton was criticized for “cherry-picking” historical citations to present a Christian narrative of American history. Not surprisingly Christian bashers on the Left accused Barton of misinterpretations and errors in his writing. They weren’t alone in their criticism. A number of highly regarded conservative evangelicals and Catholics jumped on the bandwagon and began criticizing his misuse of information. Jay W. Richards of the Discovery Institute was one such critic. Richards, a Catholic, was so troubled by some of Barton’s writings that he invited a group of politically conservative evangelicals and Catholic historians to take part in an evaluation. Dr. Gregg Frazer of the Masters College in Santa Clarita, CA agreed to participate. Frazer, a conservative evangelical, authored The Religious Beliefs of the American Founders: Reason, Religion, and Revolution. In his book he states his belief that America’s Founders were neither deists nor Christians, they were something in-between. The term he uses is “theistic rationalist.” When Frazer critiqued David Barton’s popular video America’s Godly Heritage he found many of its factual claims questionable. For example: Barton’s claim that “52 of the 55 delegates at the Constitutional Convention were ‘orthodox, evangelical Christians.’” According to Frazer, Barton’s claim is bogus.
Christian Bible and book publisher Thomas Nelson published Barton’s book The Jefferson Lies: Exposing the Myths You’ve Always Believed About Thomas Jefferson and later had the books pulled from bookstores and stopped distribution for what it deemed factual issues with the text.
Even though Thomas Nelson made the decision to bail out, the book has been offered on Barton’s website, WallBuilders.com and on Amazon.com.
According to Warren Throckmorton of Patheos:
Even the Family Research Council recognized flaws in Barton’s presentations and pulled his Capitol Tour video from view. Also, Focus on the Family edited Barton’s talks to remove two major historical errors. (Source)
The Berean Call reported on the Barton brouhaha and quoted Casey Michel of TPM as saying:
[Jay] Richards emphasizes that he and the scholars he consulted about Barton largely agree with Barton’s belief that Christian principles played a major role in America’s founding, but Richards argues that Barton’s books and videos are full of “embarrassing factual errors, suspiciously selective quotes, and highly misleading claims.”
Berean Call concluded that:
While we have no doubt that Christians and Scriptural principles have influenced this nation, we need to stick to the facts. Because Barton’s research has often been shown to be in error, he has become a favorite target of skeptics who point to his errors and use it as ammunition in attacking believers. In short, carelessness or lack of integrity is counterproductive to the cause we would advance.
Recently World Net Daily decided that Thomas Nelson removed Barton’s book from publication because of “political correctness.” So WND’s CEO, Joseph Farah, published it in January 2016 and it’s available on WND at this writing. (View the article)
With this background in mind, let’s move to the current day and the main purpose of this article. Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) announced that David Barton has been given his own TV show which first aired January 8. The TBN press release states,
Once deeply respected around the world as a place of hope and opportunity, the United States of America today stands at a crucial crossroads as it faces serious issues central to faith, family, and freedom. But what if an entire generation of Americans could re-discover the bold, courageous, and compelling history that made their nation the “land of the free and the home of the brave”?
Evidently the powers that be who run TBN (Jan Crouch and sons Paul, Jr. and Matt) are unaware of the uproar Barton’s book on Thomas Jefferson caused. Either that or they don’t care that several prominent conservative historians have come out and said that his scholarship is shoddy. Likewise, they must be unaware of the statement Thomas Nelson’s Vice President and Publisher Brian Hampton made concerning this matter:
When the concerns came in, from multiple people, and that had weight too, we were trying to sort things out. Were these matters of opinion? Were they differences of interpretation? But as we got into it, our conclusion was that the criticisms were correct. There were historical details — matters of fact, not matters of opinion, that were not supported at all. (Source)
Continuing with TBN’s announcement:
With the help of special guests like conservative television host Glenn Beck, former Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, law professor Dr. Carol Swain, and others, David Barton explores America’s founding principles and values to discover how the Founding Fathers used the Bible as a blueprint to ensure the heritage of liberty Americans have cherished for over two hundred years.
Well this is interesting. Glenn Beck will be a guest on the show? Beck’s a member in good standing of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Um…Mormons reject the Trinity, as in the T in TBN. Do Jan & Sons not know that Mormons contend they’re the true remnant of the Christian church — the one true church?
Since Mormonism denies central doctrines of the faith it’s not Christian by any stretch. In fact, Mormonism is considered a theological cult or a sect. Don’t be fooled by the rumor that has been circulating for several years, fueled by David Barton, that Glenn Beck is a Christian and that he’s saved. If this is true, then why would Beck keep the news from his friends and fans? Moreover, a truly regenerate Christian would understand that he must cut all ties with the LDS Church and join a church where the true gospel of Christ is preached.
But Glenn Beck hasn’t cut ties with his church. Instead he promotes Mormonism.
It is astonishing that Jan & Sons don’t have a problem with Barton and a Mormon exploring America’s founding principles on their network when Barton’s creditability as a historian has been challenged and the Book of Mormon which Glenn Beck claims to believe in is riddled with historical inaccuracies. (One myth that science has laid to rest is the LDS assertion that they can trace the lineage of American Indians through a Jewish remnant called the Lamanites. According to the Book of Mormon a tribe from Israel made it all the way to the New World and that the Lamanites are “the principal ancestors of the American Indians.” View the story here.) Yet Glenn Beck stubbornly clings to the history of his church, which in many cases is provably false.
As I said above, David Barton is one who believes Glenn Beck is saved, meaning he’s a true Christian. He once told Life Today host Randy Robison that just because Glenn Beck attends a Mormon church “doesn’t say anything about his personal relationship with Jesus.”
Really?
So Barton’s unaware that the Jesus of Mormonism is not the Jesus of the Bible? Remember, Mormon’s reject the Trinity so their Jesus in not the Second Person of the Trinity. Belief in the Trinity is an essential of Christianity so it’s a nonnegotiable.
What exactly does Mormonism teach about God? Briefly,
God used to be a man on another world and that he became a god by following the laws and ordinances of his god on his home world. He brought his wife to this world, a woman he had married on the other world. She is essentially a goddess.
In his present god-state, he rules our world. He has a body of flesh and bones. Since god and his wife are both exalted persons, they each possess physical bodies. In their exalted states as deities, they produce spirit children that grow and mature in the spiritual realm. The first spirit born was Jesus. Afterwards, Lucifer was born along with the rest of us. So, Mormonism teaches that we all pre-existed in the spirit realm–having been produced from the union of god and his goddess wife. Therefore, we all existed in spirit form before coming down and entering the bodies of human babies that are being born on earth. During this ‘compression’ into the infant state, the memories of our pre-existence is ‘veiled.’ (Source)
So the Mormon’s god is an exalted man, Jesus was his first born son followed by Lucifer, thus Jesus and Lucifer are spirit brothers. According to Abraham 3:37 in “The Pearl of Great Price,” which is a canonical work of the LDS, both Jesus and Lucifer offered to die for the son’s and daughter’s sins:
Our oldest brother, Jesus Christ . . . said, “Here am I send me” . . . Satan, who was called Lucifer, also came, saying, “Behold, here am I, send me . . .” After hearing both sons speak, Heavenly Father said, “I will send the first,” Gospel Principles, 1997 Edition, Pages 17-18
Continuing with the interview. David Barton comments that “a lot of people judge Glenn on the label, he’s Mormon.” Well, yes, and why’s that a problem? It seems Barton doesn’t like labels, so we should ignore the Mormon label. Robison inquires: “You believe he’s a Christian in every sense of the word?” “I do,” replies Barton with a straight face. “I have literally watched him pray and hear from the Lord and turn on a dime.”
Now let’s be clear. As a Mormon, Glenn Beck would hear from the exalted god, who Mormons refer to as God the father, who is called Elohim. As you just read, Mormonism’s god is not the God described in the Bible. So it’s mystifying how David Barton, a man who obviously has a researcher’s mind, does not understand that historic orthodox Christianity’s God is the One True God. Thus the god of Mormonism is a counterfeit!
Mormon’s follow Joseph Smith’s made up Jesus and they believe in another gospel, a gospel that saves no one. I derive no pleasure in saying this, but God’s judgment will fall on those who reject the truth.
With all this information in mind, should we trust David Barton to accurately teach American history? I mean, it would appear that he hasn’t felt it necessary to look into LDS founder Joseph Smith’s concocted version of American history. And if Barton had looked into it, he’d have no trouble shredding the historic narrative of the Book of Mormon. So – what prevents someone who professes a love for history from bringing the truth to light? Fear of man, perhaps?
No doubt I’m going to be accused of judging. Hogwash! I’ve simply stated the facts – and some people won’t be able to handle the truth. But before shooting me an angry email, why not be a Berean? “Now these Jews [Bereans] were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” (Acts 17:11)
I’ll close with a quote from a piece by Discernment Research Group written in 2010 entitled The Next Great Awakening….Or Great Deadening: Part 2: Rallying Around the Seven Mountains:
David Barton…has been working very closely with Glenn Beck recently. Critics from all sides of the spectrum have begun to raise serious questions in the past few weeks. Barton’s fervor for saving America has seemed to blind him to the questionable doctrines of those with whom he associates. Sadly, many sincere patriotic Americans who are Christian believers have followed him like a pied piper, straight into these strange associations. Barton, by exhibiting such a profound lack of discernment, has tragically given great credibility to these many false apostles and prophets.
Research:
Mormonism a.k.a. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Related:
Publisher Pulls Controversial Thomas Jefferson Book, Citing Loss Of Confidence—National Public Radio
David Barton prays an anointing on Glenn Beck–video
David Barton sits down with Word of Faith heretic Kenneth Copeland and agrees with his unscriptural teaching.
Copyright by Marsha West, 2016. All rights reserved.
“Christian aid groups working among refugees in Iraq and other places are reporting how God is using unimaginable pain to bring people to Christ,” writes Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis.
From a human perspective, it’s very easy to feel discouraged in this day and age. It seems that no matter where we look around the world, there’s pain, suffering, and war. Our world longs for peace, but from a human viewpoint it seems hard (impossible, really) to find.
It’s important to remember that death and suffering was never originally part of God’s design. Everything was originally created “very good” (Genesis 1:31). It was Adam and Eve’s sin that brought death and suffering into God’s creation. The pain and suffering we see around us is a direct result of the rebellion of Adam and the continuing rebellion of his descendants.
We also need to remember that, even in the midst of pain, God is sovereign over circumstances. I’m reminded of a verse from Genesis, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 50:20). Right now in the Middle East, the radical Muslim group ISIS is terrorizing Christians, putting many of them to death. The horrors ISIS is inflicting on men, women, and children seems unfathomable to us in the West, yet this is a daily reality for many people. Well, out of these horrors God is working.
From Berean Research:
JD Hall of Pulpit & Pen reminds us that Albert Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, “is the alpha-dog of the Reformed theological world, one of the architects of the SBC’s Conservative Resurgence, and is generally speaking the smartest person in the room (literally). Mohler’s theology is impeccably sound, but decisions in recent years have left many shaking their heads.” JD chides Mohler for what he believes are his troubling personal relationships and political denominational promotions.
And then there’s ERLC Research Fellow and Liberty University professor Karen Swallow-Prior. According to JD, Swallow-Prior, a self-described feminist, “has repeatedly shown a disregard for biblical holiness in her associations.” This includes “attending a ‘gay Christian’ film festival, partnering with unbelievers to advise animal rights groups [and] joining with feminists that bash complementarianism.”
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.
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.
| Acts 20:29 |
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
Research:
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.”
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.
International Business Times reports:
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:
Continue reading — more videos. (This link no longer goes to the article)
Research
From The Museum of Idolatry :
Michael Brown recently wrote this article for Charisma News [CRN does not recommend Charisma News]:
Hillsong, Silent Night and the Danger of Judging by Outward Appearance
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.
HT Erin Benziger
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.
The Washington Times reports:
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.”
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.
From Berean Research:
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.
Respected blogger and pastor Tim Challies wrote this piece in 2014. Many people are unfamiliar with Mark Batterson and his book The Circle Maker so we thought it would be a good idea to share what’s been going on in some evangelical circles because of what Batterson teaches in his book. Tim also wrote a scathing review of Batterson’s book before he wrote this piece and provided a link to it. Believers must heed Tim’s warning: Don’t pray in circles!
Prying in circles is fast becoming a thing in some Evangelical churches. People have been taught to draw circles around the things they want, or even to walk in circles around the things they are sure the Lord ought to grant them. In either case, they are to pray around those things and in that way to claim them for the Lord.
The inspiration, I suppose, is Mark Batterson and his book The Circle Maker (my review). Batterson bases his prayer technique on a story from the life of Honi Ha-Ma’agel, a Jewish scholar who lived in the first century B.C. Jewish history records him as being a miracle-worker in the tradition of Elijah and Elisha. Here is a brief account of his greatest miracle:
On one occasion when God did not send rain well into the winter (in the geographic regions of Israel, it rains mainly in the winter), he drew a circle in the dust, stood inside it, and informed God that he would not move until it rained. When it began to drizzle, Honi told God that he was not satisfied and expected more rain; it then began to pour. He explained that he wanted a calm rain, at which point the rain calmed to a normal rain.
Related:
The Comments Mark Batterson Doesn’t Want You To See–Apprising Ministries
Excerpt: Below I [Chris Rosebrough of Fighting for the Faith] am posting the comments I left on Mark Batterson’s Blog today that he does not want you to see and therefore deleted. … This is the typical behavior of seeker-driven / purpose-driven “pastors”. Anyone who would dare to critique them Biblically or call them out regarding their false teaching and scripture twisting are NEVER honestly answered. Instead, they are brushed aside and are branded “pharisees”.