MinistryWatch’s Warren Cole Smith’s comments on one or more stories in the week’s news.
Prosperity Gospel on Steroids. I started hearing about David Oyedepo a few years ago, as I was doing research for a trip to Liberia to cover the Ebola crisis. He founded a church in Nigeria in 1981 that has come to be called The Winner’s Chapel. It is now in about 150 countries and claims 6 million members. At least 30 U.S. cities now have Winner’s Chapel churches. Continue reading
“Other players have taken similar actions for their religious beliefs such as Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov and San Jose Sharks goalie James Reimer. After refusing to wear the Pride jersey, Provorov jerseys immediately sold out online.”
(Post Millennial) In response to an increasing number of players engaging in silent protests against the NHL’s Pride Nights, a new report claims the league is re-evaluating the events which may lead to them being canceled. Continue reading
“Pickett’s description of a large library of compilation videos comes as federal prosecutors divulged in the case of one Jan. 6 defendant, William Pope, that there is police body-cam footage they don’t want to make public that shows D.C. Metropolitan Police officers — some in plain clothes — consorting with the protesters and even exhorting “Go! Go! Go!” as the protesters are trying to penetrate the Capitol.”
(John Solomon – Just the News) Two years after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, the issue of security footage is bedeviling law enforcement as federal prosecutors belatedly admit there is footage of some cops consorting with the riotous crowd and a retired Capitol Police executive divulges there are sizzle reels of all defendants inside the Capitol that were prepared for the FBI. Continue reading
Now, Collins…is arguing that the parents of this transgender person who committed this atrocity are equally culpable because they caused her to suffer a “devastating form of parental rejection.”
(The Dissenter) Everyone knows that the shooting that took place in Nashville by a transgender assailant was a hate crime that targeted Christianity and the Christian worldview. Several mainstream news outlets have attempted to spin this incident (because why wouldn’t they?) blaming it on the shooter’s Christian parents who refused to affirm her lifestyle. Continue reading
23 And on that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you. John 16:23
In our journey these past several weeks we have looked at the nature of faith, the veracity of the Bible as the Word of God, and the deity of Christ. Much of this has been done as the result of or in response to attacks by liberals, Christian and otherwise. I often ponder what could possibly be their goal…. Continue reading
“The radicals shout down anyone who disagrees, and they will bully, harass, and cancel them if they can. They are the rainbow fascists.”(Mary Dowling – Independent Sentinel) An English professor at Wayne State University, Steven Shaviro, says the Stanford hecklers who disrupted Judge Kyle Duncan didn’t go far enough. It is “far more admirable,” Steven Shaviro noted, to “kill” transphobes instead of shouting them down. Continue reading
“It is possible to reject a movement as a whole while at the same time rejoice if, in fact, the gospel is truly given and genuine conversions take place. For instance, the recently released movie Jesus Revolution is about the Jesus Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. While I reject much about this movement as a whole, I am thankful for any true conversions that took place within it, and I’m sure there were many.”
(Taigen Joos – G3 Ministries) addition to the prayers of our Savior, the prayers of the apostle Paul offer excellent material for the Christian to study if he seeks to grow in his prayer life. Continue reading
People’s carnal passions are being fed from pulpits with what is a NARcissistic gospel.
(Rick Becker – Famine in the Land) How does someone know if they’re deceived, or if they’re in a church that’s been deceived and deceiving their members? We know that the only answer is for the Holy Spirit to remove the scales of deception from their eyes. Then, through studying the scriptures and by the illumination of God’s word, they’re able to identify false teachings and practices. In many cases, the solution for the deceived individual is salvation. They are false converts who have been seduced by a false gospel – they need to be born again to grasp spiritual truths (1 Corinthians 2:14). This is precisely why so many warnings concerning false teachers and their false teachings fall on deaf ears…. Continue reading
“The group purports to seek revenge for what they term “trans genocide,” a conspiracy theory that claims that transgender people are systemically targeted with violence. However, an examination of FBI statistics by the Daily Wire shows no proof to corroborate this claim….”
(Matt Margolis – PJ Media) On Monday, 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale, a biological woman who identified as transgender, murdered six people, including three children, at The Covenant School, a private Christian grade school in Tennessee. Continue reading
57 Yahweh is my portion;
I have promised to keep Your words.
58 I have sought to please Your face with all my heart;
Be gracious to me according to Your word.
59 I thought upon my ways
And I turned my feet to Your testimonies.
60 I hastened and did not delay
To keep Your commandments.
61 The cords of the wicked have encircled me,
But I have not forgotten Your law.
62 At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You
Because of Your righteous judgments.
63 I am a companion of all those who fear You,
And of those who keep Your precepts.
64 The earth, O Yahweh, is full of Your lovingkindness;
Teach me Your statutes. Psalms 119:56-64 (LSB)
God does not need us. God is holy; therefore, He is fully fulfilled in Himself. His holy attributes show us His perfection and infinite power. At the fall of man, found in Genesis 3, God would have been perfectly justified in wiping out Adam and Eve then starting over. However, He did not. Praise the Lord He did not! God was merciful to Man whom He loves. He still is. Continue reading
(Protestia) That’s a weird headline.
Anyway. A woman attending James River Church’s recent service is facing scrutiny and skepticism after releasing a video claiming that three of her toes that were previously amputated were miraculously regrown during a healing service. According to reports:
The services were part of the church’s “Week of Power,” which included services by guest pastors Bill Johnson Of Bethel and Randy Clark.
“This isn’t just a Chinese bank, this is an American bank that was founded by Chinese Americans. After everything that we’ve been through with China, at this moment, only 15% of Americans trust China…the American people are rightly concerned. They deserve to have answers….”
(Kristen Altus – Fox News) As more confirmations come forth regarding the Biden family’s business dealings in China, Americans are calling on the president to address the “significant and important” financial connection. Continue reading
(The Dissenter) If you need more proof that Andy Stanley is a false convert leading people [astray], look no further than his most recent sermon.
Andy Stanley has been in our headlines quite a bit in recent weeks as we have exposed on a massive scale the pro-homosexual sentiment with his network of churches. Stanley, the pastor of North Point Ministries, preached a sermon a while back explaining how homosexuals have more faith than most Christians because, according to him, they love Jesus more than we do because they worship him despite all the “rejection” they get from Christians. Continue reading
“In his second clip, Dr. Campbell explains what was not tested, what was known, and still, they went ahead with the vaccines.”
(Mary Dowling – Independent Sentinel) “I think we can be certain this information was on Anthony Fauci’s desk…Bear in mind all this was known before the vaccines were approved…I’m struggling for words,” Dr. John Campbell, who once pushed the vaccines.
Dr. Anthony Fauci Had to Know
Dr. John Campbell’s talk in the clip below concerns a 58-page government document that we link to below…. Continue reading
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, he made us alive with Christ — by grace you have been saved — 6 and he raised us with him and seated us with him in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus, 7 that he might display in the coming ages the surpassing wealth of his grace in his kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7 translated from the NA28 Greek text)
Let us this day focus on our wonderful God with worshipful, grateful hearts. Back several years ago when I was confronted with Reformation Theology, I was amazed that the passages that the Holy Spirit used to “nail it” firmly in my heart that it was what best lined up with the Bible in all areas of doctrine were many if not all of the same passages that I had taught from, memorized in Evangelism Explosion training, and read every day during my devotions…. Continue reading
“How frustrating it is then to hear the role of the Holy Spirit reduced to providing the charismatic gifts of prophecy, tongues, and miraculous healings in the minds of many. The Holy Spirit fills us without the extravagance of outward wonders. After all, His goal is not to get our attention and become our focus, but to direct us to Jesus Christ in whom we find our salvation and our souls’ rest.”
(John Divito – Founders Ministries) Will the debate over the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit ever cease? Maybe not, with many books coming out, debates being held, and conferences taking place on this controversial subject. One of the primary reasons for the intensity of this issue is that it directly relates to how we should live the Christian life…. Continue reading
“The use of music to manufacture “feelings of spirituality” is exactly why Hillsong and the whole contemporary worship music movement are so popular—take away the music, and you eliminate the “feelings of spirituality.”…The use of music to manufacture “revival” is what drove the events at Asbury—take away the music, and you eliminate the “revival.” Since when is a bunch of college kids swaying to music for multiple consecutive days revival?”
(Scott Anoil – By the Waters of Babylon) When Christ was asked about the great commandment in the Law, he answered without hesitation: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Mt 22:37). True worship of God is centered in our affections for him. As Jonathan Edwards rightly observed, “True religion, in great part, consists in holy affections.” Indeed, a purely intellectualized worship is no worship at all. Continue reading
“As Francis Chan continues down this path of ecumenism, however, it’s surprising to see those, like David Platt, who once upon a time stood as a living monument to biblical fidelity and against false teachings suddenly slip into a path embracing everything from social justice to charismaticism, to, well, now even Francis Chan’s nonsense.”
(The Dissenter) The controversial preacher Francis Chan, known for his increasingly ecumenical views that blur the lines between biblical Christianity and other denominations such as Roman Catholicism, is once again promoting a superficial unity among diverse and often contradictory Christian denominations. Continue reading
14 What use is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead by itself.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith; and I have works. Show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” James 2:14-18 (LSB)
The passage I placed at the beginning of this article is one the most abused and misunderstood passages that I know of. If it is read casually, it can be easily misunderstood. If it is exposited by someone possessing a faulty hermeneutic, it can be twisted to say what no other part of the Bible teaches, that faith plus works is required for salvation. Continue reading
“Watch this bizarre story about how Greg Laurie was converted by Lonnie Frisbee.”
(The Dissenter) Greg Laurie is an American author, evangelist, and senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship, a megachurch located in Riverside, California. He was born on December 10, 1952, in Long Beach, California, and according to his own testimony, he became a Christian in 1970 at the age of 17 during the Jesus Revolution involving weird charismatics and, apparently, a practicing homosexual. Laurie has been married to his wife, Cathe, since 1974. Continue reading
(Ray Fava – Evangelical Dark Web) A recently surface video from the “Racism In The White Church” conference shows Beth Moore going full Robin DiAngelo trying to convince white people how racist they are. Woke Preacher Clips unveiled a video in which Beth Moore describes a white friend of hers who wants to be an ally, who swears he’s not a racist.
According to Beth Moore, this friend of his cannot see for the life of him that he is the racist…. Continue reading
“In the past, Greisen had been featured in videos and podcasts by ministries including Summit Ministries, the Colson Center, and Moody Audio.”
(Steve Rabey – MinistryWatch) Steve Greisen, a Christian filmmaker and a veteran of the Jesus movement’s 1970s-era music scene, pled guilty Wednesday in Colorado Springs to a criminal attempt to solicit online sex with a minor.
In a plea deal, Greisen agreed to register as a sex offender and spend five years in Colorado’s supervision program for sex offenders…. Continue reading
(Lee Brown – New York Post) A former women’s cycling champion angrily quit the sport after losing to a transgender rider — a decision followed just days later by another trans cyclist declaring she felt like a “superhero” for her women’s race win in New York.
Champion cyclocross rider Hannah Arensman bolstered her decision with a statement in a Supreme Court filing on the issue.
“I have decided to end my cycling career,” Arensman said last Wednesday. Continue reading
“And the magnitude of that negativity increases over time. What does that mean, folks? It literally means that the people who received that vaccine were more likely to contract COVID-19 after seven months than the people who did not. That is a fact.” – Florida Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo
(Mary Dowling – Independent Sentinel) New Zealand’s 2020 Excess Diseases
DATA from the New Zealand Ministry of Health revealed a 103 percent increase in hospitalizations among 12 disease categories measured in 2021 following the mRNA rollout. Read the article here. This calls into serious question the safety of medical interventions such as mRNA vaccines…. Continue reading
41 May Your lovingkindnesses also come to me, O Yahweh,
Your salvation according to Your word; 42 So I will have an answer for him who reproaches me, For I trust in Your word.43 And do not take away the word of truth utterly from my mouth, For I wait for Your judgments. 44 So I will keep Your law continually,
Forever and ever. 45 And I will walk in a wide place, For I seek Your precepts. 46 I will also speak of Your testimonies before kings And I shall not be ashamed. 47 I shall delight in Your commandments, Which I love. 48 And I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments, Which I love; And I will muse on Your statutes. Psalms 119:40-48 (LSB)
The more I study doctrine and research the incredible variances of those held by theologians and denominations the more I realize there are really only two types. One type is focused solely on God’s Glory and is dynamically linked to His sovereignty. The other type (which includes all but God-focused Christianity) is Man based…. Continue reading