Bart Campolo says progressive Christians turn into atheists. Maybe he’s right

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

Bart Campolo is the son of Tony Campolo who is a leading spokesman for the Emergent Church movement (EC). These people call themselves Progressive Christians. Ken Silva, who exposed the EC movement for what it is, described it as “the sinfully ecumenical neo-liberal cult of the Emergent Church aka the Emerging Church”

Campolo Sr. is also a “Red Letter Christian.” But this is not about the father; it’s about the son and how his process of adjusting his theology to match his experience has shipwrecked his faith. According to Sam Hailes, Bart has “‘skipped over’ the ‘progressive re-vamping’ of Christianity and gone straight to the logical conclusion that God doesn’t exist. He reckons that Progressive Christians should stop pretending God exists in the form of ‘the universe’ or other wishy-washy language.”

Well, at least Bart Campolo is willing to admit that the god progressive/liberal “Christians” believe in is not the God of the Bible.

Premiere Christianity, a magazine out of the UK, has the story of Bart Campolo’s drift into atheism:

Fundamentalist Christians will sometimes warn that any deviation from historic evangelical beliefs (however small) is a stepping stone toward full-blown atheism. In other words, Christians must accept that hell is eternal, the Bible is inerrant and God created everything in six literal 24 hour days. If you remove any of these doctrines, it won’t be long before you’re denying your faith altogether!

Younger evangelicals like myself tend to reject this way of thinking. We see legitimate room to differ on how to interpret doctrines like creation and sovereignty. It’s often only the core creedal statements about the existence of God and Christ’s resurrection or divinity which are non-negotiable. Whether because of pressure from culture, or an honest re-reading of scripture, we’re susceptible to changing our minds on other doctrines that previous generations of Christians have held dear.

But what’s surprising is it turns out our older fundamentalist friends aren’t the only people who think progressive Christianity can be a stepping stone to atheism. At least one atheist agrees with this theory!

View article →

Unevenly Yoked

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching ∙

Do not be mismated with unbelievers. For what partnership have righteousness and iniquity? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14 RSV),

Mismated is literally a term that means unequally yoked. A yoke is a wooden frame or bar with loops at either end, fitted around the necks of two animals, which tied them together and forced them to function as one. That is what Paul speaks of here. He is thinking of Deuteronomy 22, where the Law says, Do not plow with an ox and a donkey yoked together (Deuteronomy 22:10). That may seem strange to us, but God was concerned that the Israelites not tie together two animals of a different nature.

I have never seen an ox and an ass yoked together, though once when I was traveling in the Middle East I saw a farmer plowing his field with a camel and a donkey. It was almost ludicrous to watch. The camel was three times the height of the donkey, and its legs were three times as long. It was striding along at a rather slow pace for a camel, but the little donkey was running as fast as it could to keep up. The farmer kept beating the donkey all the time, trying to get it to keep up. It was cruel.  View article →

Satanic Temple Wants Followers to Force Christian Bakers to Make a Cake to ‘Honor Satan’

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , ,

According to Christian News:

The Massachusetts-based Satanic Temple, out of its dissatisfaction with Christian-owned bakeries that decline to make cakes celebrating same-sex “weddings,” is now asking its followers to force bakers to make a cake for Satan.

The group says that it came up with the idea in light of the Masterpiece Cakeshop case soon to be considered by the U.S. Supreme Court.

“[B]ecause sexual orientation is not a protected class under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, (whereas race and religion are), there is a good chance that the right to discriminate against gay couples will be affirmed as a constitutional liberty,” it wrote.

Out of the Satanic Temple’s fears that the court will likely rule in favor of the cakeshop, it has asked that those “who feel alienated or oppressed by the privileged status that religion holds over sexual orientation” contact religious bakers and order a cake to “honor Satan.”

View article →

‘If You Obey God, You Will Never Be Broke,’ TD Jakes Says

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , ,

The following news story from Christian Post is for informational and research purposes only. We do not endorse CP, as the publication is sorely lacking in discernment. Before we get to Leonardo Blair’s piece, you should know that T.D. Jakes is a Oneness Pentecostal (anti-trinitarian). As you’re about to see, Rev. Jakes shamelessly propagates the false prosperity gospel that distorts the true Gospel of Jesus Christ:

Popular megachurch pastor, Bishop T.D. Jakes of The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, sparked a furor online Sunday when he told his 2.8 million followers on Twitter that if they obey God, they will never be broke again.

“If you obey GOD you will never be broke another day in your life. #AndItCameToPass#tphonline,” a post on Jakes’ Twitter account said at 11:04 a.m. on Sunday.

The Christian Post reached out to The Potter’s House on Thursday to verify if the tweet was made by Jakes himself or an account administrator but no one was available.

On Monday, critics began questioning the biblical genesis of the statement and Jakes responded: “David said, ‘yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.'”

View article →

 

‘Miracles really do happen,’ Scalise says to House

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , , ,

Baptist Press has the story:

Steve Scalise, the House’s majority whip and a leading conservative in the Republican Party, spoke today (Sept. 28) after walking into the packed chamber with the aid of crutches. He was shot June 14 at an Alexandria, Va., park as GOP members practiced for the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity.

His ability to return to the House “starts with God,” Scalise said. “When I was laying out on that ball field, the first thing I did once I was down and I couldn’t move anymore was I just started to pray. And I tell you it gave me an unbelievable sense of calm, knowing at that point it was in God’s hands.

“But I prayed for very specific things,” he told his colleagues. “And I’ll tell you, pretty much every one of those prayers was answered, and there were some pretty challenging prayers I was putting in God’s hand. But He really did deliver for me and my family. And it just gives you that renewed faith and understanding that the power of prayer is something that you just cannot underestimate.”

View article →

Witch doctors in Uganda sacrificing children in bid to end drought, report says

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , ,

Fox News reports:

Witch doctors are sacrificing children in Uganda, looking to turn the tide with miracles in the drought-stricken country, a new report says.

Officials in Uganda say the number of human sacrifices are on the rise, as the East African country battles its worst drought in more than half a century. More than 11 million people are facing food insecurity and more than 1.6 million are on the brink of famine.

“There is no food due to the ongoing drought, and some believe that this has been brought by ancestral spirits,” Joel Mugoya, a traditional, told the Religion News Service, according to USA Today. “So there is a high desire for people to conduct sacrifices so that they come out of this problem.”

View article →

 

Music and Theology

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

1 I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O LORD, I will make music. Psalm 101:1 (ESV) 

Not only was Martin Luther an accomplished theologian and beloved pastor, but he also had some gifting for music. He wrote many hymns, many of which are sung to this day not only by those in the Lutheran tradition but by other Protestants as well. Perhaps the best known is “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” which is based on Psalm 46. Luther well understood the power and influence of music. His understanding is well captured in his statement that “music is the handmaiden of theology.”

Like a handmaiden who assists her master, music serves theology and the teaching of God’s Word. And like a handmaiden, music can be a good servant or a bad servant. When music is a good servant, it provides the right setting for the teaching of God’s truth and for helping the people of God grasp the deep things of the Lord. Quality hymns and songs enrich our hearts and minds, driving home what God has revealed to His people. On the other hand, when music is a bad servant, it gets in the way of good theology. Poorly crafted music and lyrics promote error. As an art form, music always communicates something, and it can communicate either truth or error. View article →

Flag Worship and the Idolatry of American Patriotic Christianity

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ ,

“This nation is plagued with sin and needs the gospel and the Church is commissioned to take it to the world,” Jeff Maples reminds us. “Yet, we have men like Josh Feuerstein garnering support by the hundreds of thousands to boycott Starbucks because of the color of the cups they use at Christmas and Robert Jeffress running around with false teachers like Paula White and Kenneth Copeland to promote Donald Trump’s patriotic Christianity, virtue signaling, and idolatrous utopian American system of freedom while denying the power of the gospel to change the hearts of the lost (2 Timothy 3:5-7).”

Read more of Maples’ view of “Patriotic Christianity” over at Pulpit & Pen:

Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. –2 Timothy 2:23

I must admit it’s been fascinating to watch the hordes of professing Christians get fired up this past week after Donald Trump’s speech calling NFL players who kneeled during the pledge of allegiance or singing of the national anthem “sons of b**ches.” If you’ve been watching the brouhaha brewing over this debacle, it becomes apparent that Christians in America are willing to latch onto any cause that preserves their idols of freedom and entertainment.

On the one hand, you have the black community who, in many cases, believe they have been marginalized and mistreated by society under the American flag and on the other hand, you have the patriotic idolaters of this nation who, under no circumstances, can allow any apparent disrespect to happen to this nation.

View article →

Why Wasn’t Nabeel Qureshi Healed? (In Response to Dr. Michael Brown’s Article)

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

From Berean Research:

Pastor Gabriel Hughes responds to a piece Dr. Michael Brown wrote on the recent death of Muslim turned Christian apologist Nabeel Qureshi. “Heaven was hardly mentioned in Dr. Brown’s article,” Hughes noted. Not surprisingly a call to repentance by Brown wasn’t given at all. His message was basically, ‘Most people won’t be physically healed, and hardly anyone is ever healed of something major like stomach cancer, even by modern medicine, but pray as though they will be healed anyway, regardless of God’s will.'”

In his piece Brown made the following comment:

You might say, ‘Obviously, people who die of sickness don’t have enough faith.’ But that would also mean that the many people who prayed for Nabeel, including some used powerfully in healing, lacked faith, too. And if you have so much faith, why didn’t you successfully pray for his healing?

To which Pastor Hughes responded:

Yeah, looking at you, Benny Hinn, Joyce Meyer, Ken and Gloria Copeland, Todd White, and Bethel Church! Where was all the naming it and claiming it for Nabeel?

So with this background in mind, on to Gabriel Hughes’ response to high profile charismatic leader Michael Brown:

Nabeel Qureshi, best-selling author of Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, died of stomach cancer this past Saturday at the age of 34. I never met Nabeel, but I followed his ministry and believed him to be a dear brother in the Lord. Nabeel grew up a devout Ahmadi Muslim. His college roommate, David Wood, challenged his beliefs in the Quran, Muhammad, and Allah, and helped lead him to saving faith in the one true God, Jesus Christ (1 John 5:20).

View article →

Rick Warren Hopes His Partnership With Roman Catholic Leader Will Become ‘Model’ for World

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , ,

A 2008 article in The Washington Post described Rick Warren, one of the most visible Southern Baptists in the world, as “a megachurch pastor and philanthropist who is courted by political leaders worldwide, says he thinks Christianity needs a ‘second Reformation’ that would steer the church away from divisive politics and be ‘about deeds, not creeds.’” (Source)  Clearly he has forgotten what the Protestant Reformation was about, as you will see in this piece over at Christian News:

Photo credit: Apprising Ministries

Megachurch leader Rick Warren, known for his best-selling book “The Purpose-Driven Life,” said in a recent interview that he hopes his partnership with a local Roman Catholic leader to collaboratively combat social ills becomes a “model” for others around the world. His remarks have drawn disagreement from those who believe that ecumenism with those who preach another gospel is unbiblical.

The Roman Catholic site Crux published the interview, which featured both Warren and friend Kevin Vann of the Diocese of Orange, on Sept. 14. They were asked by interviewer and diocese Chancellor Pia de Solenni to share about how their friendship formed and developed.

Vann recalled that Warren attended his installation as the bishop of Orange and also called to congratulate him. The two continued to communicate and soon also began praying together.

View article →

See our Research Paper on Roman Catholicism

Self-Righteousness vs Inward Cleanliness

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

24 You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Matthew 23:24 (NASB) 

A huge trap that Christians can fall into is self-righteousness. It is a form of idolatry and that always causes spiritual blindness (Romans 1:24-25). Self-righteousness puts all effort towards godliness in the wrong place. It creates a form of piety that is all about outward appearances while putting little or no priority on matters of the heart. It is all about being concerned about appearances and what others think rather than being totally committed to abiding in Christ from within first. The self-righteous are consciously holy. However, that is not what we are called to be. Christians must be consciously repentant and unconsciously holy. The difference is huge for these are totally opposite walks. View article →

Kris Vallotton — Following the Bible is Small Minded

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , ,

What is “noted prophetic voice” Kris Vallotton up to now? Anthony Wade of 8:28 Ministries dissects his new teaching where he applies Scripture out of context to sell “carnal magic tricks.”:

He is at it again. Mega-heretic Kris Vallotton from the cesspool that is Bethel Church has written another blog post revealing further the depraved mind of a false teacher. Most false teachers you can pin down to a primary deception but Vallotton is a new breed who ascribes to nearly every false teaching there is and rolls them into his hybrid form of Christianity. A firm NAR adherent, Vallotton also ascribes to the prosperity gospel, false signs and lying wonders, word faith, and experiential Christianity; just to name a few. His enemy is the Bible and anyone who insists on reliance upon the Bible. This has never been more obvious than in the link above entitled, “I’m Tired of Small-Minded Christianity.” Let us reason together beloved again as we embark on a dangerous journey through this wicked mind that is leading so many people straight to hell. Do not lose sight of the fact that he seems to actually believe this garbage he writes.

“It troubles me that many people who claim to be Christians live with limited, powerless, finite thinking. How is this even possible? I mean, how do people who claim to have the Creator of the Universe living inside of them, the mind of Christ thinking through them, and the Spirit of God influencing the world around them even have the nerve to think small? I’d propose that we believers don’t have permission to live with limited mindsets!” — Kris Vallotton

View article →

The Simon the Sorcerer Mentality – Jennifer LeClaire and Jeremy Gibson

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

Is the Spirit of God a product up for purchase if only you will make the right sacrificial transaction? According to Is Not Satire, some charismatic leaders think so. Get a load of this:

Jennifer LeClaire and Jeremy Gibson are helping to bring the mentality of Simon the sorcerer from Acts 8 right into the 21st century church.

In Acts 8 Simon the sorcerer acted like the work of the Holy Spirit was something he could own and control if only paid the right price. Peter rebuked him, and informed Simon that his heart was not in the right place.

18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.” 24 And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.” (ESV)

Jennifer LeClaire and Jeremy Gibson have the same mentality about the work of the Holy Spirit. They treat the Holy Spirit’s activity and anointing like a possession to be owned, or a good to be obtained if only you will pay a price. Here are two recent Facebook posts.

View article →

Sex diseases in US surge to record high

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , ,

Yahoo News reports:

Sexually transmitted diseases surged to a record high in the United States last year, with more than two million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis nationwide, officials said Tuesday.

This was “the highest number ever,” said the annual Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance Report released today by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Most of the new cases — 1.6 million in 2016 — involved chlamydia, a bacterial infection that affects both men and women.

Gonorrhea also increased among men and women last year, but the steepest rise was among men (22 percent), said the report.

Nationwide, gonorrhea cases reached 470,000, with a large share of new gonorrhea cases among men who have sex with men.

These trends are “particularly alarming” because of the growing threat of gonorrhea becoming resistant to the last recommended treatment, according to the CDC report.

View article →

Give Me Jesus

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

Give Me Jesus

In the morning, when I rise In the morning, when I rise In the morning, when I rise, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus Give me Jesus

You can have all this world But give me Jesus

And when I am alone Oh, and when I am alone And when I am alone, give me Jesus

Give me Jesus Give me Jesus

You can have all this world But give me Jesus

And when I come to die Oh, and when I come to die And when I come to die, give me Jesus

“Give Me Jesus” is a traditional Black Gospel song. The author is unknown and when it is performed reverently, with all focus on the Lord, not on self, I find myself worshipping and often weeping with joy. Many artists have recorded this song like Jeremy Camp and Fernando Ortega. I have both in my library. I seem to listen to Fernando’s version the most though there is nothing wrong with Jeremy Camp’s. In any case, this last Sunday in church we sang this song as part of our worship service. Man oh man! Everything came alive! Why? Our focus was on Jesus as our all-in-all! Who needs the nonsense this lost and dying world has to offer? Where is your treasure? If you are clinging to the stuff of this world as your treasure then you cannot sing this song and worship the Lord in spirit and in truth. Please mediate on this today and repent as the Lord leads.

Wm. Paul Young Teaches New Age Lie About Separation on TBN

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

From Berean Research:

For those who haven’t yet heard, “The Shack” author, William Paul Young, is from a New Age/New Spirituality persuasion (like Oprah); likewise, Young rejects the Penal Substitutionary Atonement (that Jesus took the penalty for our sins on the cross). So with this in mind, it’s rather odd that he uses the term “Christian” to describe his religious beliefs.  A mouse in the cookie jar is not a cookie, brethren.

The truth is, Young is a first rate manure spreader. “The Shack,” purchased mainly by the Christian community (sadly) has nothing to do with biblical Christianity. The fact of the matter is that the book is riddled with the worst kind of heresy imaginable. (Read our coverage here.)

In a piece over at Lighthouse Trails, Warren B. Smith fills us in on Paul Young’s continuing effort to destroy the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. (Jude 1:3) He writes: 

On the March 12, 2017 episode 5 of Restoring The Shack television series on the TBN Christian television network, Shack author Wm. Paul Young stated it is a “lie” to believe that God is “separate” from His creation. Invoking a vision that was reputedly given by God to friend and fellow author C. Baxter Kruger, Young described this alleged lie as the “lie of separation.” But as a former New Ager, I recognized what Young was calling the “lie of separation” was in and by itself a lie. What he was teaching had nothing to do with biblical Christianity and everything to do with the false teachings of the New Age/New Spirituality/New World view. In fact, what Young was attempting to convey to countless TBN viewers was the same thing I had been taught and was teaching when I was in the New Age—that there is “no separation” between God and creation because God is “in” everyone and everything.

View article →

Religious News Association Panel: James Goll, Holly Pivec and Paula White talk on NAR

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

According to Churchwatch Central (CWC) there were two very dangerous people on the RNA panel with Julia Duin and Holly Pivec — James Goll and Paula White. What makes Goll and White so dangerous? Both of them are self-appointed apostles of the New Apostolic Reformation. These two were “quite prepared to lie to a media audience who could only take what they were saying at face value,” says CWC. In their opinion, Goll and White “gave lip service to the Bible, the Reformation and the historic Christian creeds misleading others to advance their movement…”

CWC has included a must watch video of the panel discussion:

Photo credit: Spirit of Error

Recently, the Religious News Association (RNA) had a panel discussion with NAR Apostle James Goll, NAR Apostle Paula White and Apologist and Polemicist Holly Pivec. The panel topic was ‘The New Revivalists’. Thanks to the work of Holly Pivec and her well-researched presentation, many reporters now understand that the Presidential Spiritual Advisor, Paula White, is part of the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR).

The entire panel discussion is well worth listening to, with James Goll (inadvertently) naming those who are part of the New Apostolic Reformation. The entire discussion can be watched here:

View article →

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee Kneels On House Floor In Support Of NFL Players

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , ,

Real Clear Politics reports:

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) took to the House floor Monday night to kneel in solidarity with NFL players who chose defy President Trump and protest police brutality. Jackson Lee said you “cannot deny” that Trump calling players who kneel a [SOB]  is “racism.”

“I kneel in honor of them. I kneel in front of the flag and on this floor,” Jackson Lee declared.

“I kneel in honor of the First Amendment. I kneel because the flag is a symbol for freedom. I kneel because I’m going to stand against racism. I kneel because I will stand with those young men and I’ll stand with our soldiers. And I’ll stand with America, because I kneel.”  View article →

Related:

Steve Bannon: NFL Players Should Take A Knee Every Night And Thank God In Heaven Donald Trump Is President

Rush Limbaugh on NFL Controversy: “There’s No Way Trump Loses”

The angry Jesus

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

12 After this He went down to Capernaum, He and His mother and His brothers and His disciples; and they stayed there a few days. 13 The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. 15 And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables; 16 and to those who were selling the doves He said, “Take these things away; stop making My Father’s house a place of business.” John 2:12-16 (NASB) 

Some today have made a caricature of our Lord Jesus Christ. This man-made image is far from the truth we see in Sacred Scripture. There have been some who have even portrayed the Bible as revealing two separate “Gods,” the mean, angry God of the Old Testament, and the kind, gentle Jesus of the New Testament. The former is an image contrived by those who resent God’s commands for holiness and righteousness while the latter is vastly incomplete and derived by those who are either ignorant of what the New Testament teaches about our Lord or they are deliberately ignoring what it says. View article →

O’Reilly Warns Ingraham: The Left Is ‘Going to Come After You’

Posted by ∙ ∙ In News ∙ , ,

According to LifeZette’s Katherine Blackhurst, Bill O’Reilly says prime-time TV has become a “hateful arena where the truth doesn’t matter.” O’Reilly stated that in 42 years he worked with a dozen companies and “he ‘never had one complaint’ lodged against him with human resources.” Blackhurst has the story:

Former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly warned LifeZette Editor-in-Chief Laura Ingraham that the far Left is “going to come after you” because the talk-show landscape is a “hateful arena where the truth doesn’t matter,” during an interview Wednesday on “The Laura Ingraham Show.”

O’Reilly, who left the network in April amid sexual harassment claims, said Ingraham — whose upcoming Fox News show, “The Ingraham Angle,” will debut on October 30 — will be targeted as part of the smear campaign orchestrated by the far Left to take conservative voices off the air.

View article →

 

Protestant and Catholic: What’s the Difference?

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , ,

October 31st marks the 500th anniversary of the revolt against the abuses and totalitarian control of the Roman Catholic Church known as the Protestant Reformation. To help us understand why there still remains a very wide divide between Protestants and Catholics, pastor and best-selling author Kevin DeYoung lays out a few of the main points that cause the separation so that those who are unfamiliar with RCC theology will know why there still remains a wide divide, and never the twain shall meet. He writes:

Ask a serious Protestant today what is the biggest threat to orthodox Christianity today, and he might mention cultural hostilities, the sexual revolution, or nominalism in our churches. But if you would have asked a Protestant the same question a hundred years ago, he would have almost certainly mentioned the Roman Catholic Church. Until fairly recently, Protestants and Catholics in this country were, if not enemies, then certainly players on opposing teams.

Today, much of that animosity has melted away. And to a large extent, the thaw between Protestants and Catholics has been a good thing. Sincere Protestants and Catholics often find themselves to be co-belligerents, defending the unborn, upholding traditional marriage, and standing up for religious liberty. And in an age that discounts doctrine, evangelical Protestants often share more in common theologically with a devout Roman Catholic steeped in historic orthodoxy than they do with liberal members of their own denominations. I personally have benefited over the years from Catholic authors like G. K. Chesterton, Richard John Neuhaus, and Robert George.

View article →

See our Research Paper on the Roman Catholic Church

Beth Moore Praises Brother Lawrence and Obscures the Reformation

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Opinion ∙ , , ,

For those who are still in the dark regarding SBC darling Beth Moore’s slide into apostasy, six years ago the late Ken Silva of Apprising Ministries penned a piece to warn her many fans that she had become “iffy about Reformation theology.” As often happens, the video clip Ken used to prove his case has been removed from YouTube. so replacing it with a video produced by Emergent Watch Media was necessary:

September 4, 2011

The largely pretending to be Protestant evangelical community continues its pilgrimage back to the legalistic spiritual bondage of apostate Roman Catholicism and its evil author the Church of Rome.

As an online apologetics and discernment work Apprising Ministries does what we can to document this woeful walk away from the truths recaptured during the Lord’s Reformation; how sad He must be.

Southern Baptist Bible teacher Beth Moore remains enormously popular within today’s anything goes evanjellyfish.

Not unlike charismatic prophet-pastors like PDL Pope Rick Warren, Moore is also an SBC figure receiving direct revelations from God.

The Slowly Becoming Catholic (SBC) is said to frown upon charismatic practices; but I guess they’re okay as long as someone isn’t a Calvinist, I mean we can’t have that. Like Warren, Moore’s teachings are peppered with things God “told me,” “spoke to my heart,” etc.

Interestingly enough, both of them are pretty iffy about Reformation theology, most specifically that the Roman Catholic Church teaches another gospel. This clip from Emergent Watch Media is from the Be Still DVD, which is an ode to the unbiblical practice of Contemplative/Centering Prayer (CCP).

You may remember that in Alabama Baptist Convention (SBC) Encourages You To Learn Lectio Divina From Apostate Tony Jones—yes, you read that right—I explained CCP, a form of transcendental meditation, is the crown jewel of the highly subjective Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism (CSM).

Under the guise of so-called Spiritual Formation this spurious CSM— a refried Roman Catholic mysticism—has been taught for years now within evangelicalism by Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster. As a matter of fact, Foster is featured prominently in Be Still.

View article →

For he whom God has sent utters the words of God

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

34 For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure. John 3:34 (NASB) 

In John 3:1-21 our Lord spoke the words of God to “a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.” In this passage our Lord clears the table and tells it like it is. He tells Nicodemus in v3, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Of course, Nicodemus doesn’t “get it at first and asks, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” in v4 and, “How can these things be?” in v9. In between those two perplexed questions, our Lord, the Λόγος or logos or Word, the living Christian proclamation as a whole of the New Testament proclaimed τὰ ῥήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ or “the words of God” to Nicodemus in a way that he had never heard before. He said,”Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” As we read in John 3:34 (above), He spoke or uttered the ῥήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ to this man and all who read John 3. What did he say? Only those born again are part of the Kingdom of God and to be born again is to be born of the Spirit. Notice carefully that this rebirth is not something controlled by or contained by or comprehended by people of the flesh. Everyone truly born of the Spirit are so by the work of the Holy Spirit not by the works of men. These are the ῥήματα τοῦ Θεοῦ. View article →

Jesus Christ is the True Vine

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

1 “I am the true vine and my Father is the vinedresser.”  John 15:1

(translated from the NA28 Greek text)

In John 15:1, we have our Lord’s last of His seven “I am” sayings signifying His claim of deity. The word “true” in v1 translates the adjective ἀληθινὴ, which is nominative, singular of ἀληθινός or alēthinos, “unfeigned, trustworthy, true.” The nominative case form, ἀληθινὴ of ἀληθινός means that the metaphor our Lord is making of Him being the “true vine” is subject to the main verb in the sentence with is εἰμι, which, of course, means, in this context, “am.” Therefore, our Lord is saying that the fact that He is, in fact, deity means that He is the “true vine.” What this means, of course, is that there are “other vines,” but He is the only one who is “true” and God the Father is the γεωργός or vinedresser.  The noun γεωργός or geōrgos, “can refer to the owner of a farm or to those who work the farm.” Here our Lord is using this term metamorphically to refer to God the Father as the owner of a vineyard, the “vinedresser.” View article →