The credibility of Dr. Brown appears to be fast eroding as his teachings and associations continue coming to light. Apprising Ministries has more detail.
War Against the Flesh
Former Pentagon Chief: ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Fight Was Only Time Obama Showed ‘Passion’ for Military Issues
Fox News reports:
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates sharply questions President Obama’s “passion” for military matters in his forthcoming memoir, and claims that practically the only time he saw that in the president was during his push to repeal ̦ “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
The former Pentagon chief said in an interview aired Sunday that he was “disturbed” by Obama’s “absence of passion” when it came to his military strategy. But in the book, “Duty,” reviewed by Fox News, Gates hit Obama harder – and in personal terms – by contrasting his style with that of former President George W. Bush.
Is It God’s Will for Christians to Have Constant Comfort and Worldly Success?
7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:7–11, ESV
Only a fragment of the visible Church is holy. Only a Remnant is truly saved. There is actually a great gulf fixed between this Remnant and professing Christians who are in apostasy and/or unbelief. This gulf has many aspects, but one of the main things that separate the two groups is that the Remnant is made up of those who are true worshippers of God. They worship the Father in spirit and truth. Those in apostasy may very well have stirring worship services and sing praise song after praise song in their “Sunday Worship Services,” but that is as far as it goes. It is simply music, and in God’s ears it is nothing more than a clanging gong. Genuine worship of God in spirit and truth comes from the heart of the regenerate who worships Him with every part of their lives. They serve God in all they do. He is their all-in-all. They do not seek for God to make them happy in all things. Instead, they seek to walk holy before the Lord.
Evolutionists Criticize Proposed Bill Allowing Students to Explore ‘Scientific Controversies’
A cause for careful celebration? On Phillips, Craig and Dean, and Trinitarian Christianity
Matt Privett, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Carthage, NC has written a follow-up piece to an article we posted on CRN last week. In part 2, Privett sheds new light on what he felt was a troubling the situation:
Late Sunday night I posted The elephant is in OUR room: Shaking hands with Sabellius in the Southern Baptist Convention. I’d venture to say it is by far my most widely read and disseminated post in almost fifteen years of blogging, which isn’t saying much, except to say that people read it and commented on it. A couple of others sites picked it up and/or linked to it.
Dr. Michael Brown Defending Benny Hinn
As For The One Who Is Weak In Faith, Welcome Him, But Not To Quarrel Over Opinions
To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. Titus 1:15, ESV
I am constantly amazed at the diversity I witness in the believers who interact with this ministry. This, of course, displays Christ’s power to bring together in unity dissimilar people from every place on this planet and from all walks of life. Part of our sanctification is dealing with our unredeemed flesh. God uses it to humble us as well as teach us to fight the good fight. We will never be totally sinless as long as we have our flesh within us. Our enemy also works within our flesh to create division in an effort to split what God has unified. Much of the attack from him and his minions will be to foment conflict between mature believers and those who are not so mature. Also, he is always working in a effort to create self-confidence and self-righteousness in believers. He knows that when believers fall into that trap they are working from a base of pride rather than humility. When that happens the fruit from it will be marred by spiritual blindness.
Citizens of Heaven
T.D. Jakes Has Repented Of Word Faith Heresy?
Partnering with T.D. Jakes is an honor for Rev. Samuel Rodriguez
Legislation Introduced to Protect State Sovereignty Over Definition of Marriage
According to the Christian Post:
Rep. Randy Weber (R-Texas) introduced a bill Thursday that would keep a state’s definition of marriage for the legal residents of that state for the purposes of federal law.
If passed, the bill would require federal agencies to look at how a person’s marital status is defined in their home state when determining their marital status for federal law.
Federal government to recognize same-sex marriages in Utah
Fox News reports that the Obama administration is ignoring the Supreme Court:
Attorney General Eric Holder said Friday the federal government will recognize more than 1,000 same-sex marriages in Utah, despite an earlier announcement this week from the state’s governor saying the state would not.
The decision means those Utah couples will have access to federal benefits that are available to married couples in other states, including the ability to file joint tax returns. It also adds to the confusion in the state following a surprise ruling last month against the state’s same-sex marriage ban.
The Elephant Is in Our Room: Shaking Hands with Sabellius in the Southern Baptist Convention
Matt Privett, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Carthage, NC writes:
Is the doctrine of the Trinity something worth standing resolute on anymore in the Southern Baptist Convention?
The question, seemingly obvious among the people who turned back the liberal tide and fought for the inerrancy of Scripture 35 years ago, must be asked in the early days of 2014 when one looks at the schedule for the 2014 Empower Conference, an evangelism conference put on by the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC)…
Let me just touch on a few of those names.
Spirit Cries Out
I Myself Serve The Law Of God With My Mind, But With My Flesh I Serve The Law Of Sin
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. Romans 7:21–25, ESV
I was reading the profile of a Bible expositor that I greatly admire not long ago and was struck by this description of himself, “I am a notable sinner!” As I read that I reflected on my own spiritual condition and would have to agree with that statement as a description of me as well. There are times that I wonder what God sees in me for I see nothing good. There are times that my flesh seems to rule and reign in my heart instead of the power and peace of my Lord Jesus Christ. It is heartbreaking! I long to be free from this body of sin and death.
Homosexual lobby on the attack again
Cliff Kincaid, director of the AIM Center for Investigative Journalism, writes:
Having suffered a major setback when Phil Robertson of “Duck Dynasty” got his job back, the gay lobby is now going for a softer target – a pro-family activist in Ohio whose book Maybe He’s Not Gay undercuts their recruitment efforts among kids. Author Linda Harvey, who runs a pro-family ministry called Mission America, seems to have emerged as more of a target than Phil Robertson.
Robertson was suspended—then reinstated—from the show after making comments critical of homosexuality, some of them based on biology and the facts of life, and others on Bible passages.
The Maybe He’s Not Gay book “seeks to tell kids the truth about homosexual behavior,” Harvey says. It explains in a conversational tone why no one is born homosexual, the health risks associated with the lifestyle, and factors which may lead to same sex attractions.
Emergent Church Struggles to be Relevant with Christianity 21 Conference
Evolution and the Secular Worldview – The Fury of the Elites on Display
Dr. Albert Mohler, president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, writes:
The Pew Research Center’s Religion and Public Life Project recently released data indicating that the issue of evolution still divides Americans. According to the research, about 60 percent of Americans indicate a belief in evolution, while just over 30 percent reject evolution as an account of human origins. A closer look at the data reveals that almost half of those who say they believe in evolution also believe that a Supreme Being guided the process. In other words, far less than half of Americans believe in a purely naturalistic version of evolution, the mainstream theory as held by evolutionists.
As you might expect, religious beliefs play a huge role. The vast majority of those identified as evangelical Christians affirmed that “humans have existed in their present form since the beginning of time,” while only 15 percent of “white mainline Protestants” joined in that affirmation.
CDC Reports STDs on the Rise particularly “in Homosexual community”
Bloombeg reports on a recent study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that revealed that there is a rise in STDs in the U.S. The CDC’s report indicated that there is a higher incidence of gonorrhea and syphilis in the homosexual community. According to Bloomberg, men who have sex with men are supposedly “stymied by homophobia and limited access to health care” thus, they choose not to be tested even though gonorrhea and syphilis are curable with antibiotics. Not surprisingly, the rise in syphilis is “entirely attributable to men, particularly those who are gay or bisexual.”
Louis Giglio with WF Preachers Phil Pringle, Brian Houston, and Kong Hee
Live For The Rest Of The Time In The Flesh No Longer For Human Passions But For The Will Of God
1 Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. 1 Peter 4:1–2, ESV
When our Lord went to the cross, he also endured torture and suffering. When we celebrate our Lord’s resurrection on “Easter Sunday” or Resurrection Day, we should do so with much do so with much joy, praise and worship. Why? Without our Lord’s resurrection our faith is empty and worthless. Those of us in Christ have the promise of our own resurrection at some point in the future. But, let’s not forget that before He was resurrected He had to die and before He died He suffered.
An Ode to Self from Steven Furtick
God Gave Us A Spirit Not Of Fear But Of Power And Love And Self-Control
…for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7, ESV
When I was a teenager back in the mid-1960s, we had a preacher who filled in for ours once for some reason. I was about 15 or so at the time. He was an older gentleman with a big booming voice and a head full of white hair. He was so different from our preacher that I actually listened to what he said. I believe that the person from the Bible he was talking about was Isaac. I remember him commenting on the fact that he was timid or shy or fearful. In my mind I thought of that person as shy or bashful by the way he described him. Then he said something I will never forget. He said, “Folks, timidity is not of God.” He then preached a sermon on how God calls His people to be bold and to fear not. Those who are fearful are those of little faith who make decisions that reflect their fear instead of reflecting a trust of God through their faith. He said that those who walk in fear and timidity are actually not in obedience to God and are therefore operating from pride. Their fear was the product of their pride as it did all it could do to protect self. However, those who walk in boldness are the truly humble believers because they lay aside self-protection while obeying God for His glory.