It’s a sad sign of the time we live in that Elephant Room 2 would give Word Faith prosperity preacher T.D. Jakes a pass.
Apprising Ministries gives you a little peek at what’s coming through that door in this piece.
But God
ὁ δὲ θεὸς πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει, διὰ τὴν πολλὴν ἀγάπην αὐτοῦ ἣν ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς, καὶ ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν συνεζωοποίησεν τῷ Χριστῷ, – χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι – καὶ συνήγειρεν καὶ συνεκάθισεν ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, ἵνα ἐνδείξηται ἐν τοῖς αἰῶσιν τοῖς ἐπερχομένοις τὸ ὑπερβάλλον πλοῦτος τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ ἐν χρηστότητι ἐφ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ.
Ephesians 2:4–7, NA27
But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in the trespasses, he made us alive with Christ – by grace you have been saved – and he raised us with him and seated us with him in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus 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, Possessing the Treasure New Testament V1
This being the Lord’s Day, let us 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. They were all very dear to me because they spoke of the saving work of God on my behalf. Of course, I must confess, I was never a “theological Arminian,” just a default one since that is what most SBC churches teach. It was as this confrontation took place over each point of doctrine I was amazed that the in every case it really came down to whether our salvation is work of cooperation between us and God (Synergism) or if it is all of God (Monergism). It was as I did some serious study on the Sovereignty of God throughout the Bible that the last thread of synergism I held on to finally broke away.
The Nature of God’s Word is to Fight Against Hypocrites
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. Afterward all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.
Whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him.
Exodus 34:29–35, ESV
What is hypocrisy? Most dictionaries define it this way, “The practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one’s own behavior does not conform; pretense.” In the New Testament, one of best known examples of the Greek word translated as “hypocrites” is found in our Lord Jesus’ quotation of Isaiah 29:13 in Matthew 15:7-9, “ὑποκριταί, καλῶς ἐπροφήτευσεν περὶ ὑμῶν Ἠσαΐας λέγων· ὁ λαὸς οὗτος τοῖς χείλεσίν με τιμᾷ, ἡ δὲ καρδία αὐτῶν πόρρω ἀπέχει ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ· μάτην δὲ σέβονταί με διδάσκοντες διδασκαλίας ἐντάλματα ἀνθρώπων.” Or, “Hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy concerning you saying, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts is far from me and in vain do they worship me teaching as commandments the teachings of men.’” Remember, this was our Lord talking here.
Chrislam for Human Flourishing?
Dr. Peter Jones of TruthXchange tackles the growing controversy over whether or not Christians and Muslims worship the same God. He writes:
We live in a period of theological confusion that the book, Allah: A Christian Response by Miroslav Volf, does little to alleviate. Formerly a professor at Fuller Seminary, and currently Professor of Theology at Yale, Volf asks: “Can it be said of Muslims and Christians…that they too worship the same God?” He answers, “Yes, it can”, and it must!
This thesis has major problems in three areas: theology, missiology and eschatology.
Homosexuality and the RCA: A Call for Action, Consistency, and Faithfulness
Pastor Kevin DeYoung of the Gospel Coalition believes the time has come for the Reformed Church in America to make up its mind on homosexuality. He writes:
The middle path can be the way of wisdom. Sometimes issues get polarized, positions get hardened, and straddling the fence is the better part of valor. Sometimes it’s best to look at both sides of a controversy and conclude that there is a third way in between them. Sometimes the middle of the road is where you want to be.
And sometimes the middle of the road is where you get flattened by a semi.
For several years the Reformed Church in America has approached the issue of homosexuality as an opportunity to have our cake and eat it too. On the one hand, we have numerous official statements which condemn homosexual behavior and affirm the normativity of heterosexual marriage between a man and a woman. And on the other hand, we can easily compile a growing number of incidents where our official statements are being disregarded with apparent immunity. We have a position that says one thing and a practice that allows for another.
Virgin Birth of Christ Is Critical Because of Original Sin
Apprising Ministries draws to your attention that neo-liberal Emerging Church theologian Dr. Tony Jones has a new booklet specifically denying original sin in his attack upon the penal substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ.
In this new piece you’re reminded that Jones, “theologian in residence” for EC universalist Doug Pagitt, is actually a professor at Fuller Theological Seminary. I also show you that as these neo-liberals attack original sin they are opening the door for the denial of Christ’s Deity.
How the Apostates Take Over, Part 2
Pastor Michael Youssef reveals how apostates today take over the church through means that seem innocent at first. He writes:
In my previous column…I explained how apostates used the cause of equality to gain a destructive foothold within the church.
Some of my readers have missed the point of this two-part column altogether, thinking it is about women’s ordination. People will see what they want to see. The deeper point is that those who deny the core of the Gospel used an innocent issue, such the role of women in the church, to flood the church with non Bible-believing men, women, and homosexuals.
Rick Warren Once Again Caught Up in Controversy
Marsha West weighs in on Rick Warren and the “King’s Way” controversy. She writes:
In January 2011 mega church pastor Rick Warren enlisted the help of three doctors to come up with a health plan for Saddleback Church (SBC). The doctors he chose were Daniel Amen, a professing Christian, Mark Hyman, a Jew, and Mehmet Oz, a Muslim (and Oprah’s “favorite doctor”). The foursome put their heads together and came up with The Daniel Plan. In a piece I wrote titled Rick Warren Introduces “The Devil Plan” I demonstrated that doctors Amen, Hyman and Oz are steeped in Eastern mysticism and the occult. So — why did Rick Warren knowingly choose occultists? Why not play it safe and choose doctors who are “in the faith”? It seems “America’s Pastor” is always stirring up controversy, even when it’s unnecessary.
Churches in Britain Change Ten Commandments
Apprising Ministries continues to document the falling away of the mainstream of evangelicalism. It’s not a pleasant task, but it needs to be done.
Here in this piece you’ll see that J. John, who’s essentially the Joel Osteen of Great Britain, has actually re-written the Ten Commandments and this blasphemy is being readily accepted.
Beware of Those Who Only Say They Love Scripture
Apprising Ministries has been warning you of the dangers associated with the spread of Counter Reformation contemplative spirituality within the mainstream of the visible church.
Just like the long apostate Roman Catholic Church, it leads one into religious superstitions. Here’s an important Biblical teaching to help you through one of the pious smokescreens you’ll often encounter today.
How the Catholic Church Got Roped into Liberalism
Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh speculates on how the Catholic Church became liberal. Thaddeus Baklinski of Lifesite News writes:
In the aftermath of the controversy stirred up by Rush Limbaugh’s comments on Georgetown University law student and pro-abortion activist Sandra Fluke, the talk show host speculated last week about how, in his view, the Catholic Church “got roped into the liberal socialist agenda.”
John MacArthur on Expecting Verbal Insults
Apprising Ministries has been telling you about the sad results of mainstream evangelicalism seeking to find favor with the world rather then preaching the Gospel to it.
Here, as he often does, John MacArthur hits the target dead on. While we never seek to be offensive in our presentation, the Gospel is offensive to the unregenerate.
Evangullible
God Is Not Mute
Ecclesia Church With Lenten Challenge: Get a Tattoo
Say No To Women Pastors
Prepare for the “Kingdom Culture Quake” in the City of Angels
An upcoming event is being heavily promoted by New Apostolic Reformation/Dominionists. The Kingdom Economic Yearly Summit will be held on March 22-25 in Los Angeles. According to a promotional email sent on 16 March 2012 to The Elijah List:
It will be a global gathering of marketplace and ministry leaders who share an alignment with each other, the Kingdom of God, and the Order of Melchizedek (Heb. 7). Come join me and over 100 other leaders (king-priests) who are coming together in honor, humility and unity to help facilitate a “Kingdom Culture Quake” in the City of Angels, by ushering in God’s glory at the global gateway for arts, entertainment and media. This will be a powerful summit and God has some surprises in store.
As I read the email, three things jumped out: Continue reading
Is a “secretive” Religious Right group always late to the game and irrelevant?
The Council for National Policy is a group of influential conservative leaders that get together to “cultivate ideas to help solve America’s growing problems.” The left-wing blog Politico asserts that political candidates turn to the CNP for money. According to Politico one conservative operative deemed the group “a self-validating echo chambers where they sit around four times a year and tell each other how great and important they are, and believe their own press.”
Theologians Debate Calvinism Amid Calvinist Resurgence
The Christian Post reports:
Two prominent theologians took opposite sides and debated the theological system of Calvinism, which is experiencing a resurgence in church culture, on “The Exchange” webshow this past week.
Ed Stetzer, president of Lifeway Research, moderated the discussion between Roger Olson and Michael Horton, who both have recent books released on the topic of Calvinism, but taking opposing views on the system. Stetzer wrote in a Nov. 15, 2010 blog post that he thinks “there is a resurgence of Calvinism (particularly within evangelicalism),” and that it is among a younger population.
Free Sterilizations Must Be Offered to All College Women, Says HHS
CNSNews reports:
All student health care plans covering female college students in the United States must include coverage for free voluntary sterilization surgery, the Department of Health and Human Services announced late Friday afternoon.
Women of college age who do not attend school will also get free sterilization coverage whether they are insured through an employer, their parents, or some form of government-subsidized plan.
How the Apostates Take Over, Part 1
Pastor Michael Youssef sheds light on how the Church has surrendered her birthright for a morsel of peace and acceptability. He writes:
The evangelical church is under constant threat to compromise its reliance on biblical truth. The human desire to be accepted, to not be seen as “outside the mainstream,” can be overwhelming. But that desire is our weakness, our downfall. It does not always immediately destroy the dam we build to protect the waters of truth, but instead it leads to tiny fissures that grow until destruction is inevitable.
Evangelicals’ Collapsing Cultural Influence
David French of the National Review Online writes:
On a day when many evangelicals are perhaps flexing their political muscles in the aftermath of their decisive votes in Alabama and Mississippi, it’s worth pondering whether evangelicals’ actual cultural (rather than political) influence is waxing or waning. While reading Charles Murray’s new book, I came across insightful and disturbing discussions by Yuval Levin and Ross Douthat. Surveying the devastating decline in marriage and other critical social markers in the working class, Levin notes the failure of social conservatism outside the political sphere.
Banks Offering Wine Tastings, Trivia Contests and Yoga Classes?
The bank branch is dead. Long live the bank branch?
…forget the teller windows and solid-wood desks of days gone by. Say hello to everything from banks that feature community rooms for free yoga classes to ones that feature video-conferencing stations. It’s all a matter of giving customers something more than a checking account with free checks – such pieces of paper are hardly necessary these days, anyhow — or a CD with a marginally higher rate.
Lying
With the ongoing circus that has devolved with the release of an ongoing program within Saddleback Valley Baptist Church in Orange County, California, fully under the control of its pastor Rick Warren, of an attempt at multi-faith interaction with the Muslim community, those of us who care deeply about the Church, the glory of God, and Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, this is disturbing on many levels. However, what should really concern us about the actions of Rick Warren and his people both at Saddleback Valley and his public relations folks is their attempt at obfuscation in order to confuse and cover up the truth. In other words, this is simply another form of lying and that is sin.