FALSE TEACHING: Discussing the reasons behind WHY IT’S a danger…

If anyone’s interested, please consider listening to this radio interview from one of the speakers/writers from one of the Christian Worldview Websites I visit. This paticular issue is on the subject of FALSE TEACHING.

In their own words,

False Christs, False Teachings Part 1: Dr. Ron Carlson, Jason Carlson, and Jan discuss the plight of the church today, aberrant theology, false teachings, and false teachers. The Carlson’s were speakers at Jan’s

EXCUSES: NO PLace for 2008’s USAGE (and a great video poem to begin the YEAR!!)

Just wanted to share this excellent, inspirational video poem by Ms. Blair Windigo on the issue of one of the biggest things that WE AS CHRISTIANS CANNOT AFFORD TO BRING INTO 2008: EXCUSES (DON’T HATE)!!!

    And to add to that, here’s another:

The above one’s as if she’s writing a GOOD-BYE lettter to the DEVIL/HIS LIES (as we ALL NEED TO DO…..seperating from the enemy and not deciding to make peace):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Vvx8mdSXno&feature=related

The Next one is akin to an information video of what it means to be a urban missionary (Paticularly, regarding reaching out to Jehovah’s witnesses)

Here’s another poem of her’s entitled “I REMEMBER WHEN YOU USED TO LOVE ME”, which is akin to God writing a LOVE LETTER TO HIS PEOPLE (THE CHURCH )about the love they used to have and calling His People Back to them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAlL1Elt5bc&feature=related

       This one is probably the most powerful one that got to me, entitled “ALL MY DEVOTION WAS EMOTION”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-qSi7VKBpU&feature=related

 

Pray that everyone enjoys…..and that if nothing else, people are STIRRED TO REMEMBER the Lord (Will write more material on the subject/commentary later)

BLAST FROM THE PAST: The Truth REGARDING THE BATTLE BETWEEN EVOLUTION & CREATIONISM (there can be ONLY ONE)

Though this is an OLD post from back in 2007, figured that I bring it back since I thought it was one of the most informative/insightful posts on the continuining issue of how people, year after year, are going back to the past & trying to understand things on the basis of MAN/INCOMPLETE FACTS and the TRUTH OF THE WORD/THE LOGIC OF GOD……that, and I really enjoyed the videos and thought that they may’ve been missed/passed up. 

Romans 1:21-25

21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

How much value do you feel you have if you believe you came from a “monkey”…..or if you’re simply “matter”, does anything we do truky matter? Would there be any point in “Morality”(Right & Wrong) if everything simply happened & there was no moral lawgiver to uphold a standard? Whose to say that crime is a bad thing? If evolution is true, would it not simply be a matter of “survival of the fittest” & SHOULD WE not let nature take its course when one hears of things such as rape, murder, injustice, oppression, or other kinds of evils we vehemently fight against?

As odd as these issues/questions sound, that’s essentially what you may end up at when one advocates the view of EVOLUTION. For if one is to hold on to it as FACT, he or she had better be certain that it is sufficient to adress the issues of life that ALL WRESTLE WITH: WHo made us, Why are we here, what is our purpose, etc…..& in my opinion, evolution simply cannot hope to do so.

Measuring Discernment and Critism: An Insightful Article by Brother Wilkerson

This is an excerpt from one of the blogs that I try to visit frequently. I’ve written an article on the subject awhile back from a different angle  and to investigate the articles, I’d humbly suggest that one go here for more:

  

http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/relationshiplove-the-missing-threadfactor-woven-throughout-all-matters-of-faithdoctrine-part-1/

http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/11/11/relationshipslove-part-3/

 http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/11/11/delighting-in-the-truth-verses-viligance-in-exposing-error/

http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/11/11/relationshiplove-part-4-correction-exposing-errorchurch-discipline/

http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/12/19/the-new-phariseeical-movement-in-the-club-or-not/

http://emissary7.wordpress.com/2007/12/22/jude-123-26-how-to-respond-to-a-myriad-of-people-in-a-world-of-apostasy/

 

  

  

That aside, though, I felt that the brother from this blog brought up many points that have never been seen before when it comes to the issue of apolegetics and the many ways in which blogs exposing error handle things.

 

  

http://mymiscellanies.blogspot.com/2007/10/measuring-discernment-and-critism-with.html

  

Pray that it blesses someone:

Measuring Discernment and Critism

With Gospel and Charity

It’s late…I’m in a hotel room…on the last night of my last leg of business travel for the year. I’m “worn slap out” as we say here in the south. This is my preface to help offset what I hope is not an altogether uncharitable attitude towards those who are not being very charitable…in my tired opinion.

A dear friend asked me to read a recent post by a very gifted blogging team whose zeal for sound doctrine and the biblical gospel is ordinarily a spicy, abrasive, sarcastic, and polemic recipe on the menu each week. His post provoked the return of friendly fire on the blog of this very gifted blogging team. I posted a few comments (first here, then here, and finally here)and in turn took some return fire myself from some dear friends.

I think the rub here is simple. We ought to preach the gospel and we ought to guard the gospel. And in both we are called to be discerning of those patterns, trends, or trajectories that will offset, neglect, deny, or altogether reject this gospel. But HOW are we to preach, guard, and discern? In short, the method ought to flow from the message.

In my comments, I point to three essential texts on developing a gospel-heart for those who are straying from the gospel or those who are neglecting and rejecting the gospel.

FIRST, 1 Corinthians 13 is a great place to start, for it defines the type of love we are to have when using our spiritual gifts, including the gift of discernment (1 Cor. 12:10). If one practices their gift of discernment and does not have love, then their preaching can become as much a loud gong or clanging symbol as can loveless-motivated tongues (whether you believe in them for today or not) (13:1). And if you give all your heart and soul in verbally exercising that discernment but don’t have love, then it is of no value whatsoever (13:3).

What seems most significant about this text is that it becomes didactic, instructional, teaching literature on how we are to handle and talk and behave toward one another. There is no similar type of literature in the Scripture, as far as I can tell, on handling others with sarcasm. In fact, much of what we read in 1 Corinthians 13 would seem to argue against such communication devices on a repeated and defensive manner.

Further, citing Paul (in Galatians and Corinthians) or Jesus (in the temple angry or with the Pharisees) as examples proves to be difficult for several reasons. For one, it presents basic hermeneutical difficulties. When is it right to emphasize a writer’s inspired writing practices over and above what is clearly given to us in Scriptures as direct instruction for our behavior and speech? The argument that this is the Son of God and arguably the greatest Apostle always breaks down at some point. But it seems to hold up here. I’m fearful that as one outside of biblical inspiration I can argue with the same communication techniques and be as effective as they were. If ever there were men who got the balance 100% right, it was these two. I’m not in that group and I don’t know of anyone else who is either.

SECOND, if love endures all things, as 1 Corinthians 13:7 teaches, then what does that endurance look like as it regards those who we think are neglecting, ignoring, or rejecting the gospel? That answer seems simple, too. 2 Timothy 2:24-25 shows us Paul’s own example. “The Lord’s servant must NOT be quarrelsome but KIND to EVERYONE, able to teach, PATIENTLY ENDURING evil, correcting his opponents WITH GENTLENESS. God may grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth…”

Now for those who consistently bring up Paul’s tone in Galatians as a defense of how we can talk to people today who neglect the gospel like they did, here’s a good question to ponder: is it possible that the Paul of 2 Timothy 2:24-25 showed the same attitude towards the Galatians? If not, why not? If so, how so?

Let’s say for argument sake that we are dealing with a different Paul, in terms of these two books lying at opposite ends of his writing career. If so, and I’m willing to grant this very reasonable line of thought, then isn’t the Paul in 2 Timothy (facing martyrdom) much more mature than the Paul of Galatians (at the very beginning of his writing ministry)? We certainly see evidence of this in other places, like his progressive humility in 1 Corinthians 15:8 to Ephesians 3:8 to 1 Timothy 1:15; or else his separation with John Mark in Acts 15 and his request for John Mark’s assistance in 2 Timothy? Is it possible that if he had it to do over again he might change his tone a bit toward the Galatians like he did toward John Mark? The argument of inspiration with the inclusion of the human side makes this a tough argument to think through, indeed. But it is certainly one worthy to consider.

THIRD, even with this argument when we look at the second letter Paul wrote, 1 Thessalonians, we still see a man, early in his ministry, who had the “tone” of “a nursing mother taking care of her own children” (1 Thess. 2:7), “being affectionately desirous” (v. 8), and “a father with his children” (v. 11). Do we think that Paul didn’t have the same heart toward the Galatians or the Corinthians because they were in error? It seems foolish to try to argue that because we don’t see the tone of 1 Thessalonians 2, or 1 Corinthians 13 or 2 Timothy 2 in Galatians that it wasn’t there at all. This is the gentleness and kindness in “tone” with which Paul dealt with with everyone – from new believers like the Thessalonians all the way to false teachers like those in Ephesus where Timothy was pastoring.

FOURTH, if we look to the Master we see one of the only places in the Scriptures where we get a glimpse of what Jesus is like as a person. That is found in Matthew 11:28-29, and there we are told that Jesus is meek and lowly in heart. He is one to whom those run who are weary and burdened in their lives. He seeks to give rest to people’s souls! But this is not and cannot be reflected when we communicate with abrasion and sarcasm. Polemics are necessary, but they ought to be utilized with the spirit and attitude of the gospel…and with the meekness and lowliness of the Savior who has come to rescue them from false teaching.

If we deal with the same thing Jesus dealt with in His day in false teaching, can we expect to handle it with the perfection and precision of speech and attitude in which He did? There’s just no way. We’re too tainted with sin to even hope to do so. So if we should err on one side or the other in Jesus’ responses, it seems most wise and logical that we would err on the side of His meekness and lowliness and humility and gentleness and kindness with people…rather than on the side of the whip-swinging, rebuke-throwing Jesus in the temple and with the Pharisees.

FIFTH, the balance we do see in the Master is found in His addresses to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3. Six out of seven churches got a word of comfort and encouragement, as well as exhortation and warning and rebuke. He gives both. Even in churches where there was false teaching going on (Pergamum and Thyatira) He had encouraging words for them. He looked for evidences of God’s grace in them, saw these evidences, and commended them. So much for the blogging crowd and commenters who complain and opine that we don’t always have to preface critical remarks with encouraging words! I think that when we are dealing with churches and Christians, even those with whom we disagree vehemently about potential or actual false teaching, there seems no better place to turn than to the Chief Shepherd in these two chapters.

So how do I wrap up a late night blog where I’m hoping and praying that my wearied body and sleepy mind have communicated with some clarity? How about with these words. They seem to give a biblical balance to this whole issue.

“Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other” (Romans 12:9). “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8).

MORMONISM verses CHRISTIANITY: WIll the REAL Jesus PLEASE STAND UP?!!!

This is an excerpt from one of the excellent WORLDVIEW WEBSITES that I recieve emails from on the recent issue of Mormonism, Mitt Romey, and the issue of how many within the CHIURCH with HIGH DEGREES OF INFLUENCE are MAKING IT SEEM AS IF MORMONISM IS EQUAL TO CHRISTIANITY, rather than showing how RADICALLY DIFFERENT THE TWO ARE……and in the process, regardless of any good intentions happening, making it possible for the GOSPEL OF CHRIST to BECOME SKEWED….. http://www.christianworldviewnetwork.com/article.php/2872/Steve_Camp By Steve Camp Posted: 12/31/2007 How Wide is the Narrow Road at Lakewood Church? …Pastor Osteen believes Mormons are Christians too   “[The Pastor] must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to refute those who contradict it.” -Titus 1:9   Pastor Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston, TX was on Chris Wallace’s excellent news broadcast this morning: Fox New Sunday with Chris Wallace. Once again, Joel speaks sentimentally about spiritual things, but shies away from speaking clearly and biblically about the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And more importantly, speaking against the unorthodox beliefs of those who represent a false gospel dressed in Christian rags – such as Mormonism. . This interview represents the tragedy of unbiblical compassion… resulting in a distortion of the truth, an acceptance of a different gospel, and an ecumenical accommodationalism that defects from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. This interview is disappointing on three levels: 1. Joel is a pastor and failed to speak biblically as a pastor on an essential of the faith: what is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and do Mormon beliefs pass the test of orthodoxy according to the standard of Scripture? 2. Because of Joel’s large TV audience (especially among nonbelievers) many folks will surely come away from today’s broadcast thinking that Mormons are truly Christian when in fact they are not at all. 3. Mitt Romney, though a fine politician, is now further confirmed in his unbelief and his heart a bit more calloused against the biblical gospel because of Joel’s words. This is serious beloved. What Joel affirmed is nothing short of a compromised gospel worthy only of eternal damnation. Mormons believe a different gospel than the biblical gospel and cannot be considered as part of orthodox Christianity under any circumstance (here is an excellent apologetic site that has numerous detailed articles about Mormon beliefs and doctrines.) In the wake of this unfortunate interview, my prayers today are twofold: 1. that Joel Osteen would daily study to show himself approved unto God as a workman unashamed by handling accurately the word of truth. Eight years is a long enough time beloved for any man in pastoral ministry (seminary educated or not) to be thoroughly acquainted with the essentials of the faith – especially the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and to clearly represent its truth. And 2. that the Lord would bring truly saved men and women into the Romney household to proclaim to them the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ; warning them to flee the wrath to come; compelling them to be reconciled to God; commanding them to repent of their sins; and calling them to deny themselves, take up their cross, and by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone… follow Him as their Lord and Savior. Below you will find a section of the transcript of the broadcast. The video can be watched here or read the entire transcript can be read here. WALLACE: And what about Mitt Romney? And I’ve got to ask you the question, because it is a question whether it should be or not in this campaign, is a Mormon a true Christian? OSTEEN: Well, in my mind they are. Mitt Romney has said that he believes in Christ as his savior, and that’s what I believe, so, you know, I’m not the one to judge the little details of it. So I believe they are. (emphasis mine). And so, you know, Mitt Romney seems like a man of character and integrity to me, and I don’t think he would — anything would stop me from voting for him if that’s what I felt like. WALLACE: So, for instance, when people start talking about Joseph Smith, the founder of the church, and the golden tablets in upstate New York, and God assumes the shape of a man, do you not get hung up in those theological issues? OSTEEN: I probably don’t get hung up in them because I haven’t really studied them or thought about them. And you know, I just try to let God be the judge of that. I mean, I don’t know. I certainly can’t say that I agree with everything that I’ve heard about it, but from what I’ve heard from Mitt, when he says that Christ is his savior, to me that’s a common bond. Distributed by www.ChristianWorldviewNetwork.com For those wanting further information on the issue of Mormonism and what it is all about, I’d suggest investigating the website of CARM Ministries. Go here for more information: http://www.carm.org/mormon.htm  Also, if interested, consider these radio interviews by the owner of the CARM WEBSITE on the issue: