"We see, in many a land, the proudest dynasties and tyrannies still crushing, with their mountain weight, every free motion of the Consciences and hearts of men. We see, on the other hand, the truest heroism for the right and the greatest devotion to the Truth in hearts that God has touched. We have a work to do, as great as our forefathers and, perhaps, far greater. The enemies of Truth are more numerous and subtle than ever and the needs of the Church are greater than at any preceding time. If we are not debtors to the present, then men were never debtors to their age and their time. Brethren, we are debtors to the hour in which we live. Oh, that we might stamp it with Truth and that God might help us to impress upon its wings some proof that it has not flown by neglected and unheeded." -- C.H. Spurgeon . . . "If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:31, 32 . . . . .

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Monday, May 18, 2009

DOCTRINES OF DEVILS

By: A.M. Kisly

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12

In reading some of the statements made by the leading members of the Emergent Church, I have become very perplexed at mans constant drive to find a new path to God other than the one that God Himself laid out for us in His Word.

One would think that God changes with the wind.

News Flash: God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He doesn't change with the wind or with a whim. There isn't a "new" road or "many" roads.

Jesus states in Matthew 7:13-14,
"Enter in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."

It’s interesting to me that the very next verse warns us to,
“Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

The “false prophets” spoken of in this verse are the very ones who would teach you that there is another way, a different path to God other than that which is stated in the "whole" of the Word of God.

I believe it is their sole desire to mold God and His Word after the image of sinful man, so one doesn't have to be confronted with their own sinful nature. The way in which this is accomplished is by undermining the teachings of the Scriptures. That’s what Satan did in the Garden of Eden and it is still what he is doing today. Remember, “Yea, hath God said?” Satan is still whispering the same distorted lies in the ears of men, always instilling doubt and the questioning of God’s Word
.

Beware Christian!

In an earlier blog, I talked about Satan's desire to distract us in order to deceive us. After having visited some of the websites published by some of the above mentioned churches, I was astonished to find no mention of God, not one mention of Jesus. There is not one Scripture in print on the entirety of the web site. Yet there is loads of information about the church and the myriads of activities one can get involved with, something for everyone. It is indeed the way they try to make God more relevant to today’s Christian, a more user-friendly version.

NEWS FLASH
: God was relevant to the lives of those He created at the beginning, and He is relevant to our lives today. His Word remains accurate in every detail and relevant in every age.

Who then are these false prophets and teachers who would bring in heresies causing multitudes to turn from the One True God and reject the teachings in the Scriptures?

Well, they are those in the headlines, the TV evangelists, the mega "feel good about yourself" churches, who reject God’s Word and write their own version of “truth”

There are hundreds of these types of churches, and yet multitudes follow them.
Thousands sit in the pews and are blindly led down a path of destruction.

Christian brothers and sisters, we have God’s very Word accessible to us at anytime we want it.
I implore you to read it, study it and know what the Word of God says, so that those who would try to teach anything contrary to the Scriptures would not lead you astray.

Some of the mind-boggling statements from some of these leaders are so troubling, that they just have to be mentioned.

Brian McLaren, who is an author, speaker, pastor, and networker among
Emergent Church leaders and activists, not only misquotes the Scripture reference, but in his interpretation mocks God. His understanding of salvation is so distorted and contrary to the teachings of Scripture, that it is astonishing to me that anyone would allow him to teach at any church pulpit.

Here are some of the heretical statements made by Brian McLaren:

He states, "For too many people the name Jesus has become a symbol of exclusion, as if Jesus' statement 'I am the way, and of the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me' actually means, 'I am in the way of people seeking truth and life. I won't let anyone get to God unless he comes through me.'"

(Quote taken from: “A Generous Orthodoxy”, Zondervan 2004; Ibid. p. 70)


Jesus prohibits people from seeking truth and life?

"Yea, hath God said?" Actually, the Scripture says, "I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me."
Jesus said he is the truth, not of the truth! Remember, men seek after God as the Holy Spirit draws them. If the Holy Spirit is drawing a man to seek after Him, how is this prohibiting?


One would wonder who Brian deems Jesus is.
Why would anyone have a problem interpreting that Scripture? Jesus plainly declares who he is and the way of salvation. In fact, isn’t Jesus declaring himself to be God? He is the second person of the Godhead; the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. He is God!

Brian seems to think that this teaching is a “symbol of exclusion.”
Let’s read John 3:16, Jesus says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Where does Jesus ever talk about exclusion? He said, “whosoever would believe in him.” Whosoever means everybody, it is inclusive not exclusive.

One more thing I need to question, where is his fear of the Lord? Where is his love and adoration for our Savior, Jesus Christ? Where is the holy reverence for God and His Word? Who is he to undermine the teaching of Scripture?

In this ignorant statement, what Brian McLaren reveals is that He has no understanding of what salvation is, who God is, who Jesus is and what He accomplished on the cross.
I believe this in itself disqualifies him as a legitimate Bible teacher. If he can’t comprehend the basic Gospel message, why is he teaching at all?

Here are a few more quotes to scrutinize
:


Brian states: "In the Bible, save means ‘rescue’ or ‘heal’. It emphatically does not mean ‘save from hell’ or ‘give eternal life after death,’ as many preachers seem to imply in sermon after sermon. Rather its meaning varies from passage to passage, but in general, in any context, save means ‘get out of trouble.’ The trouble could be sickness, war, political intrigue, oppression, poverty, imprisonment, or any kind of danger or evil."

(Quote taken from: “A Generous Orthodoxy”, Zondervan 2004; Ibid. p. 93)

We are not saved from hell?
Just what are we saved from if not sin, and death, and eternal punishment in hell? Read: Revelation 20:14-15; Matthew 25:41


Brian states: "A generous orthodoxy, in contrast to the tense, narrow, controlling, or critical orthodoxies of so much Christian history, doesn't take itself too seriously. It is humble; it doesn't claim too much; it admits it walks with a limp."

(Quote taken from: "A Generous Orthodoxy", Zondervan 2004; Ibid. p. 155)

We can't take orthodoxy too seriously?
Just what doctrines shouldn't we take too seriously? Is it the doctrine of salvation through Jesus Christ, and by no other name? Is it the doctrine of sin and hell? Maybe it is all of the doctrines of the Bible that should be disregarded and "not taken too seriously." Brian is paving that broad road, not to heaven but to hell!

Brian states: "We see modernity with its absolutism's and colonialism's and totalitarianism as a kind of static dream, a desire to abide in timeless abstractions and extract humanity from the ongoing flow of history and emergence, a naïve hope to make now the end of history (which actually sounds either like a kind of death wish or millennialism). In Christian theology, this anti-emergent thinking is expressed in systematic theologies that claim (overtly, covertly, or unconsciously) to have final orthodoxy nailed down, freeze-dried, and shrink-wrapped forever."

(Quote taken from: “A Generous Orthodoxy”, Zondervan 2004; Ibid. p. 286)

Systematic theology is wrong?
Well the opposite of absolutism is extreme relativism. In absolutism, everything is certain. Relativism, on the other hand, is more subjective. It includes concepts such as utilitarianism and idealism. Relativism stresses the idea that nothing is certain and this is exactly what it sounds like to me. Without absolutes in Biblical theology, there would be no way to determine the difference between truth and error. Here we go again with the many roads to God theology. I call it the "anything but God's way" theology. WOW!


“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”
Proverbs 14:1

Brian McLaren is indeed a false teacher. Christian, don’t throw out God’s Word for these apostate doctrines of demons. Know God’s Word, and know that those who speak not according to God’s Word are devoid of the light and life in Jesus Christ.
They love darkness more than they love the LIGHT! They are enemies of the Cross, enemies of God. They know not God and God is not in them.

There is only one way, one truth and one life . . . HIS NAME IS JESUS, and by no other name can man be saved!

2 comments:

James J. Fire said...

Excellent post!
Jesus said some rather exclusive statements in in John 10:1- 18, but let's focus on a few of these: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them."
Jesus doesn't claim to be 'a'door by which the sheep enter in, but 'the' door! All others which climb up some other way are robbers, thieves, those whose voice the sheep don't know!

I'd say that Brian is such a one as this; his disbelief in the scriptures coupled with his platform as some kind of profound teacher that countless numbers are listening to, enables him to steal away opportunities for souls to acquire salvation.

The Greek word for salvation is "soteria" and it can mean temporal salvation, physical deliverance, as in the saving of 8 souls in Noah's ark; yet its meaning of eternal salvation of the soul, in such passages as Acts 4:12 is entirely incontrovertible, regardless of what Brian, or any ECM leader might say!

A.M. Kisly said...

Hey Jim,

Thanks for sharing your insights. What a great Scripture reference!

Again, God’s Word is proven infallible by Scripture interpreting Scripture.
How can anyone doubt Him?

A.M. Kisly

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