Way
back in 1976 C. Peter Wagner had already expressed a
foundation of sand upon which his entire "apostolic"
kingdom is built. To back up his notions, he and his
friends such asJohn
Wimber,Paul
Cainand many others began
to get the cart before the horse. They tried to
create revival where there was none with unbiblical and
even heretical ideas. They imported occult ideas
from false religions into the churches, such as"slain
in the spirit"and called the
results "revival". The means they used were the
counterfeit revivals of theWord
Of Faith Movement, theVineyard
movement, theToronto
"Blessing", theBrownsville
"Outpouring"and on down the
line to latestTodd
Bentley "Lakeland Revival". The proof
that the means have all been unjustifiable is in the
unjustifiable ends. Lakeland has now come to an
apparent abrupt end due to false healing and dead raising
claims, many false teachings, a false "transferable"
anointing, and sexual misconduct. You can read about
these things in ourTodd
Bentleysection. Yet the
leadership of theNew
Apostolic Reformationhas
not even been slowed by yet another bad end brought about
by the self-destruction of the means. In the latest
ElijahList the false prophets are prophesying even greater
revivals to come.
There
is a new phenomenon especially among some island churches
where handkerchiefs are being handed around a congregation
claiming that they have an anointing that can cause people
to be healed and other miraculous things happen to them.
The problem with this idea is especially evident in two
things: (1) that this can and is being considered by many
to be Christian magic and (2) that it is being taught as
being something that should be a normal part of the
Christian experience. It is taught that if you have
faith you will believe in touching the handkerchief that
you will be healed, freed from demons, or get a special
anointing. But faith is not proven by signs and
wonders.
This
chart should be of grave interest to those in YWAM and
those supporting YWAM and its agenda with the IPM or
"First Nations" movement led by people like Daniel
Kikawa (Perpetuated
In Righteousness),
Don Richardson (Eternity
in Their Hearts:Startling Evidence of Belief in the One
True God in Hundreds of Cultures Throughout the World),
John Dawson (Taking
Our Cities for God: How to Break Spiritual Strongholds),
Richard Twiss (One
Church, Many Tribes : Following Jesus the Way God Made
You),
Terry LeBlanc (Creating
Christian Indians: Native Clergy in the Presbyterian
Church)
and many others. You will notice a very close
comparison in this chart between false religion and
so-called "Christian" leaders. Please read whatYWAM,The
Emerging Chuch,
theWCGPand
others are teaching that are almost exactly what the
Baha'i teach.
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Three
Fallacies Of Third Wave Spiritual Warfare Teachings by Sandy
Simpson
When so-called Christians employ Biblical
pagan methods to rid themselves of demons, they end up
giving the enemy an opportunity to deceive them and a
foothold in their lives. When Israel disobeyed the
Lord's command to come down to Jerusalem and worship Him
in the temple under the Law, and instead chose to set up
altars in the high places, the result was that they
ended up worshiping demons. They thought they were
worshiping God, but ended up worshiping Baal and
Ashtoreth. You cannot live a life glorifying to
the Lord unless you obey Him.
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The Duties of Christian
Leadership by Sandy Simpson
Christians, and especially Christian leadership,
are called to be salt and light in a dark world.
Matt. 5:13-16 "You are the salt of
the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness,
how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for
anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. "You
are the light of the world.A
city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light
a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on
its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that
they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in
heaven.
When the Lord tells us to be salt and light, He
states both the positive and the negative. That is
the way with all Scripture. We can’t just take the
positive and be done with the subject. We have to
consider all the ramifications of being salt and
light. Salt is used to season food and make it taste
good. It was and still is used as a
preservative. In the same way Christians are to be
salt in the world. Without the witness of Christ,
without standing for the truth, life is ultimately
tasteless and rotten. Anyone here who was a sinner
for any length of time without the Savior knows what I am
talking about. But the flip side is that salt can
lose its saltiness. Christians can lose their
saltiness by diluting the Gospel message to the point
where it is useless. Let me give you an example of a
washed out Gospel often preached in churches today.
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Smack Dab in the Middle of the Apostasy by Sandy Simpson
'Antichrist'
No More: Evangelicals Praise Pope Most are unreserved in
their praise on political, social, and even theological
matters, but critique of papacy remains. Compiled by Ted Olsen,
04/05/2005 04:30 p.m.
Among the names mentioned, who praise the Pope
in this article, were "Evangelical" leaders such as:Evangelical
Episcopalian Fred Barnes; Wheaton College's Mark Noll;
Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod President Gerald B.
Kieschnick; National Association of Evangelicals
President Ted Haggard; Focus on the Family President
James Dobson; Charles Colson who organized the
evangelical side of the Evangelicals and Catholics
Together; Paige Patterson, President of Southwestern
Baptist Theological Seminary; Presbyterian Church in
America Pastor-brothers David and Tim Bayly; Southern
Baptist Theological Seminary President Al Mohler; Dallas
Theological Seminary President Mark Bailey; Credenda
Agenda Editor Douglas Wilson; and Evangelical Alliance,
the United Kingdom's version of the stateside National
Association of Evangelicals.
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Marriage A
Biblical Illustration Of Our Faith Commitment To Jesus
Christ For Salvation by Sandy Simpson
Marriage as a metaphor for our
relationship to Jesus Christ.
Marriage is used as a metaphor for our
relationship to God many times in the Bible. Let's
look at the picture God wants His people to see about
their relationship to Him, and His relationship to them.
TI have been
challenged lately to think again about what the Gospel
message is all about. This has come as a result of
hearing what I considerto be, at the very least, "gospel
lite" and at the most no gospel at all being presented by
a number of neo-evangelicals, Third Wavers and
outrightheretics. The interesting thing is that many
seem to be preaching the same message. What is
most intriguing is that false teachers like Benny Hinn,
ecumenicals, and even some preachers I would considerto be
orthodox in their theology are preaching a "gospel" that
is very similar.The question is: Is this new gospel
message really the Gospel at all?
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Leviathan by Sandy Simpson
This creature that existed, and may yet
exist, is used as a description of themightand
power of the enemy.
Isaiah 27:1In that day theLORDwill
punishLeviathanthe
fleeing serpent,WithHis
fierce and great and mighty sword, EvenLeviathanthe
twisted serpent; And He will kill thedragonwholivesin
the sea. (NASB)
Speaking of the “day of the
Lord”, when the Lord comes back again to rule and judge
the earth, Isaiah says that the Lord will punish
Leviathan the dragon.Satan
is likened to leviathan, a serpent, and he is said to
live in the sea.
Revelation 13:1Andthe dragon stood on
the sand of the seashore.Then
I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten
horns and seven heads, and on his hornswereten
diadems, and on his headswereblasphemous
names. (NASB)
Again the dragon comes out of
the sea, which is symbolic of the nations of the world,
but perhaps is also tied to a literal meaning.He
has multiple heads which are symbolic of the heads of
the nations of the end times, but he is also said to
have multiple heads before the symbolism of the nations
of the revived Babylon come into being, as recorded in
Ps. 74:14 and Job.
Many Christians today (having allowed themselves to be
diapraxed by false teachers on TV, in books, in seminars
and on tape) have begun to accept a mixture of Pre Mil
and Post Mil doctrines. Many claim they still hold
to a Pre Trib Rapture (or another Pre Mil scenario) and
at the same time would claim that Christians are in a
great end times revival, that "Transformation" is taking
place all over the world, and that our mandate is to
retake dominion over the whole world including its
businesses, social agendas and political arenas (a Post
Mil scenario). But what many "Christians" today do
not realize is: the mixture they have accepted
is oxymoronic.
There are two kingdoms being taught in
many churches today. Teaching about one of the kingdoms
is on the decline while the other is being promoted all
over the place. I am warning Christians that they
need to check out who is using the word "kingdom", the
books they have been reading and recommend on building
"the kingdom", the people they have been hanging out
with at conferences, and what they mean by "the
kingdom".
There are so many people who claim to be
Christians today, claiming that they are God.Not just a “little god” but God Almighty.I hate to tell them but there is only one God/man
who could ever claim that and His name is Jesus Christ.
1 John
4:4-6 You, dear children, are from God and have
overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater
than the one who is in the world.They
are from the world and therefore speak from the
viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them.
We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; butwhoever
is not from God does not listen to us.This
is how we recognize the Spirit {Or spirit} of truth and
the spirit of falsehood. The reason why false teachers, who deny one or
more of the core doctrines of the Faith, gain so many
followers is that they are saying what the world wants to
hear. They organize their churches so that they
cater to unbelievers, and once non Christians come in they
are fed a diet devoid of the essential nutrition of the
Gospel and sound doctrine. False teachers conduct
surveys to see what non-believers are looking for in a
"church" and then provide those things. False
teachers claim they are bringing people into the Kingdom
when in fact they are bringing them out of the world and
back into the world, the only difference now being that
they are spending their money in support of some apostate
leader and/or group.
The NAR proponents claim to be foundational
Apostles to the modern church. This claim is exactly
what Paul warned the Church about regarding false
apostles. The term "false apostles" is used only once
in the Bible in 2 Cor. 11:13. False apostles are
identified as those who claim they areequalwith
the the foundational Apostles. The NAR proponents go
even further! They claim to beGREATERthan
the original Apostles.
Jude 1:1-2 Jude, a servant of Jesus
Christ and a brother of James, To those who have been
called, who are loved by God the Father and kept by
Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace and love be yours in
abundance. Jude was the brother of Jesus Christ. But it
is significant that he calls himself the brother of
James. Jude wants everyone to know that, though he is a
half-brother of Jesus Christ through his mother Mary, he
considers himself to be a servant of Jesus. I’m sure
there were those who tried to idolize him for being the
brother of Jesus Christ. If he had the character of some
of the current large crop of false teachers, he would
have written “Jude, the brother of Jesus Christ.” I’m
sure if some of these modern heretics could trace their
roots back to Christ, they would use that information to
get support for themselves and power over people. But
Jude does just the opposite. He calls himself the
servant of Jesus Christ. He is addressing this letter to
those who have been called, and who are loved by God the
Father and kept by Jesus Christ. So he is addressing
this letter to Christians. God has called every true
believer.
You can get more information here. A Word of Encouragement from Paul
Run the Race, Win the Prize by
Sandy Simpson
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly
await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who,
by the power that enables him to bring everything under
his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that
they will be like his glorious body. Jesus Christ
is coming again. We are citizens of heaven, not
this earth, and Jesus will come to take us to our
homeland. So true believers eagerly await His
coming, unlike those who oppose the cross of Christ who
think they must take dominion over the earth or laugh at
the idea of the Rapture. There are many of them
today. We know that when Jesus comes, by His
power, He will bring everything under His control.
We are not called to do that as the Church. Jesus
will do that when He comes, and when He comes we will be
changed and receive our everlasting bodies that will
never wear out.
1 Cor. 15:51-57 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will
not all sleep, but we will all be changed in a flash, in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the
trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised
imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable
must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal
with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed
with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality,
then the saying that is written will come true: "Death
has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is
your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" The sting
of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But
thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ.
Today,
in
a majority of churches, we see the result of the
seeker-friendly,"purpose-driven", church
growth, Third Wave, New Apostolic Reformation
methods and teachings and their product I am
calling"Entertainment-style Christianity"
(ESC). But ESC churches are not only missing
out on the cutting edge of true Christianity, but
areheading down the road to apostasy.
True
biblical
Christianity is "interactive". Those in ESC
are taughtto be spectators at mega-church
entertainment events. They are not taught the
Bible but rather to be enamored with the
oratoricalskills of the preacher, and to not dare
question anything that is shoved down the throats of
the "laity" by the ruling "anointed"elite.
They are treated to a circus atmosphere including
wild CCM music with people flailing around and
acting like they are on drugs, topreachers who tell
endless stories about themselves and joke about
everything while actually making profundity mundane,
to hula dancing,to banners and marching in the
church and around it, to the blowing of shofars, to
slain in the spirit and wild manifestations.
Theirsears are tickled by guest speakers who make up
sermons out of their own imaginations instead of the
written Word. They are entertainedwith gold
dust, gold fillings, "angel" feathers, "angel"
footprints, drunk in the spirit antics, and during
these displays they can go outand get a latte and a
snack at the church snack bar. They come into
these mega churches and leave without being
personally challengedother than with tired worldly
psychology, and without anyone being able to find
out what they are doing in their private
lives. A smallpercentage attend "cell groups"
where they are diapraxed into consensus instead of
challenged to be Bereans and think and act
forthemselves. They live like the world during
the week, then come to church where the world is not
only welcomed but accommodated.
Commentators
seem to think that this section of Habakkuk was
addressing theCeasarsand
their drunken desire for power.Seems
these two things often go together.
Those
who love drunk in the spirit are no exception.They
are trying to get others to share in their debauchery
and the false hope of an end-times worldwide revival,
currently through the Saturate 2020 events.Though
these were two of the hereticaldistinctivesof
the New Order of the Latter Rain, these ideas are
nothing new.The
righteous continue to live by faith, while the proud
boast in their drunken state.
Saturate 2020 is another in a long line of
Latter Rain revivals which do not meet the criteria of a
Biblical revival at all (Acts 3:19). The
Toronto “Blessing” and Brownsville “Revival” both came
into towns all over the world with the promise that
people were getting saved and nothing weird was going on
at their meetings. This was always a lie as
the true Gospel was not preached but instead people were
invited forward to have hands laid on them in order to
transfer an impartation. Meanwhile false
doctrines were laid down in order to get people involved
in churches like Bethel Church in Redding,
CA. We are warned in Scripture about this. Galatians
2:4 But it was because of the false
brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked
in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ
Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.
2
Peter 2:1 But false prophets also arose
among the people, just as there will also be false
teachers among you, who will
secretly introduce destructive heresies, even
denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift
destruction upon themselves.
The fact that some formerly Biblical churches have
joined this circus is a testament to their lack of
teaching discernment. Some of these
denominations were warned repeatedly about the Latter
Rain, Word of Faith and the New Apostolic Reformation
yet they apparently wanted to remain “willfully
ignorant”. The people advertised as being
involved with this latest “revival” are almost all
associated with Bethel in some way and promoters of what
they teach. This is not a true Biblical revival
but rather a revival of the occult and New Age among
Christians. This meeting is actually hurting
the cause of Christ and will not have any real
beneficial effect on the culture of California, which
has turned decidedly evil for
decades. These Dominionists
will not be saving the planet, but are rather setting
people up for the coming antichrist. Nor will
they rid the world of coronavirus, but rather likely add
to it.
Should biblical Christian churches be
Christ-centered (Christocentric)? Should the
doctrines of the Father (Patriology) and the Holy Spirit
(Pnematology) also be equally emphasized? Can a
church be Patriocentric or Pnemacentric and be biblical?
The answer to these questions are quite simple
from a biblical perspective. There have been charges
leveled at some movements such as the Pietist Movement in
Germany and other movements that they place too much
emphasis on Christ to the exclusion of the Father and the
Holy Spirit. This may be true to a certain
degree. The doctrines of the Father, Son and Holy
Spirit must be taught with equal emphasis so that
Christians will know what they believe.
But should a church be Patriocentric or
Pnemacentric? No. For instance, there are far
too many churches today, having been influenced by
hyper-Pentecostalism and the Latter Rain, that are
Pnemacentric. They spend most of their time focusing
on the Holy Spirit to the exclusion of preaching the
Gospel while, in fact, they don't even have a biblical
doctrine of the Holy Spirit. I believe that because
classic Evangelicals, to a certain degree, dropped the
ball in defining the Person and role of the Holy Spirit it
gave an opening to Third Wavers to step in with their
erroneous ideas of Pnematology.
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The
Letter to Laodicea Is
a Warning to the TRUE Church Today by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Rev.
3:14-22 And unto the angel of the church of the
Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the
faithful and true witness, the beginning of the
creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art
neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold
nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because
thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and
have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art
wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and
naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the
fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment,
that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy
nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with
eyesalve, that thou mayest see. As many as I love, I
rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man
hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to
him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him
that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my
throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with
my Father in his throne. He that hath an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Much has been made of this passage, using it to point
out what is happening today in the apostate churches
around the world. It is true that they believe
they are rich in spiritual things when they are very
poor. It can be applied in one sense to theWord
of Faithmovement.
It is true that the "River" movement of Latter Rain
teachings do think they are hot when actually they are
cold.
But this letter to the end times
church of Laodicea is actually talking to biblical
Christians who are born again. The apostate
movements of theLatter
Rain,Third
Wave,Toronto
"Blessing",Vineyard,Brownsville
"Outpouring",Word
of Faith,New
Apostolic Reformation,World
Gathering on Indigenous People,Manifest
Sons of God,Seeker
Friendly,Church
Growth,Emerging
Churchand many others have
already had their lampstands removed (Rev. 2:5) because
of their apostasy and have already been spit out of the
Lord's mouth (Rev. 3:16). We can know this because
of what the Bible says about those who teach false
doctrines (1 Tim. 6:3-5, 2 Tim. 4:3) and make false
prophecies (1 John 4:1). These false churches, false
movements and false brethren (Gal. 2:4) are already
under the judgment of the warnings of theseven
letters, as all but two of the original first
century churches are today (only the two who Jesus did
not warn still survive today). Therefore theletters
to the churchesapply to those
churches who have not had their lampstands removed and
been spit out of the mouth of God because of heresy and
false prophesy. So the warning to the true
biblical churches today remains. Why is this
warning significant to us?
It
is significant because, by in large, it isthe
true
Church today that has allowed the movements mentioned
above to infiltrate and take over the agenda for what
is called "Christianity" today.
In
Titus 1:6-11 Paul tells Titus to appoint
"overseers" in the churches. The
word "overseer" isepiskoposin
Greek
and means bishop, curator, superintendent,
guardian, watchman. Overseers are to be
shepherds to the sheep, watchmen,
guardians.
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You can get more information here. Jesus
Cares for You by Sandy Simpson
The
story
of the feeding of the 5000 is found in all the gospels of
Matthew, Mark, Luke & John. When something is repeated
in the Bible it means that it is important and is
something we must try to understand. There is often a
deeper meaning in sentences or stories that are repeated.
In
this same story repeated in Mark 6:34 it says:
"When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had
compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a
shepherd. So he began teaching them many things."
One of the main things that Jesus is... is compassionate.
He cares for His people. He was compassionate then and He
is still compassionate today. Jesus came and saw the needs
of the people. So He did two things. He met their physical
need of hunger for bread, and He also met their spiritual
hunger for the bread of life. As Jesus told us in John ...
He is the bread of life. The Bible, the Word of God, being
the word of the Father and the Son, is also the bread of
life. Jesus is the living example of the Word as it
also says in John "The Word was made flesh and lived among
us".
This
paper
exposes what General Boykin has been doing in Calvary
Chapels and his associations.
He
isGrand Chancellor of the
Vatican's Jesuitical "Knights of Malta", an
ecumenical society under the leadership of Rome where
Catholics, Protestants and a plethora of others unite in
what cannot be a unity of the Faith.
We just finished as study in the book of Jonah in
our Bible study groups. As we studied through that
true story I became aware of an application for Church
leaders today.
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What Does The Bible Teach About "Synergy"?
by Sandy Simpson
Synergy is also a concept being adapted and taught
today as a major tenet of the Third Wave, New Apostolic
Reformation (NAR) movement. Dutch Sheets was one of
the first to introduce this concept to that movement back
in the National School of the Prophets - Mobilizing the
Prophetic Office Conference at Ted Haggard's New Life
Church in Colorado Springs, CO on May 12, 2002.
HUMOR: Time for a rewrite of the old
hymns. In this day and age of Third Wave revival
movements and Word-Faith dominion, the old hymns just
aren't cutting it anymore. Not only are they old
fashioned musically, but the lyrics are, for the most
part, particularly depressing. They talk of sin, death,
repentance, the cross, the blood of Jesus and a whole
host of other disgusting subjects. There are also
too many lyrics in them, frankly, which takes away from
the "worship" atmosphere. Repetitiveness is what we
need, not dead doctrinal concepts. The old hymns are
just too biblical. Give us a beat to move our feet, not
concepts to move our hearts and minds!
Here is a list of some hymns that could
be "upgraded" to meet the criteria of the Third Wave,
Word-Faith, Latter Rain, Manifest Sons Of God, New
Apostolic Reformation. This list is by no means
complete. If you don't recognize the hymns
mentioned perhaps it would be worth your time to go back
and read them, then compare what they say to the new
doctrines.
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for further information. Almost
Saved by Sandy Simpson
“To be almost saved is to be totally
lost.” – Adrian Rogers
There are many so-called
“Christians” today who are clearly “almost saved” by their
testimonies and/or actions.But to be
“almost saved” is to be completely lost.A
person who is drowning and almost saved drowns.A
woman who is almost pregnant is not pregnant.King Agrippa
said, “You are almost persuading me to be a Christian
(Acts 26:28)” but being almost persuaded is not enough
to be saved.
The word “almost” means “very nearly”, “not
quite.” In light of this we may conclude that to come
close to the target, or “almost” hit it, means to
completely miss the mark. (Shalem
Evangelical Church Bush Hall Yard Gap, St. Michael)
"Silence
the noise of your songs" by Sandy Simpson, 5/26/19
Amos 5:21-27 “I hate, I reject your
festivals, nor do I delight in your solemn
assemblies. “Even though you offer up to Me burnt
offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept
them; and I will not even look at the peace offerings of
your fatlings. “Take away from Me the noise of your songs;
I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. “But
let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like
an ever-flowing stream. Did you present Me with sacrifices
and grain offerings in the wilderness for forty years, O
house of Israel? You also carried along Sikkuth your king
and Kiyyun, your images, the star of your gods which you
made for yourselves. Therefore, I will make you go into
exile beyond Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the
God of hosts. When I first reread this passage in Amos, a
few things struck me. First of all the Lord is
bringing judgment on Israel for carrying on religious
ceremony without true dedication to the Lord. They
sing songs and present their offerings while harboring
idols. I was reminded of how the Lord must view the
heretical apostate mega church celebrations of
today. There is a lot of pomp and circumstance, yet
little or no obedience to the Word of God. The Lord
does not look favorably upon worship of that type, no
matter the hype, no matter the noise, no matter the
show. He actually “hates” it.
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How To Find A Good Church by Sandy Simpson, 2003
Here’s how to find a good church.
What you need to find is a church that not only has
orthodox doctrinal statements but teaches, both explicitly
and implicitly, in line with the core doctrines of the
Faith. These are Bible-believing Christ-centered
churches that are balanced in their theology. Be
sure to test all churches before you become
involved. It is acceptable to get involved with a
house church or Bible study as long as there is someone
who has the gift of teaching there to lead the study of
God’s Word.
Hebrews 10:25 not forsaking our own
assembling together, as is the habit of some, but
encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the
day drawing near.
The Christian life is not one to be lived
alone. Trust me; I have sympathy for those who have
been spiritually injured by false churches, false
prophets, false teachers and false apostles. It is
often a long road back from the diaprax of heresy.
But to undo the brainwashing you will need help,
especially from those who are already ahead of you on your
journey back. The first century church was known for
the following:
Acts 2:42 They were continually devoting
themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to
the breaking of bread and to prayer.
This is a good gauge to tell if you are
involved in an effective assembly of believers, no matter
how small. Remember that the first century churches
were in homes. In my experience smaller churches are
much better at doing the above and more. Avoid mega
churches.
This book was written by my mother and is
about my family's experience as missionaries in
Micronesia. Juanita went to be with the Lord in
August of 2018. This book has been a blessing to
many people around the world and I want to share it with
you. - Sandy Simpson
This is the story of a young woman who goes to
the ends of the Earth with her pastor husband and
two small children. While describing the hardships
of living in a remote village on a remote Pacific
Island in the 60's, it also gives us a vision of the
joy the family experienced as well. The heart of the
book is the story of how the author survives the
death of her husband and goes on to serve God and
the Micronesian people in her own right.This book reveals
a woman of great faith and courage. In addition, the
book is well written and a pleasure to read.Having
met the author, I will add that there are thousands
of people throughout Micronesia who love her and who
have benefited by her faithfulness and commitment
over the years. Read the book and get to know this
wonderful woman. Review by Richard
D.
Shewman on Amazon.
Deliverance! A Biblical Guide
To Freedom from "Another Spirit" The Possible
Consequence of the Unbiblical Practice of "Slain In
the Spirit" by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The cases are legion. Let's look at
John (a pseudonym) as one case in thousands that I read
through the years in the emails sent to my site.
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A Short History of
Dominionism by Sandy Simpson
In order to understand where the modern
fusion called “Dominioism”
comes from, I want to first give you definitions of
Kingdom Now, Dominionism
and Reconstructionism.
Dominionism is sparsely
defined as follows:
“Dominion Theology (also known as Dominionism) is a group of
Christian political ideologies that seek to
institute a nation governed by Christians based on
their personal understandings of biblical law.
Extents of rule and ways of achieving governing
authority are varied. For example, Dominion Theology
can include theonomy,
but does not necessarily involve advocating Mosaic
law as the basis of government. The label is applied
primarily toward groups of Protestants in the United
States.” [1]
It is more closely defined this way:
“Dominionism,
or Christian Dominionism
is a term coined by social scientists and
popularized by journalists to refer to a subset of
American Christianity that is conservative,
politically active, and believes that Christians
should, and eventually will, take control of the
government. The term is sometimes used as a
“catch-all” by bloggers to describe any politically
active Christian, but not every conservative,
politically minded Christian is a Dominionist.
Christian Dominionists
believe that God desires Christians to rise to power
through civil systems so that His Word might then
govern the nation. The belief that “America is a
Christian nation” is sometimes called “soft dominionism”; the idea that
God wants only Christians to hold government office
and run the country according to biblical law is
called “hard dominionism.”
[2]
“Hard Dominioism”
as it is called in the above definition, is what C.
Peter Wagner (deceased) of the New Apostolic
Reformation (a term he coined) have been advocating,
following the teachings of the New Order of the Latter
Rain and Reformed Theology “Reconstructionism”.
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Maturity Training by Sandy Simpson
Heb. 5:14 But
solid food is for the MATURE, who by constant use
have trained themselves to distinguish good from
evil.
At the core of
maturity in Christ is the issue of training to be
able to distinguish between good and evil, right and
wrong. But in today’s churches this issue has not
only been downplayed, but actually swept aside.
I run a website and
get hundreds of emails every week. Since the website
deals with apologetics against false teachers and
false prophets, about half the email I receive is
blasting me for even bringing up the issue. These
emails are from “Christians” who claim I am not
“anointed”, don’t understand the work of the Holy
Spirit, etc. I am forced to remind them of Hebrews 5
and Ephesians 4 and the biblical definition of
maturity in Christ. Maturity is not defined as
following dynamic speakers, running after people who
claim the ability to perform signs and wonders,
those with wealth, charismatic teachers with large
numbers of followers, those with name recognition,
and prophets who make wild prophecies. It is defined
simply as training ourselves to know the difference
between good and evil.
Where do
Christians get solid food? From voices in their
heads, intuition, imaginations, flights of fancy,
signs, wonders? No. Solid food is consumed by
feeding on the meat of the written Word of God.
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Bill Johnson
Quotes by Sandy Simpson
This article is about the use of invective
while attempting to do apologetics or teaching
discernment. Invective is defined as a noun:
insulting, abusive, or highly critical language ie. "he
let out a stream of invective". I admit to using
invective at times in the past. My goal is to stop
that practice and focus on the facts, not attack an
individual’s ability to comprehend.
In the case of Christians, the first thing
to consider when doing apologetics is our mandate to
reconcile people to Christ, no matter who they are.
2 Cor. 5:18-21 Now all these things are
from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ
and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that
God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not
counting their trespasses against them, and He has
committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore,
we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making
an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be
reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin
on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness
of God in Him.
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further information. Ten Questions For those who Claim the "Supreme Beings" of the Nations
are the True God
by Sandy Simpson
I have some questions for those of the
World Christian Gathering of Indigenous People (WCGIP)
adherents such as Don Richardson, Daniel Kikawa,
Richard Twiss
(deceased), Terry LeBlanc, Danny Lehman, Aloha KeAkua,
YWAM as well as many in the Emergent Church (EC) ... the
questions arise from their claim that the "supreme
beings" of the nations are all the True God, YHWH, the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You can read more
on this subject in our book "Idolatry In Their Hearts" or in the
WCGIP
section of my site.
My main
question for them is this: When did ANY of the
Patriarchs and Prophets in the Old Testament and the
Apostles or Jesus Christ in the New Testament EVER claim
that the "supreme beings" of the nations were Elohim/YHWH, the one True
God? Let's look at some examples in the form of
questions and you can check out the source links as
well.
10
Questions is available is now
available in booklet format. You can order here or
at Lighthouse Trails here.
$1.95
per copy, bulk orders get a discount.
Go here
for further information. Real Revival by Sandy Simpson
Acts 3:19 Therefore repent and
return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in
order that times of refreshing may come from
the presence of the Lord;
There has been so much hype of "revival"
in our modern day that it is easy to forget the true
biblical criteria and definition of revival. Revival
cannot be brought about by signs and wonders or "laying"
on of hands to transfer apostolic or prophetic
"anointings". In fact there is no such thing in the
Bible.The Biblical criterion for revival has, as a
precondition, repentance. The word "refreshing" is also
defined as "revive".
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Peter Popoff Back to his old tricks! by Sandy Simpson
I received a letter from Peter Popoff. This
infamous televangelist, in the past, was found to be
guilty of wearing an earpiece so that his accomplices
in his sound booth could feed him personal information
on people in his audience while he was claiming to get
personal messages directly from God. This letter
proves that, not only is he back as a regular on TV,
he is also back to his old tricks.
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further information. Occult Practices in
the Churches How the occult has been fully
integrated into many Christian lives and fellowships by Sandy Simpson
The Bible is quite clear about occult
practices.Neither Israel nor the
Church is to have anything to do with the way the world
tries to gain secret knowledge.The
Gnostics were and are known for promoting new revelation
that is either loosely tied to Scripture taken out ofcontext or not
at all.The Israelites seeking
information from the dead or in omens were judged
harshly by the Lord who had warned them numerous times
to stay away from that stuff.
Yet due to the influences of
heretical teachers in the New Apostolic Reformation,
Word of Faith, Emergent Church, and
the New Age many have been successful in getting lots of
churches and denominations into occult practices that
have been thinly disguised as “Christian�?.Many
of those who follow these people, I’m sure, have
no idea how far they have strayed into the occult.
First I want to give the
dictionary definitions and then Biblical warnings
against these practices.Then I
will give examples in the churches taken mainly from
the ElijahList
e-newsletter.
List of Practices Detestable To God
Deuteronomy 18:9-12 “When
you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you,
you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things
of those nations. There shall not be found among you
anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through
the fire, one who uses divination, one who
practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens,
or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a
medium, or a spiritist,
or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does
these things is detestable to the Lord;
and because of these detestable things
the Lord your God will drive them out before you.
Isaiah 8:19When they say to you, “Consult
the mediums and the spiritists
who whisper and mutter,�? should not a
peopleconsult
their God?Should
theyconsultthe dead on behalf of the living?
Using
the
above list from Deuteronomy and Isaiah, let’s take a
look at each individual practice.
New Important Book! Dominionism! How Unbiblical Action Can Change
The Churches by Dr. Orrel Steinkamp &
Sandy Simpson
Preface
By Sandy Simpson
The title and cover art of this work are
a play off of the book by C. Peter Wagner entitled
“"Dominion! How Kingdom Action Can Change The
World". In contrast to this specious claim we have
titled this book “Dominionism! How Unbiblical Action Can
Change The Churches�?. We think that is far more
in keeping with what we will present in this series of
articles and essays on the subject of Kingdom
Now/Dominionism.
Indeed, many churches have already been
changed by accepting the false teachings that constitute
Dominionism. This started decades ago under
Reformed Reconstrucionism and Latter Rain theology, but
even before that in the Roman Catholic Church
(RCC). The attempt of Constantine to protect
Christians from being persecuted, since he claimed he
had become one of them, turned out to begin a journey in
syncretism and Dominion. It wasn’t long before
corrupt church officials began to try to seize power all
over Europe and beyond as the “Holy Roman
Empire�?. The Reformation itself was a reaction to
the lengths to which the RCC had gone to take control
over the Scriptures, the nations, the kingdoms, and the
people for financial gain. They sold indulgences,
promising those who came up with enough money a much
shorter time in Purgatory. Those same ploys are
being used today on what has been loosely called
“Christian television�? by the sale of trinkets and
promises of healing, financial gain and even salvation.
These ideas all coalesce in
Dominionism. If it were true that the Church needs
to take over the planet, then we would be seeing the
unstoppable plans of God’s physical Kingdom
unfolding. But we do not. All we see are
failed prophecies, empty edicts and declarations coming
from false apostles and false prophets. They love
to fool Christians with talk of the “kingdom�? when it
is clear they are talking about a different “kingdom�?;
a Kingdom Now not a Kingdom come. Jesus taught us
to pray: “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as
it is in heaven�?. The implication is that we are
to be about building His spiritual Kingdom while praying
for and expecting His physical Kingdom to come.
The only way we can do that is to continue in the Great
Commission till He comes, not attempt to rule where God
has not given the Church the authority to rule.
Jesus will do that when He returns. If we go off on the
tangent the Dominionists want us to go, we will not only
miss out on the blessings of His Kingdom to come, but
may well be deserving of judgment.
This book is online and available as a
download at this time for $15.
The printed books are now here!
They are $20. each plus s/h
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Seeds, Soil & Fruit by Sandy Simpson
Matt. 13:38-39 The field is the
world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the
kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The
harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are
angels. Matthew 7:17 Likewise every good
tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad
fruit.
Original sin is the bad seed in
everyone. We all start with a bad seed.
Jer. 17:9 The heart is
deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who
can understand it? Rom. 3:23 for all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God, Rom. 5:12 Therefore, just as sin
entered the world through one man, and death through
sin, and in this way death came to all men, because
all sinned
We need to have the bad seed destroyed
and replaced with good seed.
Gal. 5:24 Those who belong to
Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature
with its passions and desires. Rom. 6:6 For we know that our
old self was crucified with him so that the body of
sin might be done away with, that we should no
longer be slaves to sin 1 Pet. 1:23 For you have been
born again, not of perishable seed, but of
imperishable, through the living and enduring
word of God.
The good seed is the Word, the Gospel.
Luke 8:11 "This is the meaning
of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 1 John 3:9 No one who is born of
God will continue to sin, because God's seed
remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because
he has been born of God.
Bad seeds are from the enemy and are full
of false doctrine and a false gospel.
Matt. 13:38-39 The field is the
world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the
kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The
harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are
angels.
Will the Real Blasphemers Please
Stand Up? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
This subject is one so serious that I do
it with great fear and trepidation. Nonetheless, because
I get so many e-mails accusing me and other Bereans of
blasphemy, among other serious charges, I felt it was
necessary to clear up some issues on this topic. Because
of my stand for the truth of God's Word juxtaposed
against all the false teaching that is going on today, I
think it is important to do a quick study on what
blasphemy is actually all about from a biblical
standpoint. There are many references to blasphemy
in the Bible and from them we can find out how and why
that term was used.
You will see that the word "blasphemy" in
the Scriptures is the very definition of what the false
teachers and false prophets are doing today!
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"Glitter Christians" by Sandy Simpson
This is a name I came up with for people
attending and teaching at Oral Roberts University in the
70s. Even back then I had come to realize that
their way of representing Christianity was not in line
with the Scriptures. At that time I didn’t know
that Oral Roberts was carrying on the Word of Faith
traditions of New Thought practitioners such as Kenneth
Hagin, Kenneth Copeland, Essex Kenyan, Norman Vincent
Peale, Robert Schuler, and many other false teachers of
the time. Though I didn’t know anything about Word
of Faith or New Thought then I knew that the way they
were representing Christianity was just not right
somehow. Their desire to portray Christians as
rich, beautiful, healthy, perfect, and virtually sinless
(holiness) went directly against the example of Jesus,
the Apostles and the early church.
Studies in Worldview MP3 CD click below to order for $25. plus s/h
Studies in Worldview MP3 DVD click below to order for $25. plus s/h Screwtape Legacy by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The book by C.S. Lewis called "Screwtape
Letters" was a clever idea in exposing a number of
tactics of the enemy. Those principles are still
at work today in many churches. Following is a
list of some of the things the enemy wants to see in
churches and Christians in order to bring them down.
Bradford Pear Christianity by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I was driving along and noticing that
spring has sprung here in North Carolina. One of the
first trees to bloom is the Bradford Pear. I began to
notice how that tree has proliferated almost everywhere
and then my wife looked up the information on this tree
on the web. As she began to read the facts about this
tree and its proliferation I began to see an allegorical
parallel to what is going on in much of Christendom. But
before I get into what the Bradford Pear can show us
about the churches, I need to present the facts about
the tree.
The Lord's Prayer, Our Prayer by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Matt.
6:9-13 This, then, is how you should pray: "Our
Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom
come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not
into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."
This model
prayer that Jesus taught the disciples to pray contains
many important precepts. It should probably be
called "The Disciple's Prayer". It starts with a
very important concept in the first verse.
The Fallacious Arguments of
Neo-Universalists by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The new Universalists are not as vocal
about their Universalism ideas but are far more deadly
to the Church as they are not rejected like classic
Universalists were decades ago. The new
Universalists would include Emerging Church leaders like
Brian McLaren, Leonard Sweet, Spencer Burke, Alan Jones
and others like Wycliffe, Society of Biblical
Literature, World Christian Gathering of Indigenous
Peoples, Richard Twiss, Daniel Kikawa, Terry LeBlanc,
Rick Warren, Henry Nowen, YWAM, Tony Campolo, Robert
Schuller, George Otis Jr., and even Billy Graham.
The future of apologetics and
discernment ministries by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I admit that I am
very skeptical about the future of discernment and
apologetics ministries. I don't see the next generation
coming up to replace those who have stood for the truth
for so long. Fortunately many apologists have gone to be
with the Lord but who will replace them? I don't see
replacements coming up who will take the place of those
who have been fighting the fight the years. I run a web
site where I collect articles and materials from all over
the world and present them in a sort of Reader's Digest
format so that people can come to one place to get the
latest information on heresies in the churches as well as
research past ones. What I've seen in the last couple of
years is that the production of regular materials is
declining to the point where it's becoming difficult to
find one article for my site to post every day. Of course
I write my own articles but don't have enough time to
write an article on a daily basis. I am very concerned
because of the tsunami of false ideas from the enemy in
the churches. At the same time, unfortunately, I see a lot
of younger people who don't even recognize anymore that
something is wrong.
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Church History & The Core
Doctrines by Sandy Simpson
This 4-DVD set is a combination of a condensed
study on Church History and the Discernment Toolkit series
which deals with the core doctrines of the Church and how to
use them to discern error. The Church History DVD
takes a different approach to Church History in that it does
not celebrate the Catholic Church but rather exposes it as
false Christianity. It covers World religions, false
Christianity and finally a study of the true remnant Church
through history following the story of the many martyrs who
stood up for true Biblical faith.
The "Weight of Glory" by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
2 Corinthians 4:17 For our light
affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a
far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; (KJV)
This is both an incredible source of
hope for Christians who are downtrodden, and a source of
escalating heresy in many churches.It is critical that
we understand what Paul was talking about when he wrote
the phrase “weight of glory�?.Jacob Prasch has repeated
this phrase in his teachings over the years … “A text,
out of context, in isolation from co-text is always a
pre-text."A huge problem today is that individuals and
movements tend to yank verses out of their context and
build a cult of heresy around them.This is called
eisegesis or plugging your own ideas into the Scriptures
instead of exegesis, gaining understanding and
interpretation of the Bible by studying it in context
and in the scope of the whole written Word.
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further information. Did God Put "Eternity In Their
Hearts" or "The World In Their Hearts"? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
In the introduction to Mike
Oppenheimer's and my book "Idolatry In Thier Hearts" I
exposed the fact that Don Richardson pulled the phrase
"Eternity In Thier Hearts" to use as his book title from
it's context in Ecc. 3:11. He did this to support
his thesis, which actually contradicts the second part
of that verse, where it states that man cannot fathom
what God has done. Richardson, rather, sets forth what
has become the foundation for the false teachings of the
WCGIP, YWAM, a number of Bible translation societies and
the Emerging Church ... the propostion that men from
Gentile cultures have always been seeking God and that
Gentile cultures were already worshipping the true God
before missionaries came with the Gospel.
But as I further investigated this verse
I found that Richardson even ignored the true meaning of
the FIRST half of the verse in favor of a few
translations that use the phrase "eternity in their
hearts".
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Christians who “turn away�? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Jeremiah 3:10-11 And yet for all
this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me
with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD. And
the LORD said unto me, “The backsliding Israel hath
justified herself more than treacherous Judah.�? (KJV)
Israel had turned away from the Lord and had gone after
the gods of Canaan, namely Baal and
Asherah. Because Israel had prostituted herself with
false gods in worshipping the polytheistic gods that
started at Babel, God had declared He was divorcing Israel
and would send them into exile until they again returned
to the true God. But Judah prided itself in doing what God
had commended as they had Jerusalem and the Temple.
They disdained Israel for setting up altars to Baal and
Asherah poles on high hills. Yet God was not fooled
by Judah’s pretence. In the KJV it says they were
not worshipping God with their whole heart but
“feignedly�?.
Prophets for profit by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
2 Cor. 2:17 Unlike so many, we do not
peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in
Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent
from God.
There are many false teachers on TV these
days who peddle the word of God for profit. They
make promises of healing that do not come true by claiming
if they are given a financial gift the person will receive
healing and riches. When what they promised does not
happen the person is blamed that they did not have enough
faith. This often destroys the faith of people who fall
into the traps of these snake oil salesmen. I have
no problem with people charging for their materials if
they cost to be produced, even though it is hoped that
when a person cannot afford to pay for books and DVDs they
will receive them free of charge. But the charges
levied on people for conferences and speaking engagements
is often excessive. A minister of God can ask for
support and deserves it if they are being diligent in
their study and proclamation of the Word. But
experiences and feelings often come with a price today and
that is not right.
"Mistake" or "Sin"? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Today we often hear the word "mistake"
coming from pulpits, and especially in defense of false
teaching and false prophesy. "Cut him some
slack! He just made some mistakes". "We all
make mistakes, so don't judge lest you be judged."
We even hear the word "mistakes" being substituted for
the word "sin" in many presentations of what I have
termed "Gospel Lite" today. So is it proper to
substitute the word "mistake" for the word "sin"?
We'll look at the problem of one word "mistakenly" being
used for the other.
Holy Ghost IGNORED! by Sandy Simpson
This 3-DVD set is a message based on this
movie review.
"Holy Ghost Reborn" is the second film
in the "Holy Ghost" series released by Bethel Church in
Redding, CA. Tim Wirth and I reviewed the first
"Holy Ghost" film and that review is freely available on
YouTube here:
I am sorry to say this but Bethel is
clearly a cult of Christianity holding to most of the
teachings of the Latter Rain and Word of Faith.
They have demonstrated repeatedly a manipulative
atmosphere targeting young people in particular while
preaching rank heresy. This new film is a
continuation of those false teachings and
practices. I pray for the young people in that
church that they will come to know Jesus Christ as their
Savior and thus come to know the true Holy Spirit.
This 3-DVD set is only $30. plus s/h. for
US.
Holy
Ghost
IGNORED! Part 4 - Addendum with Tim Wirth & Sandy
Simpson
This "Holy Ghost IGNORED! Part 4 - Addendum
is part of a 3-DVD series by Sandy Simpson reviewing the
film "Holy Ghost Reborn". This addendum features a number
of false teachings of Bethel Church in Redding, CA that I
was not able to include in the 3-Part series. Get
the whole thing! It is very important to see what
has become the "new" Christianity.
Servant Authority by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The world system has always been a "top
down" structure, starting at the apex of the pyramid and
going down to the bottom. In kingdoms we have the king at
the top, then the princes, common people, slaves. In a
democracy we have the President at the top, the VP, the
Sec. of State on down to the citizens. In business we have
the CEO at the top, upper management, lower management,
office workers and the janitors. Unfortunately,
sometime in the third century, the church started to have
a top down structure. This is also when the church began
to be in error. The church of Rome began to have a "top
down" structure that started with the pope, then
cardinals, then bishops, then priests, then the people.
Well, what about that? Eph 4:11 It was he who
gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be
evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
This all sounds like a "top down" structure. But the
problem is that people have not seen an important fact
about these gifts of the Spirit -- man looks at function
and title, God looks at aim and goal! Read on. Eph.
4:12 to prepare God's people for works of service,
so that the body of Christ may be built up. These are not
gifts given for title or to give people job descriptions.
They are given because there are people out there who need
our help! The church needed the Apostles. They were the
ones who were the foundation of the church. They were the
ones who saw Jesus in the flesh and were taught by Him
personally. They wrote the New Testament Scriptures.
Though the gifts of apostle and prophet are different
today than in biblical times, the gift of evangelism,
pastoring, teaching and others are still the same. A
person who is an evangelist does not just have a title so
he can rule over people. The reason that he has the gift
to be an evangelist is so that he can tell others the good
news. Why do we have pastors? Are they supposed to rule
the church and get everyone to support them and bow to
their demands? No. They are to serve the church by helping
people to come to a fuller knowledge of Jesus Christ, to
equip the saints to become more like Jesus every day.
The true structure of Christianity is
symbolized as an inverted pyramid!
�Overtake you like a thief� by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
1 Thessalonians 5:4 But you, brethren,
are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you
like a thief; How serious will it be for a person to be
overtaken in �that day� like a thief overtakes a
household when he slips in and steals? Will it
just be a surprise for those who claim to be Christians
who will get a slap on the wrist by the Lord but still
proceed to heaven? Will they simply lose rewards
but still gain the ultimate reward? What is this
darkness that the brethren are not in? 1
Thessalonians 5:3-5 While they are saying, �Peace
and safety!� then destruction will come upon them
suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child,
and they will not escape. But you, brethren, are
not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a
thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of
day. We are not of night or of darkness;
Generic and Specific by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
In my article �Blasphemizing
the
Bible� I give a number of examples of how a lot of
modern Bible translation societies are putting the names
of �supreme beings� in the Bible in the place of God or
YHWH. In this article I'm going to examine two of the
excuses they make for making those substitutions in the
Bible in many hundreds of different languages today.
(1) They claim that God has many different
names and therefore they think they are justified in
putting the names of various gods of various cultures in
Bibles, as long as they are considered �supreme beings�.
(2) The second excuse they give is that the
names of the �gods� they are placing in the Bible are
generic terms for God, like the words �God�, �Theos�,
�Dios� and �Elohim�. By generic I mean a word that can be
used for any deity whether of the one true God or other
false gods who claim to be God.
I will go through both of these excuses and
show that they are both unbiblical, therefore the Bibles
they have translated with names of other gods in them, or
names they claim are generic, prove that they have
�blasphemized� those Bibles.
The Ugly Side of
Diaprax by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
There has been a concerted effort by the
false teachers from many movements inside the church such
as Word of Faith, New Apostolic Reformation (NAR)/Latter
Rain, World Gathering on Indigenous People and Emerging
Church among others to diaprax people into thinking that
the church has been ineffective until they came along with
their new and improved ideas on how to take over the
world. This is always a feature of the Hegelian
Dialectical process put into action by praxis, thus
diaprax. In order to form a new paradigm or
worldview the leadership of these movements must vilify
orthodox Biblical Christianity.
Deluded! by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
There are so many "Christian" leaders out
there that teach delusional teachings. These
teaching are dangerous and can lead a person to shipwreck
their faith.
Healer? Heal Thyself! by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
A good subtitle for this article might be
"Practice What You Preach!" There is no doubt that
God can and does heal people today. But the false
doctrines of the Word-Faith Movement about "declaring"
healing, "name-it-and-claim-it", etc. have been proven to
be lies by the very people who sell this deceit. If
you don't know about where these famous "faith healers" go
when they need healing, you may be surprised. Why couldn't
they heal themselves when they purported to be able to
heal others by virtue of their superior faith? What
happened to the extraordinary faith they claimed to have,
enough faith to heal and be healed? Since they are
the ones who taught that all you have to do is claim the
healing that is in the Atonement (Is. 53:5) why did they
not do so? Don't their deaths prove that what they
were preaching was a lie and pragmatic witchcraft rather
than biblical relality?
God�s Attitude toward the �Supreme
Beings� of the Nations by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
It is quite clear from Scripture that YHWH
does NOT consider the �supreme beings� of the nations to
be Himself, the One True God. This is in opposition
to the teachings of Don Richardson, Daniel Kikawa, Richard
Twiss and many others promoting the World Christian
Gathering of Indigenous People movement, Emergent Church
and Liberal theologies. I have proven this time and
time again in my articles on the subject but I am going to
consolidate the information from the Bible in this article
by studying the false gods named in the Bible. I am
sure I will not be able to cover every instance of supreme
beings mentioned in the Bible but I (1) want to deal with
some of the major ones (2) show you where they are found
in the Word, and (3) prove that they were the �supreme
beings� of those nations named by the patriarchs, prophets
and Apostles and that they were not monotheistic gods but
polytheistic in the tradition of Babel where the false
religion of polytheism first took root through the worship
of Nimrod and Semiramis.
You need to "nip it in the bud"! by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I am writing this article to address a
subject that I have often observed. It is the fact
that if you do not get the leaven out of your church the
leaven will become the leadership.The Bible teaches
quite clearly that if you let the leaven in you will
leaven the whole lump.
Galatians 5:9 A little leaven
leavens the whole lump of dough.
We see this often in the case of
many �Christian� movements that have allowed a small
error to exist in their churches and have not dealt with
those issues. It then ends up metastasizing into
worse and worse problems as time goes by.
The New Panentheistic "God" Of
Christendom by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Now, I bet you read the title of this
article and thought I had misspelled the word
"pantheism". Just so that those of you who write to
me advising me of words I have misspelled in articles (and
I do often) I want to tell you that I am using the term
"panentheism" as coined by Karl C. F. Krause. You
can read more about this word and concept in an excellent
book called "A
Time Of Departing" by Ray Yungen.
There is a new "God" being promoted in the
Third Wave, New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) and Word of
Faith movements whose teachers are regularly seen on TBN,
Daystar, SkyAngel, CBN and other "Christian" TV
networks. Some of those teachers even have, what
would be considered, a fairly typical statement of faith
or doctrinal statement they endorse. But by what
they teach they end up promoting a false unbiblical view
of God, especially through their actions and
experiences. The whole phenomenon of "slain in the
spirit" and all the antics that go with it are
brainwashing an entire generation of Christians to put
their faith in another Jesus, another Spirit, another
Gospel. This new "Jesus" and "Holy Spirit" is
clearly pantheistic or panentheistic in nature.
Though some of these teachers would claim to be believing
in the God who is One God in Three Persons, by what they
teach they deny the very revealed character of God from
Scripture.
What Should I Say? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
booklet.
How do you answer an invitation to attend a
meeting where you know nothing about the speaker or what
will be done there? What happens if they want to announce
the meeting at your church and invite everyone? What do
you say to a person who tells you that you don�t have the
Holy Spirit even though you are a Christian? What should
you do if you think something is wrong, or your conscience
is bothering you about something that was said or
done? The answer?
Go to the Scriptures!
The Bible has all the answers to your
questions. This little booklet is an attempt to deal with
a few of the typical statements you will hear from people
who have become involved in the Third Wave revival
movement. By �Third Wave� I am referring to teachers,
�prophets� and any meeting associated with the Toronto
�Blessing�, Brownsville Assemblies of God, Rodney
Howard-Browne, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Rod Parsley,
Marilyn Hickey, Joyce Meyers, Bethel Church, Lakeland and
many others who appear on the Trinity Broadcasting Network
and the 700 Club on TV.
Hopefully the statements and answers in
this booklet will set you off on an investigation of your
own in the Word. If you need help, and you have access to
the Internet, you can visit my web site called �Deception
In The Church� that deals with these issues and has the
articles mentioned in this booklet.
Luring People To Destruction By The Unscrupulous Use Of The
"Gospel" Message by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Phil.
1:14-18 Because of my chains, most of the
brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the
word of God more courageously and fearlessly. It is
true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but
others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love,
knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel.
The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not
sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me
while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The
important thing is that in every way, whether from false
motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I
rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,
If you see what I see in this passage, this
argument cannot be used for people like Benny Hinn,
Kenneth Copeland and the hundreds, even thousands of Third
Wave ministers today who are not merely envious and self
ambitious, but are also teaching outright false doctrine.
Paul was not talking about heretics in this statement, but
"brothers in the Lord" who preach the Gospel with wrong
motives. Third Wave teachers not only have wrong motives,
they also have the wrong message. This argument
cannot be used for people like Hinn, even if they manage
to preach enough of the "Gospel" for people to come to a
saving knowledge of the Lord, because they are also
teaching and practicing heresy.
One of Satan�s Final Masquerades by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
2 Corinthians 11:14 And no
wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of
light.
Satan often disguises himself with
the purpose of deceiving people. One way in which I
believe he is putting on a masquerade is by appearing as
�Mary� to millions of people worldwide.
Attack Of The Enemy On The Churches by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
So much heresy is entering the churches
these days. As you would suspect, sometimes it is
due to a pastor attending a conference or reading a book
and becoming diapraxed with unbiblical ideas. He
then starts to weave those ideas into his messages and
begins to invite speakers to the church who expound on
those ideas. Then when confronted by someone in the
church who has reservations about the new stuff being
taught, they are told to not talk about it and just go
along with the program. If that person does not they
are ostracized, slander behind their back, and often told
to leave (which is what they should do in any case).
But my observation is that it is not only
the pastor who causes unbiblical changes to influence a
church. Often the pastor is blissfully unaware of
influences coming into his church. They often come
in through (1) the worship team (2) women�s groups (3)
bookstore (4) children�s programs (5) interdenominational
prayer efforts and (6) relief and mission
organizations. If unchecked this type of
infiltration is much more subtle and can become deeply
rooted.
Marks Of False Religion by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one takes
you captive through philosophy and empty deception,
according to the tradition of men, according to the
elementary principles of the world, rather than according
to Christ.
In context Paul is especially addressing,
though perhaps not to the exclusion of other false
religion, what had become the false religion of the
Pharisees and Jewish leadership. There were many
Jewish so-called �Christians� making the rounds among the
fledgling early churches who were trying to get the
Gentiles to come under the Law from which Christ had
purchased their freedom. John Gill states this case
well in his commentary.
Universalism in the World has Permeated the Church by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The current fad of interfaith solidarity
and unity is simply a thin guise of inclusivism,
Universalism and pluralism.
Universalism is defined by
Dictionary.com as: The doctrine that emphasizes the
universal fatherhood of God and the final salvation of
all souls. (Source)
Universalism is a religion and theology that generally
holds all persons and creatures are related to God or
the divine and will be reconciled to God. (Source)
Pluralism is defined as: The doctrine
that reality is composed of many ultimate
substances. � The belief that no single
explanatory system or view of reality can account for
all the phenomena of life. (American Heritage
Dictionary, (Source)
Inclusivism is: "Inclusivism posits that
even though the work of Christ is the only means of
salvation, it does not follow that explicit knowledge of
Christ is necessary in order for one to be saved. In
contrast to pluralism, inclusivism agrees with
exclusivism in affirming the particularity of salvation
in Jesus Christ. But unlike exclusivism, inclusivism
holds that an implicit faith response to general
revelation can be salvific. God expects from man a
response proportional to the light given. Saving faith
is not characterized so much by its cognitive content as
it is by its reverent quality." (Ken Keathley, None Dare
Call It Treason: Is an Inclusivist a Paul Revere
or a Benedict Arnold? (Ken Keathley, Assistant Professor
of Theology and Philosophy New Orleans Baptist
Theological Seminary, (Source)
We deal with these old heresies brought
forward to modernity, these ideas that all men have have
a relationship with God that will cause them to be able
to avoid judgement in our book on the teachings of the
World Gathering on Indigenous People movement called �Idolatry In Their Hearts�.
The idea that all men who worship a �god� are
worshipping the true God, YHWH, has bubbled up to the
very top of our societies and religions, and even
Christendoom, and should sound a warning alarm to true
Biblical Christianity. Instead, as usual in our
day, most Christians are asleep at the wheel while
Universalists claim that you can pray to a �god� like
Allah and be praying to the true Trinue God, YHWH. I
also dealt with the fact that Allah is not YHWH, both in
our book and in the article �Is
Allah The Same As YHWH?�.
What We Need Is A Reverse Paradigm
Shift! by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I'm going to warn you now. I am going
to let you in on some information tonight that is going to
radically change your world view. You are likely
going to experience the beginnings of a reverse paradigm
shift and after tonight there will be no way to go back
the way you came. You will be faced with choices
that you may never have known you had. You will be
faced with a new way of looking at things that is going to
cause you to rethink everything that is being taught in
the Emerging Latter Rain churches. It is going to be
radical because the basis for this message doesn't come
from Jesus Christ visiting my room last night bodily, but
from His holy written Word. So buckle down your seat
belts, you're likely in for a bumpy ride!
Matt. 7:15-23 "Watch
out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep�s
clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By
their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick
grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise
every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears
bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad
tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not
bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. "Not
everyone who says to me, �Lord, Lord,� will enter the
kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my
Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that
day, �Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and
in your name drive out demons and perform many
miracles?� Then I will tell them plainly, �I never knew
you. Away from me, you evildoers!�
False Teachers Revisited by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I often receive requests to present updated
false teachings and false prophecies by the myriad of
heretics out there. We do try to keep up with all
the latest. But I have to remind people that those
we have exposed as false on our site have not repented of
what they have already done in the past, which is why they
are still on our site. So what they are doing now
has no relevance as to whether or not they are now to be
considered a true Biblical teacher. If and when they
repent, that is renounce their false teachings and false
prophecies, make restitution to those they have deceived,
and begin to teach sound Biblical doctrine we will give
you that information. As of now NONE of the people
we have exposed have repented of their Latter Rain, Word
of Faith teachings, heretical practices or their false
prophecies. But in the interest of helping you to
respond to a person who inquires by saying: "Those
articles are old and you need newer materials" well, here
is some newer stuff you can add to the pile. For you
and me this really makes no difference, but for those who
are living in deception perhaps it might demolish one of
their arguments against the truth.
Testing The Spirits by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Sometimes I really wonder why someone who
claims to be a Bible believing pastor, for instance,
refuses to listen to the truth. It frankly boggles
my mind. I don't know if it is as a result of the
postmodern paradigm or just that they have no love of the
truth left. I don't know how that can happen in a
truly regenerate person. You would think that the
Holy Spirit would confirm the truth to them, first in
their conscience, and finally through the written
Word. But these days it is a miracle if it gets that
far. I don't know if their conscience has been so
seared that they don't hear the Spirit or if they just
don't want to know the truth because then they would be
responsible for it. I know that I cannot know their
motives or the reasons why they reject truth and refuse to
talk about false teaching, but I do know one thing: we are
called as true believers to test the spirits. We
must do this even if the result is not to our liking or
befuddles us as to the reasons.
1 John 4:1 Dear
friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the
spirits to see whether they are from God, because many
false prophets have gone out into the world.
Questions for Those Who Claim the
"Supreme Beings" Of the Nations Are the True God by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I have some questions for those of the
World Christian Gathering of Indigenous People (WCGIP)
adherents such as Don Richardson, Daniel Kikawa, Richard
Twiss (deceased), Terry LeBlanc, Danny Lehman, Aloha Ke
Akua, YWAM as well as many in the Emergent Church (EC) ...
the questions arise from their claim that the "supreme
beings" of the nations are all the True God, YHWH, the God
of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You can read more on
this subject in our book "Idolatry
In
Their Hearts" or in the WCGIP
section of my site. My main question for them is this:
When did ANY of the Patriarchs and Prophets in the Old
Testament and the Apostles or Jesus Christ in the New
Testament EVER claim that the "supreme beings" of the
nations were Elohim/YHWH, the one True God? Let's
look at some examples in the form of questions and you can
check out the source links as well.
How To Discern, Test & Judge
Rightly by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
In running a web site with thousands of
articles, 1-2 million hits per month from all over the
world, and hundreds of e-mails per week, I have come to
realize, with time, that there is a terrible problem in
Christendom today. The problem stems from an existential
subjective view of the world that has filtered into the
church from secular society, but also from the teachings
of heretical wolves who have taught an entire generation
of churchgoers completely unbiblical methods of
discernment or to get rid of any discernment altogether.
A house built on the rock will stand.
The Rock is God and in particular, Jesus Christ.
Therefore His written Word is the teachings of the His
Holy Spirit and a Rock we can depend on. Anyone who
wants to prove anything theologically, historically,
scientifically or anything else needs to start with
correct information. If you start with a faulty
foundation, as you build your arguments, they begin to
fall apart because they are not supported in God"s
truth. If you want to build on a firm foundation,
you need to start the process by a careful study of God"s
Word in context of the verse and according to the whole
counsel of God"s Word. The Bible is the best
commentary on the Bible.
Karma (by any other name) by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
According to Wikipedia:
"Karma means action, work or deed; it
also refers to the principle of causality where intent
and actions of an individual influence the future of
that individual. Good intent and good deed
contribute to good karma and future happiness, while bad
intent and bad deed contribute to bad karma and future
suffering. Karma is closely associated with the
idea of rebirth in some schools of Asian
religions. In these schools, karma in the present
affects one's future in the current life, as well as the
nature and quality of future lives - or, one's samsara.
With origins in ancient India, it is a key concept in
Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Taoism, Shintoism,
Ching Hai and others."(emphasis mine)
Mirram-Webster defines it this way:
the force created by a person's actions
that is believed in Hinduism and Buddhism to determine
what that person's next life will be like: the force
created by a person's actions that some people believe
causes good or bad things to happen to that person
His Name, The Only Name by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Zechariah 14:9 NIV The LORD will be king
over the whole earth. On that day there will be one
LORD, and his name the only name.
The reason I wrote this
article based on Zech 14:9 is that I was reminded of how
many so-called Christians, who are influential in the
churches, are promoting the worship of God in the names of
other gods.
Replacement Theology On Steroids by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
So, as you can see, the root of this
teaching is that Israel no longer holds the distinction
of being the tree from which the Root of David
(Jesus-Rev. 5:5, 22:16) came. They are no longer
the "natural branches" (Israel-Rom. 11:21) on to which
Gentile Christianity (the wild shoots-Rom. 11:17 or wild
branches-Rom. 11:24) are grafted in (Rom.
11:17-24). According to Replacement Theology,
Christianity has now become its own branch apart from
Israel (the natural branch) that produced the Root and
all the promises of the Bible to Israel have been taken
away from them and given to the Gentile Church.
This is why you hear so many false teachers taking
verses out of context from the Old Testament and
willy-nilly applying them to the Gentile Church.
This methodology has been going on for decades in
liberal churches and has been popularized by many false
teachers on TV. But the fact is that Replacement
Theology is utter false doctrine. It denies
promises made to Israel, some of which have already been
fulfilled and some which are yet to come to fruition.
But when you add the fact that the Inclusivist WCGIP
proponents are now saying that God planted hundreds of
different trees, cultures all over the world, that are
not connected to the natural branch, tree and Root, you
have what can only be termed Replacement Theology on
steroids!
Those Who Do Not Lead Christians
to Maturity by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The Scriptural definition of maturity is to
learn to discern truth from error so that the Christian
will no longer be double minded, blown about by every wind
of teaching and by the schemes of crafty people. But
the problem today is that so few Christian teachers are
feeding their flock's solid food. They are serving
up milk and, because of that, people are starving. Yet
they often don't even know they have been on a starvation
diet. Amos 8:11 "The days are coming," declares
the Sovereign Lord, "when I will send a famine through
the land - not a famine of food or a thirst for
water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord."
"... and all liars" by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
Lying is a problem for all people (Ps.
116:11). We are all sinners (Rom. 3:23). Those
of us who are Christians are "sinners saved by grace"
(Eph. 2:8) indwelt by the Holy Spirit in our "new self"
(Col. 3:10). But we still live in our "old self" which we
must "put off" (Eph. 4:20-25) by taking up our cross daily
and following Christ (Luke 9:23). The difference
between unbelievers and those who are truly born again is
that believers no longer "practice sin" (1 John 3:9, see
my Bible study on 1 John!) They have the indwelling
Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:11) who convicts them when they lie
(John 16:8). True believers then repent (1 John 1:9) and
go on to "practice righteousness" (1 John 2:29) with the
Lord's help. The unregenerate, the false brothers,
or those who have fallen away (Gal. 5:4, Mark 4:17),
practice lying. They practice a lifestyle of lying
because their consciences are seared (1 Tim. 4:2) and the
Holy Spirit, when convicting them, cannot break through
the hardness of their unrepentant hearts (Eph. 4:17-19,
Heb. 3:13).
Four Books That the Enemy Has Used
To Corrupt Christianity by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
The four books that have changed the church
by giving an introduction to the false teachings of the
New Apostolic/Latter Rain (NAR), the Emerging
Church/Contemplative/Catholic Mysticism (EC), pragmatic
Church Growth (CG) methodologies of C. Peter Wagner,
Robert Schuller and Peter Drucker, and the teachings of
the World Christian Gathering on Indigenous People (WCGIP)
are as follows:
Surprised by the Power of the Spirit by
Jack Deer, Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster,
Purpose Driven Church by Rick Warren & Etnerity In
Their Hearts by Don Richardson.
These four books were widely read by
Christians from virtually every denominational background
before their ramifications and the movements they would
spawn were known. They lay error alongside truth so
were considered not to be a threat to churches.
Therefore these books then became part of the
consciousness of many Christians and churches, thereby
laying the basis for the introduction of the modern day
false teachings of the NAR, EC, CG and WCGIP that have
become part of the landscape of Christendom today.
Night Marchers and UFOs on the Big
Island by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
With the resurgence of the old religion
of Hawaii and the continual invocation of Pelé and other
"deities" for years in the secular culture and even in
churches with regards to worshipping 'Io, is it any
wonder that those beings are beginning to manifest
again? In a story called "Night
Marchers" on the Kawaihae site and in a YouTube
video on the same subject, eyewitnesses claim all
kinds of sightings that they think are the warriors,
ancestors and demi-gods of Hawaii coming back.
Interestingly the
first
book the Hawaiian Heritage site recommends in its
"Suggested Reading" list is "Perpetuated
in
Righteousness" by Daniel Kikawa that we reviewed
in our book "Idolatry
In
Their Hearts" by Sandy Simpson and Mike
Oppenheimer. Since Kikawa claims that 'Io is the True
God and one that the Hawaiians worshipped in secret, we
have to wonder if Kikawa also thinks 'Io is showing up
in these night marches? Since YWAM, Aloha Ke Akua and
Hilo New Hope participated in worshipping 'Io at the
"edge of Hale-ma'uma'u Crater" it sounds like they have
all been inviting the old "gods" to return to
Hawaii.
"They Will Believe The Lie" by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I am doing a Bible study right now on what
I would call "renewing our minds". It is based on
this verse:
Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the
pattern of this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and
approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and
perfect will.
The only way to renew our minds is to
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, confess our sins, and be
saved, then to study the written Word and allow the
indwelling Holy Spirit to teach us. Our minds are
corrupted by virtue of the sin nature and what we have
learned in life because our filters are off. I gave an
illustration of straining coconut to make coconut
milk. If you use a 1 inch screen everything will
pass through. Even if you use a quarter inch screen
you will get mostly coconut meat in your milk. You
have to use a fine screen in order to separate the milk
from the leftover. Our filters are off and the first
thing God begins to do is correct our worldview, because
if your worldview is off you will not understand God's
reality. We need to learn to see things from His
perspective. This is why I started this study by
going back to an original problem.
2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 The coming of the
lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works.
He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs
and wonders that serve the lie, and all the ways
that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They
perish because they refused to love the truth and so be
saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful
delusion so that they will believe the lie and
so that all will be condemned who have not believed the
truth but have delighted in wickedness.
This has always been an interesting passage
to me for a few different reasons. What is "the lie"
that is talked about here in verse 9 and 11? What
are the ways that "wickedness deceives those who are
perishing" and how long has this been going on or does
this only begin to happen at the coming of the lawless
one? In what way does "the lie" cause those who do
not believe the truth to "delight in wickedness"?
Updated! The First Nations Movement Deceiving The Nations! 4-DVD Series Critical
Missiological Issue!
The "Indigenous People's" (IPM) or "First
Nations" movement is an unbiblical movement teaching
heresies and doctrines of demons. It is being spread
worldwide by YWAM, Don Richardson, John Dawson, Richard
Twiss, Terry LeBlanc, Daniel Kikawa and many other
adherents. The IPM or World Christian Gathering On
Indigenous People is full of the false teachings of the
Third Wave, New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), Word-Faith,
Dominionism, Latter Rain and many other false theological
systems. But it does have it's own distinctives that
are driven by the works of Daniel Kikawa, Richard Twiss,
and Don Richardson in particular. They are teaching
Christians to "redeem" their cultures by worshipping their
former gods, pretending they are YHWH.
Go here for
ordering information. Only $10. per DVD or $35. for the
4-DVD set, plus s/h. for US. The First Nations
Movement 4-DVD Set
The First Nations
Movement DVD 1 (1) Perpetuating Nations' Myths - Mike
Oppenheimer (2) 11 Reasons To Reject This Movement,
Part 1 - Sandy Simpson The First Nations
Movement DVD 2 (1) The Fingerprints Of God? - Mike
Oppenheimer (2) 11 Reasons To Reject This Movement,
Part 2 - Sandy Simpson The First Nations
Movement DVD 3 (1) The New Indigenous "Christian" Religion
- Sandy Simpson (2) Did God Put Eternity In Their Hearts? -
Sandy Simpson (3) The Missionaries Brought A Foreign God
- Sandy Simpson (4) Catholic Syncretism - Sandy Simpson The First Nations
Movement DVD 4 (1) "Monotheism" In Ancient Cultures -
Sandy Simpson (2) The History Of The Knowledge Of God -
Sandy Simpson "Christians" Who Try To Poke Holes
In Sola Scriptura by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this article: "Christians" Who Try To
Poke Holes In Sola Scriptura
There are a number of the leadership of
the Emerging Church (EC) who do not believe that the
Bible is the highest authority for the Christian
faith. Most do not believe that the Bible is
inerrant in the original manuscripts and many do not
acknowledge that the Bible is our highest
revelation. Yet this is a core doctrine over which
true believers and false brethren must separate. Those
who try to poke holes in Sola Scriptura make excuses
like (1) we need to reinterpret the Bible through the
lens of postmodern culture and religion (2) the Bible
never uses the words "Sola Scriptura" therefore it is
not a Biblical concept (3) there is new revelation for
the church through the Holy Spirit apart from what is
written and the precepts of the Bible and (4) the Bible
just doesn't address our postmodern situation therefore
we cannot rely on it for the truth and answers for our
problems today. I will prove that all the above
arguments, and more, from EC leaders and others is
exactly what they are teaching. I will give you
quotes from their teachings, videos and books. The
postmodern church and its "movements" are abandoning
Sola Scriptura in their rush to be like the Roman
Catholic Church, which takes its authority from a mix of
Scripture and tradition.
"As a result the Church, to whom the
transmission and interpretation of Revelation is
entrusted, "does not derive her certainty about all
revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone. Both
Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored
with EQUAL sentiments of devotion and reverence." (Roman
Catholic Catechism, Given October 11, 1992, the
thirtieth anniversary of the opening of the Second
Vatican Ecumenical Council, in the fourteenth year of my
Pontificate. Page 31).
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. per DVD plus s/h. for
US.
Updated DVD! The Question Of Dominion by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this article:
The Question Of
Dominion.
I am writing this article as an
apologetic against the Third Wave, Latter Rain, Word of
Faith and Reformed Theology teachings that the Church is
to rise up and take over the systems of government,
businesses and every other aspect of life. "See, the
problem is, is that Satan has had too much of his way in
our society because he has a government! And the
only way to overthrow a government is with a
government. It won't happen otherwise. So
therefore the government of the church has to get into
place in the extended church just like we do have it
very well in place, we haven't reached our goal yet
..." (Transcript of C. Peter Wagner, Arise
Prophetic Conference, Gateway Church, San Jose, CA,
10-10-2004) Wagner has substituted the "government of
the church" for the coming government of Jesus Christ in
the Millennial Kingdom. Wagner is "Kingdom Now"
while the Bible teaches "Kingdom Come". What I wanted to
do with this article is put the issue of dominion to
rest by studying the definition the Bible gives to
dominion and ruling authority. When we look at the
subject we can easily ascertain what is going on today
and what God requires of the Church.
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. per DVD plus s/h. for
US.
Shepherd Or Hireling? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on the article:
"Shepherd
Or
Hireling?"
The Bible lays out the definitions of
both an overseer (under shepherd) and a hireling.
John 10:11-13 I am the good shepherd: the good
shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is
an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep
are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep,
and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth
the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an
hireling, and careth not for the sheep. (KJV) 1
Tim. 3:1-3 Here is a trustworthy saying: If
anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a
noble task. Now the overseer must be above reproach, the
husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled,
respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to
drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome,
not a lover of money. (NIV) Titus 1:7-13
Since an overseer is entrusted with God's work, he must
be blameless, not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not
given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing
dishonest gain. Rather he must be hospitable, one who
loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright,
holy and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the
trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he
can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those
who oppose it. For there are many rebellious people,
mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the
circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they
are ruining whole households by teaching things they
ought not to teach - and that for the sake of dishonest
gain. Even one of their own prophets has said, "Cretans
are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons." This
testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so
that they will be sound in the faith. (NIV) A hireling
does not really care about being a watchman, but is more
concerned with protecting his reputation, position and
income. A true watchman will guard the flock
against wolves from within (Acts 20:30) and without
(Acts 20:29) no matter the cost to his reputation,
position or income. Following is a little quiz you can
take to see if you are a true Biblical under shepherd as
a leader in your church, are becoming a hireling, or are
one now.
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. plus s/h. for US.
Too many churches today are allowing
music to be used in their services that is not
glorifying to the Lord and can actually be a hindrance
to the teaching of sound doctrine. Pastors and leaders
should be using their leadership role to test what is
being played and sung in their churches. Though some are
quick to test preaching and teaching from their pulpits,
many ignore the music being used in the same services.
This is a tragic mistake. Music is a powerful medium. It
is something that effects deeply the body, mind and
emotions. It is a proven fact that music often stays
with a person far longer than what is taught or
preached. Songs roam around in our heads, especially if
the melody appeals to us. What is often overlooked is
the serious impression music makes on people, and the
teaching they are getting over and over again as they
allow the song to repeat in their minds and on their
lips. Music teaches things much more subtly yet
sometimes far more effectively. That's why the lyrical
content of music in the church, as well as its effect on
the spiritual lives of those who perform and listen,
should be vigorously examined by the leaders of the
church. This is a
2-DVD set.
Go here
for ordering information. Only $20. per 2-DVD set plus
s/h. for US.
2 Cor. 13:5 Examine yourselves
to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realise that Christ Jesus is
in you - unless, of course, you fail the test?
People who call themselves followers of
Christ or "Christians" and claim they are born again must
believe certain things. If they do not then they
fail the test of faith. They can claim they are born
again all they want and "once saved, always saved" but if
they fail the test of faith there is no eternal
security. Only God knows who will be saved, from
beginning to end, because of His foreknowledge and
omniscience (Rom. 8:29, 1 Pet. 1:2). God did not
make an arbitrary judgment about who would be saved and
who would not. His Spirit is given to those He
foreknew, when convicted of sin by His Holy Spirit, would
choose to believe and commit themselves to Jesus
Christ. We are not God and we do not have His
omniscience. Therefore, according to Paul, we must
be sure our belief system is in the right place once our
eyes have been opened to the Truth. I am not saying
we do not have assurance of salvation, but our assurance
comes not only because of His Atonement and promises of
salvation but from our continuing in the Faith, which is
always the Biblical criteria. Those who would be Bible
teachers must teach according to the whole counsel of
God's Word. Let me be clear. There is only one
way to salvation. That is by grace alone
through faith alone in Christ alone. I will deal
with a few of those issues following, but it is important
to recognize that being saved is not just a matter of
believing that Jesus lived, or that He was a man, or
simply giving mental ascent to His existence in whatever
form.
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. plus s/h. for
US.
"Blasphemizing" The Bible by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I am going to go over an article I wrote
back in 2006 in preparation for the book I wrote with Mike
Oppenheimer called 'Idolatry in Their Hearts'. This
book is an apologetic against the false teachings of the
World Christian Gathering on Indigenous People movement,
the Emerging Church and the New Apostolic Reformation
which got their ideas from the book "Eternity in Their
Hearts" by Don Richardson. At the time that book
came out no one really saw the dangerous ideas Richardson
was promoting. All they would have had to do was
look at the two subtitles of that book to understand the
implications. The first subtitle in the 1981 edition
read: The Untold Story of Christianity among Folk
Religions of Ancient People. Those who read this
book found some interesting cross-cultural ideas but
apparently missed the false premise of the book starting
with the subtitle. How could Christianity be "among folk
religions" where the Gospel had not been preached (Rom.
10:14-15)? At that time Christians who read the book were
apparently satisfied that, though there was some
questionable material present, it made for an interesting
discussion on how to do cross-cultural ministry. The
subtitle it has today, which was first published in 1984,
is as follows: Startling Evidence of Belief in the One
True God in Hundreds of Cultures Throughout the
World. This should have been a red flag for many
Christians but then, who reads subtitles? But how
could the "One True God" be known to Gentiles who did "not
know God".
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. plus s/h. for
US.
Resources For Pastors including "Good English Bible
Translations" by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
I was talking with a pastor after a
Wednesday night service and he mentioned that I said I had
done an article comparing English Bible
translations. He called me up later and asked me to
come back and present the contents of that article I sent
out in about 2002 to my mailing list for the Pacific Waves
Newsletter which, unfortunately, I can no longer afford to
publish and mail. However an archive of past issues
of that newsletter can be found here.
In that article I detailed a number of good and bad
resources for pastors including Bible translations,
concordances, commentaries, Bible dictionaries, etc.
I present an edited version of part of that article on
this DVD, particularly dealing with English Translations
of the Bible. Translation is a very detailed
endeavor and should only be undertaken by those with a
proper education in that subject and a sound doctrinal
background. I read a few books on that subject and
it helped me understand the complexities involved.
Hebrew is a rich language so it is hard to distill one
Hebrew word down to one English word. Greek is a
very technical language and it is also not easy to
translate. This is why it is imperative to use the
good English translations out there for comparison along
with a good concordance and Bible dictionary.
Go here
for ordering information. Only $10. plus s/h. for
US.
A TALE OF TWO KINGDOMS Kingdom Now or Kingdom Come? by Sandy Simpson
This DVD is a message based on this
article.
There are two kingdoms being taught in many
churches today. Teaching about one of the kingdoms is on
the decline while the other is being promoted all over the
place. I am warning Christians that they need to
check out who is using the word "kingdom", the books they
have been reading and recommend on building "the kingdom",
the people they have been hanging out with at conferences,
and what they mean by "the kingdom".
Go here
for more information or click on the "Add To Cart"
below. Only $10. plus s/h. for US.
BIBLES STUDIES IN DISCERNMENT by Sandy Simpson
Bible studies in Galatians, Philippians,
Ephesians, Colossians, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and Jude
with a focus on applying timeless discernment priciples to
our modern times.
Go here
for more information or click on the "Add To Cart"
below. The price is $18. per book plus s/h.
BIBLES STUDIES IN DISCERNMENT Companion CD! by Sandy Simpson
Contains the PDF text to the book BIBLE
STUDIES IN DISCERNMENT plus extra studies by Sandy &
Juanita Simpson covering many issues of apologetics and
discernment.
Go here
for more information or click on the "Add To Cart"
below. The price is $10. per cd plus s/h.
A Whole Lot Of Wishful Thinking
These Days! by Sandy Simpson
This DVD series is a teaching based on this
article.
In this DVD series I want to detail a
number of beliefs people have these days that have no
basis in Scripture. I am going to roam all over
the map, so to speak, and try to give fairly short
answers on a number of topics and also give you useful
links to articles that will help you deal with any
particular issue. It is truly amazing how many
false ideas people cling to without giving a thought to
what the Bible has to say on the subject.
Only $20. plus s/h. for US. Go here for
ordering details.
Signs Of Apostasy In The
Churches In The End Times by Sandy Simpson
This 2-DVD series is a teaching based on this article.
There are many signs of the great
Apostasy, or falling away (2 Thes. 2:3) indicating we
are living in the end times (Mt. 24: 3-14) I am
going to go through some indications of the Apostasy in
the churches as a follow up to the signs of the times in
the world.
Only $20. plus s/h. for US. Go here for ordering
details.
The Responsibilities of a Good Shepherd by Sandy Simpson
This CD is a message based on this
article.
Emerging Church CD & Free
DVD All the links to
resources and articles we have on the Emerging
Church on one CD. by Sandy Simpson
(The Emerging Church only is downloadable!)
When you purchase the
"Resource Tools - Emerging Church" CD for $10. plus s/h
you will also receive a brand new free DVD called
"The Emerging Church" that features Gary Gilley,
Ray Yungen, Joanna Michaelson, Mike Oppenheimer and
Sandy Simpson.
From Church To Emerging Church
DVD Series by Sandy Simpson
The issue of the Emerging Church and it's
introduction into many churches and mission organizations
has reached a critical point. Many do not undersand
what is being leavened into churches by the EC
leadership. Many would be shocked to know their
belief systems involve Universalism, New Age, defense of
postmodernism, Interfaithism, and many other false
doctrines. In order to reach out to this generation
the EC leadership is proposing a whole new "map" to deal
with what they perceive is a lack of understanding on the
part of the churches on how to communicate. EC
proponants believe the "scripture" for today is evolving
and must change in order to reach postmoderns.
Go here for
ordering details on this 2-part DVD series!
Idolatry In Their Hearts Landmark Book! by Sandy Simpson
& Mike Oppenheimer
Does having eternity in your heart mean that
you know God and are His child? Could Gentile cultures
understand the Gospel from the stars? Did God create man's
cultures? Has God always been in the process of redeeming
cultures from the time of Babel by placing in them a true
revelation of Himself? Is there the worship of YHWH in all
cultures and religions through the names of supreme
beings? Have all cultures always had a way to make
things right between them and God? These questions and
many more are answered in this book that addresses the
false teachings of The New Apostolic Reformation regarding
missiological methods as being carried out by many
agencies including the World Christian Gathering on
Indigenous People, YWAM, and many Bible societies.
The New Apostolic Reformation -
What is it and where is it going? Every Pastor
Needs This! by Bill
Randles, Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Jacob Prasch, Mike
Oppenheimer, Orrel Steinkamp, Gary Gilley, Dave Hunt,
Sandy Simpson and others.
This is a 6-DVD expose
of the NAR and it's leadership of C. Peter
Wagner, Cindy Jacobs, Chuck Peirce, Dutch Sheets, Bill
Hamon, Jack Deere and others.
Lessons In Forgiveness Great Study! by Sandy Simpson Through the years I
have been presented with many opportunities to
forgive. Sometimes the situation was so severe that it
took me some time to forgive and start the process of
healing for myself, and eventually for others. I
learned that a Christian needs to forgive other people
even if they have not repented of their sins. That can
be really hard if we let it be hard. But if we give
our burdens over to the Lord, He will carry them and
that frees us up to treat other people with love,
compassion, and be in the right frame of mind and
heart to set them up for reconciliation with Jesus
Christ. That does not mean we tolerate their sin. We
simply forgive them for what they have done to us,
whether perceived or real, and move on to looking for
ways to redeem them. We can then present to them the
"truth in love" even when we have to rebuke them.
by Sandy Simpson was written to help
believers to realize the absolute necessity of growing
to maturity in Christ. Many churches are urging
Christians to push aside discernment in favor of
experience. It is our hope that this book will inspire
many believers to fight the good fight, finish the
race, and keep the faith (2 Tim. 4:7).
The New Apostolic Reformation -
What is it and where is it going? Companion Book! by Sandy Simpson is now available in book form. This is
the DVD script plus commentary by Sandy Simpson. The
commentary of the DVD series is not in the book, but
there are many more quotes available than in the video
series. Good reference material. Also
available on CD-ROM.
Letters To The Church Timely! by Sandy Simpson is a fitting manual for the Revelation
Christian. All the precepts are in the seven letters in
Revelation 1:9 - 3:22 to help us keep the faith, stay in
sound doctrine, and reach out to those who are
perishing. I hope and pray that this book will
help the reader to be an "overcomer".
DISCERNMENT TOOLKIT Demolish Arguments! by Sandy Simpson Want to be able to see your way through
to clear biblical discernment? Want a set of tools that
will allow you to disciple your loved ones so they will
stand firm in the Faith? Want to sort out many of the
false arguments and teachings that have invaded the
churches? Then DISCERNMENT TOOLKIT book is for you!
DISCERNMENT TOOLKIT DVD Study Series! by Sandy Simpson is taken from the book but includes a lot
of footage of false teachers and false prophets. It
covers the core doctrines, how we can use them to test,
and examples on the DVD that can be paused for
discussion. Also includes a teacher guide and
links to resources on the web. This 3-DVD series
is available now!
SPIRIT OF TRUTH OR SPIRIT OF
ERROR? Important Video Information On Benny Hinn! by Sandy Simpson,
Mike Oppenheimer & Jacob Prasch
features tons of video
showing the teachings and prophecies of Benny
Hinn. This is a proven tool to keep people away
from heresy.
THE EMPTY PULPIT Highly Recommended! by Mike Oppenheimer What is Christianity? What significance
does the cross have? Are there teachings that can wreck
our faith? We live in an age unlike any other in the
history of man. To follow the Lord among the unique
challenges we must understand Scripture and live by it.
Available for $20- includes shipping.
Apologetics Coordination Team HIGHLY recommends this
book. It deals with many crucial issues for the
Church today.
Go here
to order the book by Mike Oppenheimer, Let Us Reason
Ministries, P.O. Box 860683, Wahiawa, HI 96786.
Other
important articles that do not fit in any existing
category.
(1) The Old Cross And The Newby
A. W. Tozer, Man: The Dwelling Place Of God, 1966
"This article first appeared in The Alliance Witness in
1946. It has been printed in virtually every
English-speaking country in the world and has been put into
tract form by various publishers, including Christian
Publications, Inc. It still appears now and then in the
religious press."
(2) The
"Left
Behind" Series - Book Reviewby Pastor Kevin
Beier, Bible Believer's Baptist Church of Custer, South
Dakota, Updated
2/3/2000 "These books boil down to good old-fashioned COMPROMISE! "
DITC does not recommend this book series.
This review brings up some of our objections, so rather than
do a seperate article, we give you this one instead.
Here is another review
by a Fundamentalist Baptist.
(4) Postribulationism
Vs.
The Latter Rain Doctrineby Ed Tarkowski,
2000 "Rather than BEING the Manifest Sons earth-rulers, the
Posttribber will be persecuted BY the Manifest Sons. As I
said, the MSOGs believe in sinless perfection so that the
glory of God will shine through them BEFORE Christ returns.
But the Posttribulationist believes the believer is
glorified by Christ WHEN He returns at the end of the
Tribulation period, i.e., Daniel's 70th week. No Christian
can be perfected from his sin nature until Christ raises him
from the dead or changes him to be like Him when He returns
after the Tribulation period because we will live in a
sinful body until then. "New" revelations cannot, as the
MSOGs believe, overcome this body of death before the return
of Christ: (1 John 1:10 KJV) If we say that we have not
sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."
(5) Authority
And Responsibilityby Dave Hunt, The Berean Call,
April 2000 "In seeking to understand any passage in Scripture, one
rule must govern: whatever the Bible declares, the Bible
itself (not some outside authority) must interpret. It is
from the Bible that we learn the gospel, about the church
Christ established, about discipleship and the responsibilities,
authority and power He has given to His own. Therefore, it
is to the Bible that we must look to understand these things
and the Bible is understandable."
(6) Once
Dogs Under The Table, We Should Not Boastby Ed
Tarkowski, May 2000 "Some today say God is done with Israel. Others say all
that Israel was promised is now in the possession of the
Gentile Church. Others have applied the promises to Israel
in the Old Testament to the Church, even raising up a "new"
Abraham, a redefined Abrahamic Covenant, a "new" Isaac, etc.
so it looks like Israel and talks like Israel, yet really
usurps the place of Israel. Others make all the Gentiles of
the world Jewish and do away with Israel. But Scriptures
warns the Gentiles that they were made part of the olive
tree and that we should not boast against Israel, yet the
boasts continue through all kinds of "new" doctrines.
Realizing our state before God in Jesus' time and our
position in Christ now, how much more should we heed the
warnings of Paul in Romans: 'Boast not against the branches.
But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root
thee. Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that
I might be grafted in. Well; because of unbelief they were
broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded,
but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take
heed lest he also spare not thee. Behold therefore the
goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity;
but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness:
otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.' (Romans 11:18-22
KJV)"
(7) A
Very Close Look At "God Chasers" By Tommy Tenneyby
Rev. Bob Liichow, Truth Matters Newsletter, 2000 "There is a book which is sweeping through many charismatic
congregations and it is also making inroads into some
mainline denominations and evangelical churches too, and
that book is The God Chasers by Tommy Tenney. I purchased
Mr. Tenney�s book and read it in a couple of hours and I am
very concerned about the content of this popular book. I am
going to take great pains to make you aware of why I am
troubled about this book and I fear for those who blindly
swallow the concepts Mr. Tenney sets forth in his writing."
(8) Getting
To Know Godby Juanita Simpson, 2000
This excellent little tract was written by my mother and we
still use it today in witnessing. It explains the Gospel
message from the beginning in short form. You can
download or print this online tract and use it for
yourself. It is sure to be a blessing to many
people.
(9) Christian:
Who Is Your Covering? A Christian Look At The
Shepherding Movement by Steve Coleman, 1981
"It should be apparent why the Shepherding Movement is in
such error: it has applied to men what rightfully belongs to
God. Instead of saying the Lord is the covering, it claims
that shepherds are the covering. While the Bible says people
can trust God for strength and guidance, the Shepherding
Movement says that a man is necessary too. In short, the
Shepherding Movement casts doubt on God's ability."
(10) Just
Two Kinds Of Religion by Timothy Oliver, The
Watchman Expositor, Vol. 15, No. 1, 1998 "There is an ever-increasing cry in the religious world
today, not just for tolerance, but for unity of all people
and all religions. It is often stated � almost never with
any attempt to prove the assertion � that all religions are
alike in their fundamental doctrines. One must suspect that
the lack of any serious attempt to prove the assertion is on
account of the paucity of evidence. Indeed, it seems almost
impossible to find even one standard to which all will
willingly adhere."
(12) Book
Review Of The "God Chasers" By Tommy Tenneyby
Bill Randles, Believers In Grace Ministries, 2000 "... Is the GODCHASERS really about the kind of hunger for
God that perhaps Tozer wrote of, or Spurgeon, Wesley, Nee
and the other giants of the Faith of days gone by? You be
the judge. But lest there be any doubt that some other kind
of hunger is at work here, consider that the last page of
this Destiny Image book is an advertising page featuring the
full line of GODCHASERS products, The GODCHASER hat is
available for a mere $17.99 and the God chaser shirt is
available in four sizes for a mere $16.99, and for those who
truly want to attest to this new hunger, the GODCHASERS
license plate is available for a mere $6.99!!!!! "
(13) Self
Does Not Die Without Our Full Consentby A.W.
Tozer, Renewed Day By Day, 1950, pg. July 11 "A good rule is this: Nothing that comes from God will
minister to my pride or self-congratulation. If I am
tempted to be complacent and to feel superior because of an
advanced spiritual experience, I should go at once to my
knees and repent of the whole thing. I have fallen a
victim to the enemy!"
(14) Lord,
Make
Us Like Philadelphiaby Pastor Randy Elliott,
from a tape transcript dated October 18, 1992 "The Spirit today is speaking to those who will listen, but
He doesn't speak to just individuals. Revelation 3:13 says,
"He who has an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit
says to the churches." Are you listening, Christian? Is your
church listening? The Spirit is continually striving with
us, prodding us toward truth and righteousness and away from
attachment to this dying world."
(15) Time
To
Leave The Playpenby Andrew Gould, 10/00 "When
I hear the phrase �that was so unloving�, sometimes I want
to scream!"
(16) Testing
Music In The Churchby Sandy Simpson, 10/00
"Music is a very powerful medium, perhaps even more
powerful in terms of what and how much a person remembers
than sermons. So it must be treated with the same kind of
discernment. We need to be very much aware of the songs that
are being used in the church."
(17) The
Unknown Saintsby A.W. Tozer, Man: The
Dwelling Place Of God, pg. 95-99, (c)1966 Christian
Publications "The wise Christian will be content to wait for that
day. In the meantime, he will serve his generation in
the will of God. If he should be overlooked in the
religious popularity contests he will give it but small
attention. He knows whom he is trying to please and he
is willing to let the world think what it will of him.
He will not be around much longer anyway, and where he is
going men will be known not by their Hooper rating but by
the holiness of their character."
(18) Walking
With Godby Sandy Simpson, Sermon Notes,
11/00 "What would it be like if you have a friend
but no contact, no walking with him? (1) lose touch
(2) lose track - lose understanding (3) no longer moving
in the same direction (4) ultimately friendship grows cold
- lose friendship."
(19)Rebuttal To The Defense Of The
Term "Christian Hedonism"by Sandy Simpson, DITC,
1998
This is a paper about the term "Christian hedonism" which
author John Piper is trying to coin in books such as "Desiring
God" and "Future Grace". Though there is no doubt good
material in the books, there is a danger here. This
danger flows into the gnostic revivals out of RHEMA, Toronto
and Brownsville. I believe these books and their message
will be, and in fact are being, taken the wrong way. The
term "Christian hedonism" is an oxymoron using the standard
dictionary definitions of both "Christianity" and
"hedonism". To be fair, we have posted an
analysis of my rebuttal by Graham.Then,
go here for my
second (and final) rebuttal. Also, check out this e-mail for
confirmation of what I have been trying get John Piper to
understand. Also please read A
Biblical Study of the Theological Foundation of "Christian
Hedonism" by Craig W. Booth, 6/02
(20)The Prayer of Jabez - A Review
by Biblical Discernment Ministries, 4/01
NOTE: This is a good article. Please be aware, however,
that we do not agree with some articles on the BDM web site
that lump Chrsitians like Chuck Smith and Dave Hunt in with
heretics like Benny Hinn and Kenneth Copeland. The author of
BDM needs to learn to discern between heretics and true
brothers in Christ. If you need help distiguishing the
essentials of the Faith, refer to our artricle called "The
Five Basic Doctrines". "The real tragedy of Bruce
Wilkinson's book will be the carnage created as desperate
souls follow his advice and pray Jabez's prayer for a month,
and yet see no change or see things getting worse around
them. The book has no discussion of what to do when the
prayer seems to fail (e.g., a child dies, a marriage fails,
a job is lost, or healing does not come, etc.). Many of them
will turn to themselves seeking the reason. Yet Wilkinson
has guaranteed that the prayer will work. The clear
implication is that a failed prayer equals failed faith.
Wilkinson teaches a shallow "results-oriented" faith that is
supposed to guarantee success, as opposed to a deep,
abiding, loving relationship with our Father that will
sustain us through heartaches, failure, and success."
(21)Do
You
Jabez? - An Examination Of Dr. Bruce Wilkinson's The
Prayer Of Jabez by John Miller, Chapel
42, March 25, 2001 "Many who fail to see the promised results will turn from
God thinking that Christianity is a sham. They will
question God's existence or His faithfulness because, in my
opinion, the book teaches a shallow 'results-oriented' faith
that is supposed to guarantee success as a opposed to a
deep, abiding, loving relationship with our Father that will
sustain us through heartaches, failure and success. So
that there will be people there to pick up the pieces,
please pray that God will use you when the time comes.
Please don't spend the money to buy the book unless you're
just curious about the depths of its error."
(22) The
Prayer Of Jabez - A Reviewby Mike
Oppenheimer, Let Us Reason Ministries, 4/01 "A biblical look at the newest sensation on prayer that is
sweeping America and other countries."
(23) The
Prayer Of Jabez & The Prayer Of James by Sandy
Simpson, 5/01 "Do you want your rewards now or later? Would you
rather ask for abundance or wisdom? Did Solomon ask
for abundance or wisdom? Would you rather lay up
treasures in heaven or on earth?"
(25)What
Prayer Will And Will Not Do by Mike Oppenheimer,
Let Us Reason Ministries, 5/00
An exposition on biblical and unbiblical prayers.
(26) Is
That
Really You, God? Hearing the Voice of God - A Review
by Loren Cunningham with his sister, Janice Rogers, Chosen
Books, 1984 - Evaluation, quotes and comments by Rev.
Greg Robertson, Jakarta, Indonesia. "Although Robertson had decided that his YWAM experience
was something from the past which must be left at the foot
of the cross, he soon found that the same false doctrines
and spiritual misgivings which had so negatively affected his life through his YWAM Daze, had
progressed to new levels, moved further away from Scripture and had become a poisonous leaven for other
groups and movements."
(27) The Call By Rick Joyner -
A Review by Kevin Reeves, 5/01 "In my opinion, there are great problems with both of
Joyner's books concerning this �vision�. He would have us
accept that Jesus took him to the 3rd heaven, that he spoke
face-to- face with Christ, that spirits of great Christian
reformers and even people from his own time who had died
spoke with him and revealed their hidden earthly lives, and
that he was being guided by and having wisdom imparted to
him from angels, and all this taking place in what he calls
the highest level of revelation, and then he tells us in
�The Call� that we have to sort through all this and decide
which portions he is relating are true and which are not!
When you say, "The Lord said," (as Joyner did repeatedly in
both books), you are giving the weight of heaven to your
testimony. But if in the next breath you deny the certainty
of the revelations, you effectively dismantle your own
testimony."
(28) Say
a
Little Prayer for Me - "The Prayer of Jabez": New Age
Self-Help With Christian Trappings by Damon
Linker, The Wall Street Journal, Editorial Page,
Houses Of Worship Section, Friday, May 25, 2001 12:01 a.m.
EDT "That Mr. Wilkinson and his legion of admirers apparently
find nothing particularly inappropriate about treating God
as a means to their worldly satisfaction teaches us
something important about American Christianity today--and
thus something essential about America itself." If you
have trouble getting through to the link above, try this
one.
(29) The
'Prayer
of Jabez': The New Christian Mantra by Bill
Koenig, Koenig's International News, Update / Commentary,
WorldWatchDaily, June 14, 2001 "Unfortunately, this book is one indicator of the condition
of the church today; it reflects the desire for many to
share in His glory, just like Adam and Eve did 6,000 years
ago. Can it be said that today, we don't want to submit to
God; we want to be God? How many copies would a book
on dying-to-self, repentance, brokenness, submission,
obedience, and receiving, sell in today�s market? It would
be very fortunate to hit 100,000."
(30) Sons
Of
Zadok by Jacob Prasch, Moriel Minsitries,
6/01 "If your minister is a Zadokite -- if he is somebody who
will kick the alien out, who will give the people what God
says they need, who ministers to the Lord rather than to
men, in whom there is no mixture in what he teaches,
believes and does, who will rather rest in the Lord than
strive in the flesh, who will teach people to discern, and
who will take a stand in a dispute -- if that is your
pastor, you stand by him. You pray for him, you support him
financially, and you help him in any way you can. He may not
be a perfect man, but he is a good man, and he is God�s man.
You stand by him, you pray for him, you support him, you be
loyal to him so long as he is loyal to the Word of God. He
needs your prayers, he deserves your support, and he is
entitled to your help. "
(31) All My
Friends Pray The Prayer Of Jabez, And All I Got Was This
Lousy T-Shirt by The Harpazo Network, 8/01 "We are afraid that after carefully & prayerfully
watching this stir that has developed. Our conclusion
is that: Jabez - by no fault of his own - has indeed brought
pain & sorrow after all. PRAYER is about
RELATIONSHIP! This is what God desires from us - NOT
RITUAL! If you have already been "Jabezing" maybe your
motives have been pure and sincere ... BUT you can put aside
this daily ritual and still 'seize opportunities' to witness
for the Lord - and despite ourselves - God takes care of His
own. We would like to urge you to instead appreciate
Jabez for what he was: an honorable man in the line of
Judah. But there is another one who came out of this
same genealogy who needs to be our ONLY focus and that is
JESUS and He wants you to Pray from your heart - Not someone
else�s! "
(32) Charismatics Use Jabez
Prayer For Money, Salvation, And Healings by THE
CALVARY CONTENDER, VOL. XVIII NO. 16 August 15, 2001 "It had to happen. Wilkinson's The Prayer of Jabez book is
tailor made for name-it-and-claim-it, health-and-wealth
charismatic charlatans."
(33) Tommy
Tenney
And The God Chasers by Mike R. Taylor,
3/4/01 "A person brought up in the Oneness tradition, which is
blatant and utterly unapologetic about such psychological
manipulation, yet still calling both his forbears and
himself �Spirit-filled�, clearly accepts all such
manifestations as true products of the Holy Spirit.
But unless such a person repents of all counterfeits which
he has experienced or accepted, he will remain undiscerning
in such matters. His discernment will always be
compromised until he stands in clear judgment against past
false experiences." Read Part
1 , Part
2, Part
3, & Part
4.
(34) Upgrade Your Old Hymns For The New
Paradigm! by Sandy Simpson, 9/01 "Time for a rewrite of the old hymns. In this day and
age of Third Wave revival movements and Word-Faith dominion,
the old hymns just aren't cutting it anymore. Not only
are they old fashioned musically, but the lyrics are, for
the most part, particularly depressing. They talk of sin,
death, repentanace, the cross, the blood of Jesus and a
whole host of other disgusting subjects. There are
also too many lyrics in them, frankly, which takes away from
the "worship" atmosphere. Repetitiveness is what we need,
not dead doctrinal concepts. The old hymns are just too
biblical. Give us a beat to move our feet, not concepts to
move our hearts and minds!"
(35) The
Prayer Of Jabez - Fadish Idolatry by
Joseph Chambers, Paw Creek Ministries, 9/01 "Religious fads are the most dangerous fads of all.
Any religious leader that will lower himself to create and
perpetuate a religious idea that has the potential to
promote a �faddish idolatry� is in serious trouble. Misplaced fads of a Christian nature cannot be called
anything but idolatry. Superstitious or soulish people have no capacity to discern between a religious fad and the
true faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. Fads capture
these types of people and carry them along on a false
journey of imaginary faith. It is impossible to
prevent these dark souls from grabbing the next dream just
as soon as some guru can create it."
(36) Is Allah The Same As
YHWH? by Sandy Simpson, 9/16/01 "Is the god of Islam, Allah, the same as the God of Israel
and Christianity, YHWH? Does Allah have a son?
Does YHWH have a Son? What other teachings from the
Koran show that Islam is a different religion than biblical
Christianity? Here is a side by side chart that might
prove helpful in your research on this subject."
(37) The
Towers
Have Fallen - But We Missed The Message by David
Wilkerson, World Challenge, Inc., 9/16/01 "Six weeks prior to the disaster, the Holy Spirit
forewarned our pastoral staff that a calamity was coming."
(38) More Quotes From The Koran
by The Kingdom Alert #130, p.1, Weekly Update, 9/01 "(These quotes) are taken from the Koran (translated by
N.J. Danwood). By reading these quotes you will have a basic
understanding of the Muslim religion, the wars and tension
in the Middle East, and the terrorism on September 11..."
(40) The
Qur'an's Jesus by Mike Oppenheimer, Let Us Reason
Ministries, 10/01 "What does the Qur'an teach about Jesus, the Son, begotten
and the father?"
(41) Which
Is The Real Islam? by Mike Oppenheimer, Let Us
Reason Ministries, 10/01 "Does the Qur'an teach peace or violence, and to whom?"
(42) Joy
To
The World by Dave Hunt, The Berean Call,
12/01 "Let us pray that in the wake of the September 11 attacks
the world will recognize the obvious dishonesty of Islamic
countries suddenly claiming they are against terrorism, whereas, the day before, they supported and praised it. Let
us pray that millions of Muslims will have their minds and
hearts opened to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us pray,
too, that Islamic countries will at last allow their
citizens�so long held in the bondage of fear�freedom of
conscience and of faith, and that many will receive Christ.
And let us do our part to bring this to pass."
(43) The
Church Is Losing Her Salt by Mike Oppenheimer, Let
Us Reason Ministries, 3/02 "Looking at the newest report of the church and what is
happening to Christianity."
(44) The Christian Message:
Prophetic, Not Diplomatic by A.W. Tozer, Renewed
Day By Day, March 7 "WE WHO WITNESS AND PROCLAIM the gospel must not think of
ourselves as public relations agents sent to establish good
will between Christ and the world."
(45) The Fruit Of The
Spirit by Sandy Simpson, 3/02
"A Bible study on the fruit of the Spirit. I hope this
will be a blessing and a challenge to all who read it!"
This paper is a biblical examination of
the modern philosophy entitled �Christian Hedonism�.No ill
intent is willed upon any practitioner or author of this
philosophy.It is acknowledged that many well-meaning and
upright Christians have embraced this philosophy.It is also
acknowledged that Dr. John Piper is well respected as an
author on the Christian publishing circuit. These
acknowledgements do not imply endorsement of these
teachings.Equally important, these acknowledgements should
never imply license for any to treat the Word of God with
anything but the utmost honesty and integrity, faithfully
quoting verses in context and fully so as not to change their
meaning.
(47) Tattoos
& Body Mutilation by Joseph Chambers, Paw
Creek Ministries, 7/02 Tattooing, body marking, body piercing, and now body
mutilation, where will it end? Just like any trend
or downward spiral, it goes deeper and deeper, lower and
lower. When any society or culture leaves the
absolutes of Biblical truths, there is no bottom.
The �body� is the Lord�s. The human life and body is
a sacred trust. There are holy things in our world
and no Christian culture can survive when we forget to
hold those things in reverence.
(48) The
Baptist Bride by Sam Linton, Post Trib Network,
8/25/02
The Baptist Bride doctrine of Landmark (Independant) Baptist
Churches is an elitist false doctrine. The belief in a
Baptist Bride evidently arose during the Landmark movement
due to efforts of J. R. Graves. The book "The
Baptist
Bride" by O.B. Mink is primarily what this article is
based on. Check out this story "The
Baptist Bride" and also this one called "But
Let Us Not Be Baptist Briders".
(49) Evangelical
Nuisances by Ole Anthony and Skippy R., Door
Magazine, The Last Word, Issue #186, March/April 2003
This article shows what the world thinks of the new
evangelicalism. This ought to be a wake up call, but
you can be sure few will listen. Please note that we
do not agree with the tactic of the missionary who affirmed
that "there is no God but Allah (which is what they actually
say), and his prophet is Mohammed" to which the missionary
replied "and Jesus is His Son". Allah is not YHWH in
any way shape or form, and Mohammed is a false prophet, and
we do not use deceptive methods and hide the truth to win
converts. But we do applaud those who live out the
gospel as well as preach it in every corner of the world, as
opposed to those on TBN and 700 Club who are ruining the
witness of what is loosely called Christianity.
(50) Experiencing
God by Gary Gilley, 10/97 The general teaching of Experiencing God is wrapped
around what Blackaby calls the "Seven Realities of
Experiencing God." The discerning reading will quickly
recognize that the last four of the "Seven Realities"
either contradict or at best cannot be supported or proven
by Scripture. Read Part
1, Part
2, and Part
3.
(52) The
High Casualty Rate Among Christians by
A. W. Tozer, Renewed Day By Day, Vol. 1, July 17 Nowhere in the teachings of Christ do we find anything
visionary or overoptimistic. He told His hearers the whole
truth and let them make up their minds. He might grieve
over the retreating form of an inquirer who could not face
up to the truth, but He never ran after him to try to win
him with rosy promises.
(53) The
Prayer Of Jabez - A Critical Analysis Of The
Fundamentals by Charles Marshall,
Yochanan Ministries, 2003 We, who are of the family of faith, should never be
ashamed of the knowledge of the power of the gospel unto
salvation, or be seduced by a teacher, book or leader into
taking our eyes off Jesus, and focusing on self.
(54) Do Not Hope to Win the
Lost by Being Agreeable
by A.W. Tozer, Renewed Day By Day, September 3 The man who is going in a wrong direction will never be
set right by the affable religionist who falls into step
beside him and goes the same way. Someone must place
himself across the path and insist that the straying man
turn around and go in the right direction.
(57) Internet
Christian Bookstores: Haven for Non-Christian Materials
- New Age and Pro-Homosexual Authors only one-click
away (Part 1) by Bud Press, 2/8/04 "I have been concerned about the types of materials being
sold by Christian bookstores since they began stocking
their shelves with Third Wave books in the 1990's.
Christian bookstores had declining books sales for many
years and were kept afloat financially by the sale of
'holy hardware' and CCM music. The leadership of the Third
Wave began pumping out books by the bushel and brow
beating their adherants to buy the books and pass them
around. This rejuvinated book sales and many Christian
book stores don't seem to care as much about content as
they do about the bottom line. I know this because I have
confronted bookstores personally about what authors they
are promoting, giving them the facts that show the false
teachings and false prophecies of the authors, but to very
little success. It is no wonder that these same
bookstores have now branched out into the sale of books
favorable to homosexuality, other religions and the
occult" (Sandy Simpson, Deception in the Church
Ministries).
(58) The
Passion
by Mel Gibson by Cross + Word, 2/04 Traditional doctrine and evangelism (having "failed" to
produce the Global Harvest that these men predict) must be
consigned to the scrap heap and replaced by exciting new
methods - such as visual and aural stimulation - to
achieve the desired result. But the danger in
abandoning the classic biblical truths, and seeking after
a worldwide spiritual awakening, is that sooner or later
God Himself will reach the limit of His patience and give
men exactly what they have been looking for. It will
become a snare both to the leaders and to those who follow
in their footsteps. Let's not crucify the Lord Jesus
over and over again (as the Catholics do in their Mass, in
an attempt to perpetuate his Sacrifice) but see Jesus the
LORD in GLORY which is how he appears to us today - Risen,
Glorified and Triumphant! No human being can possibly
portray the reality of this: I was in the Spirit on
the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of
a trumpet, saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the
First and the Last," ... Then I turned to see the voice
that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden
lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands one
like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the
feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His
head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and
His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine
brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the
sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven
stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and
His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.
And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He
laid His right hand on me, saying to me, "Do not be
afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives,
and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen.
(Rev 1:10-18)
(59) Non-Christian
Materials Promoted on Pro-Family Websiteby Bud Press,
3/29/04 In an amazing turn of events, the nation's largest
pro-family group, the American Family Association,
continues to advertise and promote a wide variety of
non-Christian materials within its two online Christian
bookstores.
During
the
modem era, (since the 18th century) Truth was assumed to
exist; it was just waiting to be discovered by rational
and thinking persons. People could debate and
disagree about the Truth but there could be only one
Truth. But now "truth" is whatever the individual
or community believes it is.
(This)
is
a Master List of Heretical, Cultic, New Age Movement
and Pro-Gay/Homosexual authors/books found
advertised and promoted within numerous, major
online Christian bookstores. While special care has
been taken to provide current and accurate
information, the reader is encouraged to check and
verify the names prior to their removal.
(63) PHILIP
YANCEY
- �Turning The Grace Of God Into
Lasciviousness� Jude 4 by Cecil
Andrews, Take Heed Ministries, 7/04 When you go into any modern
�Christian� bookstore it will be virtually
impossible not to be confronted at some point by
books written by Philip Yancey. He is without
doubt one of the best selling �Christian�
authors of this age and some of his best known
works include �What�s So amazing About Grace�,
�Where Is God When It Hurts� and �Soul
Survivor�. In March 2002 he was the Banquet
Speaker at the Christian Booksellers Convention
held in Doncaster. As a freelance �Christian�
writer he serves as �Editor at Large� for the
pseudo-evangelical publication �Christianity
Today�. His writings have [rightly] attracted
criticism and controversy from �conservative�
Christians despite a claim by Yancey in an
article published on 21 September 2002 by Alf
McCreary [Religious affairs correspondent of the
Belfast Telegraph] that �My calling is not to be
successful but to be faithful to God�. One
of the areas where his �faithfulness to God� has
been challenged has been in how he views
homosexuality and lesbianism and its
compatibility with the professed Christianity of
those who pursue such life-styles. In relation
to his book �What�s So Amazing About Grace� I
have on file some comments made about it by two
Christians.
(64) Jesus
Cares For All Your Needs by Sandy
Simpson, 1998 One of the main things that Jesus is... is
compassionate. He cares for His people. He was
compassionate then and He is still compassionate
today. Jesus came and saw the needs of the people.
So He did two things. He met their physical need
of hunger for bread, and He also met their
spiritual hunger for the bread of life.
(65) Epistemologically
Unaware by by Greg Apel, 2005 Should we trust our senses and believe the
information our optic nerves send to our brains?
Should we believe our brains as trustworthy
to process the information sent through the optic
nerve? Do we interpret the information according
to our conditioning, or are we capable of
surveying the physical world and arriving at
correct conclusions? Even if we scour the physical
world for knowledge, information, and evidence to
point us toward a "spiritual reality", we are
setting ourselves up for failure: for perception
of the world through epistemology alone has a
false base.
(66) The
Responsibilities Of A Good Shepherd by
Sandy Simpson, 5/20/05 Those who are called to be servant under
shepherds in the body of Christ must take that
responsibility seriously. There are far too
many who claim to be called to servant leadership,
but demonstrate clearly that they are not
qualified to be shepherds according to God's
criteria. We need to be feeding the lambs
and the sheep, bringing them to good pasture lands
and water, grooming and clipping them, delivering
new lambs, leading them and teaching them to stay
together, going off after the wandering lost ones,
and protecting the sheep in the field and in the
fold.
Have
you been approached for a free scholarship in
high school education, if you accept it you may
find that you are going to join Rev. Sun Myung
Moon's enterprise, High School of the Pacific
(HSP). Rev. Sun Myung Moon has built a private
high school in Kona on a 32 - acre site makai of
Mamalahoa Highway, adjacent to the Kona Ocean
View Properties subdivision in Pu'ukala. Tully,
president of the foundation, has been a member
of the Unification Church since 1970. The
proposed school would house up to 200 students
from 12 independent Pacific island nations (even
Micronesia Island of Chuuk) and Hawaii in a
"shared - living experience. They would accept
kids of all faiths, cultures, ethnic
backgrounds.
High
School of the Pacific (HSP) located in
Kealukekua, HI is yet another in the many
enterprises of the Unification Church whose
�Messiah� is Sun Myung Moon.
(70) Why
the Mormon Church is NOT the TRUE church
Jesus Christ startedby Mike
Oppenherimer, Let Us Reason Ministries,
12/28/05 The whole Old Testament testifies that
there is only one God who made everything
that exists. The whole New Testament
testifies that Jesus Christ is that God who
came in human flesh. No matter how one tries
to reform or adjust Mormon doctrine it does
not make it Christian doctrine. Softening
the Mormon position on these 3 points does
not make it authentic and can only bring
into question anyone�s honesty in their
motives. If the concept of many gods is not
abandoned, if the belief that Jesus is a
spirit creature is not abandoned then the
gospel that centers on Jesus Christ cannot
be the true gospel. And if it is not the
true authentic one, then it cannot save no
matter how sincere a person is.
(71) Concerns
About
The Film "End Of The Spear"by
Jason Janz, Shaper Iron, 2/05 "The first area is the content of the film
� the average believer should be embarrassed
at the dumbing down of the Gospel or
anything Christian for that matter. My
second area of concern is the cast of the
film � Every Tribe Entertainment chose Chad
Allen, a gay activist, to play Nate Saint
... I have divided my article into five
points: 1. The facts about Every Tribe
Entertainment�s choice of Chad Allen 2. How
the gay community views the choice of a gay
man playing a Christian missionary 3. The
response of Every Tribe Entertainment when
confronted about this choice 4. Why
Christians should be concerned 5. What
Christians should do". Transcript
of
Chad Allen on Larry King Live defending
gay marriage.
(72) Ken
Blanchard's Inclusivismby Mike
Oppenheimer, Let Us Reason Ministries,
1/20/06 The merging of religious ideas in the
marketplace.
(73) Articles On The Islamic Cartoon
Maniaby Various Authors
The current worldwide riots and uproar over
the cartoons published depicting Islam as a
violent religion prove that the cartoons were
accurate. You don't see Christians and Jews
rioting and killing their own people because
of many, many cartoons published by Muslim
newspapers over the years blasting
Christianity and Judaism! What Muslims
need to hear, understand and believe is that Jesus Christ is
Almighty God and Allah
is not YHWH. This bloodthirsty,
demonic business of trying to take over the
world in the name of Allah cannot end for
individual Muslims unless they are born again!
Their bankrupt religion will end in utter
chaos as predicted by the Bible, the ONLY Word
of God. Read these articles:
(75) The
Calvary
Chapel Distinctives - The Tale of Two Calvary Chapels
by Scott MacIntyre, Wood & Steel, 05/15/06 There seems to be a 'tale of two Calvary Chapels' emerging. I
am convinced that Calvary Chapels are at a crossroads in their
existence and effectiveness as a movement. Unlike Chuck Smith,
Jr., I believe that the simple teaching of God's Word is what
God has blessed in the past, and it will be what God blesses
in the future.
(77) Today's
Christianity:
Let Us Entertain You! by Michael C. Gaudiosi, The
Berean Radio Network, THE NOBLE BEREAN: Volume Eleven - July
2006 THERE�S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS! I had initially
struggled to come up with a topic for this month�s
newsletter, there really is a lot to talk about when it
comes to the problems in mainstream Christianity today, I
was not sure where I could begin! Then about two weekends
ago it happened! On that Saturday I received an
advertisement postcard in the mail for a church located not
far from my hometown. On the front of this card was a
picture of somebody�s feet with their socks being blown off,
and the caption read �Church that will blow your socks off!�
Of course, that captured my attention!
(78) Billy
Graham's
New Thinking on Salvation by Ingrid Schlueter,
Slice Of Laodicea, 8/7/06 This week Newsweek online is featuring a long article on
Billy Graham and his "new thinking". So why was it that
Billy Graham couldn't give a biblical response when asked
whether he believes that heaven will be closed to those of
other religions? He says he doesn't "want to speculate about
all that..."
(79) Being
True
to my Church by Jackie Alnor, Apostasy Alert,
9/4/06 I�m having church issues this week. As many of you know, I
have attended Calvary Chapels since I was born-again back in
1981. My first Calvary was Costa Mesa and my first pastor
was Chuck Smith. I still think of it as my home church since
I�ve moved around this country a lot. Pastor Chuck and I
would agree on all the essentials of the faith and even on
many non-essentials. But, because he pastors a mega-church,
I�ve never actually met him face to face. He doesn�t know
me, though he knows of me, however I can finish his
sentences, I�m that familiar with his teaching. Since
the late 1990s, I have had various run-ins with his son,
Chuck Smith Jr., pastor of Capo Beach Calvary. Things came
to a crescendo last year when Jr. took a sabbatical to a
Catholic monastery and put some real new-agers in his
pulpit. I reported these events to the Body of Christ and
even leafleted CBC to warn the people about a particular
guest speaker who has a ministry called "The Vortex." Out of
my love for my fellow Calvary Chapel saints, I felt
compelled in my spirit to put my neck on the chopping block
to try and sound the warning to them.
(80) Beware
Of
�Christian� Bookstores! by Paul Proctor,
NewsWithViews.com, 9/06 Want a shock? Go to your favorite Christian website, more
specifically, to the page where they sell books. Type the
names of known heretics and false teachers into the site's
search engine; names of authors from the church growth
movement, emerging church movement, Word Faith movement and
even the New Age and see what pops up on the screen for
sale. Brace yourself though, because you're probably going
to be surprised. Believe it or not, some Christian
bookstores are even selling the published works of
homosexuals, pagans and occultists! But that's not
all.
(81) Non-Christian
Authors,
Books Continue to Haunt the Christian Bookstore Industry
by Bud Press, Christian Research Service, 10/13/06 Christian Research Service (CRS) has spent years
researching and providing free information to the Christian
bookstore industry concerning the non-Christian content in
major online Christian bookstores worldwide.
(82) In
Islam's Own Words by Mike Oppenheimer, Let Us
Reason Ministries, 10/06
A must read to be informed. Want to know what the current
leaders of Islam say and plan for America, Israel and the
world? This will be added to weekly.
(83) Healing
of
Memories or Cleansing of the Conscience? by Bob
DeWaay, Critical Issues Commentary, Issue 96, 11/06 In this article I will address the false premises of this
movement, describe what the Bible teaches about
sanctification and memories, describe the harm that false
inner healing teachings inflict, and propose a Biblical
alternative.
(84) Beware
Of
Christian Bookstore Hypocrisy by Paul Proctor,
NewsWithViews.com, January 26, 2007 Now, there's this little pious piece from the Southern
Baptist Convention's own Baptist Press, criticizing Wal-Mart
for selling pro-homosexual books over the internet -
informing their readers that entering words like "gay" into
Wal-Mart's online bookstore search engine would reveal
problematic authors and titles ... if you go to the
ChristianResearchService.com website, click on the Master
List, scroll down to the section subtitled,
Homosexual/Lesbian/ Transgendered/Pro-gay, and enter each of
the names listed there into the Southern Baptist
Convention's LifeWaystores.com search engine, (select
keyword: "author,") you will find numerous examples of the
double-standard that continues unabated in the online
Christian bookstore industry.
(85) An
Open
Rebuttal to Tim Wildmon's Response to His Critics - Is
the American Family Association Purposely Promoting
Heresy? by Bud Press, Director, Christian
Research Service, 1/25/07 Unfortunately, the revolving door of non-Christian authors
and books continue to haunt AFA's bookstore. Thus, AFA's
failure to monitor their own bookstores over the years is
not due to their lack of knowledge. AFA has been informed
over and over and over again, to the point of saturation.
Consequently, if a grading system existed for online
Christian bookstores, then CRS would grade AFA's Family
Resource Center an "F".
(87) Can
the SBC avoid the Samson Effect? by Watcher's
Lamp, 1/31/07 Having fought the flood of modernism of the early 20th
century, has the SBC allowed itself to fall into the hands
of the alluring, charming and successful? Is the Southern
Baptist Convention on the edge of the Samson Effect?
(88) Should
Christian
Bookstores Offer Anything From Bibles to Porn? -
Paul Proctor, Biblically Speaking, NewsWithViews, 2/07 You would think that a Christian bookstore is a place where
only biblically sound materials are sold. If you take the
scriptures literally, like for instance: "Abstain from all
appearance of evil." - 1st Thessalonians 5:22 - and in your
heart, believe them to be the inspired and inerrant Word of
God, then anything that contradicts it cannot legitimately
be considered "Christian." But, that doesn't seem to matter
anymore, does it?
(90) Final
Dissolution
of CRI/Hanegraaff vs Alnor by Bill Alnor, June 20,
2007 The final tally is in from my legal team. In court
documents just filed in Orange County, California my legal
team has petitioned the court for a payment of $254,302.58
from CRI and Hank Hanegraaff personally to cover my expenses
in their ill-advised defamation law suit they lost against
me. It also turns out that my initial article about a
criminal probe against Hanegraaff and CRI was entirely
accurate at the time it was written. If the court approves
this amount -- and they have already ordered Hanegraaff and
CRI to pay my legal bills, Hank Hanegraaff and CRI will have
to *immediately* pay this amount. This is a hefty sum
indeed, especially when considering that the decision to
file a law suit against me was apparently made: 1.) without
the full CRI board's approval 2.) in direct defiance
of Scripture, being that I am a professing Christian
involved in evangelical causes for more than three
decades (1 Cor. 6).
(92) Neo-Evangelicalism
Re-Packaged
In A "Broadly Reformed" Parcel by Dr. Martin
Erdmann, Herescope, 7/3/07 The Gospel Coalition is the current attempt of "broadly
reformed' pastors and theologians to enter into a more
formal relationship by establishing an institutional base
called "The Gospel Coalition" to propagate their
neo-Evangelical "Confessional Statement." Tim Keller and D.
A. Carson personally invited a core group of like-minded
pastors to form a steering committee which formulated a
doctrinal and policy document entitled "The Gospel for all
of Life.� It is significant that Mark Driscoll, pastor of
Mars Hill Church in Seattle, has also participated in the
initiative from the very start.
(93) 'Is
Harry
Potter the Son of God?' - Comments on Abigail
BeauSeigneur's Editorial by Bud Press, Director,
Christian Research Service, August 2, 2007 Abigail BeauSeigneur is convinced that J.K. Rowling is a
closet Christian, and that Rowling's fictional character,
Harry Potter, is an archetype of none other than Jesus
Christ. But can one be a Christian and promote occultism at
the same time? Is Harry Potter an archetype of Jesus Christ?
Is God's word, the Bible, sufficient for the believer, and
to be used as the ultimate and final authority in faith and
all matters of the Christian life?
(94) Excuses:
Compromise
in Disguise - There is nothing humorous about playing
nicer than God by Bud Press, Director, Christian
Research Service, August 16, 2007 Compromise, deception, dishonesty, and hypocrisy are at an
all-time high. And because Christians aren't immune to sin,
it is imperative that they test and examine themselves daily
to see if they are in the faith, and to see where their
priorities are. If their first priority isn't Jesus Christ,
then their priorities are misplaced, and repentance is in
order.
(95) How
To
Find A Good Church by Todd Friel, Christian
Worldview Network, 01/30/2007 Looking for a good church? Join the club.
Church-shopping can be a long and painful process. To
shorten your search, call the pastor of the church before
you visit and ask the following questions. This might save
you a lot of Sundays.
(96) Truth:
The
Remedy to So-Called Knowledge by Jackie Alnor,
Apostasy Alert, 12/9/07 The modern world poses modern problems when it comes to
understanding spiritual truth. Everyone these days are
claiming special knowledge with scientific sounding verbiage
that impresses the simple minded and the scholar alike. As I
have shared many times, I honestly believe that professing
Christians are being conditioned to believe in a faith that
sounds good but is in opposition to the truth and it�s all
done in the name of truth. But is all truth God�s truth?
God�s Word IS Truth and that is the ONLY Truth we should set
our hope upon.
(97) �The
Number
One Damnable Heresy of 2007� by Michael C.
Gaudiosi, The Noble Berean, Volume Twenty Seven, December
2007 SO MANY CHOICES but there can only be one who will be
declared the �winner�. I had to carefully think this over,
there were so many heresies spread over 2007, it was a very
difficult task to choose only one for this article. But only
one stood out in front. This one has it's roots in New Age
theology, however it has gained more and more followers in
recent years. I am speaking of the �inclusive� Gospel. This
year, the �award� goes to a man who, is well known in
mainstream Christianity, and at one time, had been a fire
and brimstone preacher. but now with his �Inclusive
Gospel/New Age� doctrine, he is doing incredible damage to
the Church. This years recipient of �The Number One Damnable
Heresy of 2007� goes to Carlton Pearson, pastor of New
Dimensions Worship Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
(98) Selling
Faith
- Values and Ethics by Gary Gilley, Think On These
Things, February 2008 - Volume 14, Issue 2 While it is admirable that Christians may wish to advertise
for their faith on their favorite coffee-cup or golf balls,
it is important that Christians realize that they are called
out from society, they are not simply a subset of a society,
but as strangers and foreigners living among a people unlike
themselves.
(99) Who
does
Oprah think she is? GOD?! by Herescope,
3/5/08 This question is not meant to be disrespectful. It is meant
to illustrate a point. Most amazingly, Oprah Winfrey might
be the first person to answer this question with a "yes."
And, if you follow Oprah closely and participate in her new
endeavors you may eventually answer this question in the
affirmative also.
(100) The
Secret unfolds further - The process of deceit -The Moses
Code by Mike Oppenheimer, 3/7/08 The New age movement has been anticipating a transformative
shift that will affect consciousness on a global level, up
until now it has been coming in small introductory steps.
(101) Cheatn'
Hearts by Herescope, 3/10/08 On Oprah�s first show last week with Eckhart Tolle, author
of A New Earth, the first caller set the stage for a
discussion of the New Spirituality of the New Age.
(102) Rethinking
the
New Age and Thought Reform by Russ Wise &
Warren Smith, 12/5/2007 Oprah Winfrey is back with her New Age guru Marianne
Williamson promoting A Course in Miracles1 on her XM Radio
program Oprah and Friends beginning January 1, 2008. Another
event taking place in Southern California soon afterward is
Robert Schuller�s Rethink Conference to be held January
17-19, 2008.
(103) What
is
Oprah Teaching About EASTER? by Herescope,
3/18/08 During this Easter week, it is important to understand what
Oprah Winfrey, Marianne Williamson and Eckhart Tolle are
teaching about Jesus Christ and Easter.
(105) Updated!
Islamic
Teachings That Prove Their Religion Is False
compiled by Sandy Simpson, 4/1/08 This article presents documented
proof that Mohammed was a false teacher and a false
prophet ... thus the Qur'an and other Islamic holy
writings by Mohammed and his followers are based are
false. More evidence that the "god" Allah they
worship is a false god. Their false religion is
based on a false prophet, false scriptures and a false
god.
(107) Oprah
And
The Gospel Of Me by Paul Proctor, News With Views,
4/9/2008 In a nutshell, the New Age and its New Spirituality
promises to help you find God in everyone and everything,
including yourself, with or without Jesus Christ.
(108) The
False
Imagining of the False Christ - Colossians and the coming
of the cosmic-christ by Pastor Larry DeBruyn,
Herescope, 4/18/08 Concerning our relationship to all of the christ-imagining
being advocated by the gurus and promoters of New Ageism and
the New Spirituality, the apostle Paul warns: "See to it
that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty
deception, according to the tradition of men, according to
the elementary principles of the world, rather than
according to Christ" (Colossians 2:8, NASB).
(109) The
Oppression of Black Liberation Theology by Mike
Oppenheimer, Let Us Reason Ministries, 5/9/08 This theology was used by Marxist regimes to take over
churches in Africa and Central America. They use �Christian�
terminology they promote violence to overthrow governments
and populations. It especially became popular in Nicaragua
in the 1980�s with the pro-sandanista dictatorship. It used
Marxist strategies to be an impetus for the people to rebel
where violent revolution was used. In some churches Jesus
was represented as Sandinista soldier identifying with the
oppressed. In this theological framework Jesus becomes a
liberator of the oppressed masses which are black. This is
in contrast to the word faith prosperity message preached by
numerous black pastors today. Black Liberation theology
describes Jesus as a poor black man who lived in oppression
under �rich white people� which makes this particular view
racially based, accentuating the tensions of being Black.
The notion of �Blackness� is not merely a reference to skin
color, but rather is a symbol of oppression that can be
applied to all persons of color who have a history of
oppression (except Whites, of course).� [�Wright's Black
Liberation Theology� By Anthony B. Bradley assistant
professor of theology at covenant theological, March 25,
2008]
(110)Apostasy Gaining Speed
by Randall J. Sortino, Evergreen Freedom Foundation,
6/24/08 Only 11 out of 100 Evangelical church members believe that
Jesus is the only way to eternal life.
(111) Meet
the
Millstones - How Child Molestation is Becoming Rampant in
Apostate Evangelicalism by Dusty Peterson,
7/11/08 �Troublemaker!� Over the years, many readers will
have been called this sort of thing by fellow believers they
were simply trying to protect. For a very long time
now, Christians who have been warning churches against
compromising on the Bible have been branded as
troublemakers. The opposite is the case, but this
truth has now been made as plain as a pikestaff. It is
those who have ignored these warnings and have allowed the
world�s ways into their fellowships who have been causing
the real trouble � and their own children are paying the
price, because a large number of these unscriptural trends
are facilitating paedophile attacks.
(112) Evangelicals
and
New Agers by Herescope, 8/11/08 In this new article, Cumbey links New Age leaders with
evangelical leaders in ways which have heretofore have been
undisclosed. Based on the groundbreaking research on the
evangelical secret society called "The Family" (or "The
Fellowship") made public by Jeff Sharlet in his recently
released book The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the
Heart of American Power, Cumbey connects the dots to the
Institute of Noetic Sciences. And she adds important pieces
to the perplexing puzzle of interconnections between key
evangelical leaders and ranking New Agers.
(113) Greg
Johnson
and Robert Millet Research Page compiled by Bud
Press, Christian Research Service, 8/08 Greg Johnson is a professing Christian and the founder and
president of Standing Together in Lehi, Utah. Robert L.
Millet is a dedicated, lifelong Mormon, a Professor of
Ancient Scripture at Brigham Young University, and author of
the book, A Different Jesus? The Christ of the Latter-Day
Saints, which was endorsed by Greg Johnson.
(114) Keep
the
Faith and Your Faculties by Jackie Alnor,
9/21/08 When I was saved back in 1981, a co-worker warned me that
Christianity could make one crazy. He said that when his
wife converted, she soon became detached from reality and
had to be committed to a mental asylum. He soon divorced
her. "I would hate to see that happen to you," he warned.
"Stay away from that stuff."
(115) Excuses:
Compromise
in Disguise by Bud Press, Christian Research
Service, August 16, 2007 A Christian walked into a crowded Christian bookstore. As
he browsed the many shelves of books and materials, to his
amazement he noticed a copy of The Book of Mormon resting on
a shelf at the very back of the bookstore.
(116) Occultism
in
the Heartland by Carl Teichrib, Forcing Change,
September 2008 The response from Christian churches was strangely absent.
One of the largest, and most potent occult rituals had been
set up in the Midwest Bible Belt, and the silent majority
held firm to their modus operandi � silence.
(117) Handel's
"Messiah" by P.C. Johnson, 1/09 MOST of us will have heard excerpts or whole performances
of Handel�s Messiah at some time in our lives. Using text
from the Authorized Version of the Bible, Handel set to work
in 1741 to compose this magnificent oratorio obviously
subject to intense divine inspiration. He completed the
whole work in twenty-two days and remarked �I did think I
did see all Heaven before me, and the Great God Himself�. So
often, when listening to this exquisite music and singing,
the actual words may not always be taken in and, the story
as a whole, not fully comprehended. Accordingly, all the
Biblical quotations Handel used have been written down
hereafter in the order Handel chose, using only authentic
Authorized Version text without any comment. Handel found it
necessary to slightly alter some quotations, no doubt he had
good reasons. The work is divided into three parts which
cover fifty three separate Recitals or Choruses, two of
which, No 1. The Overture and No 13. The Pastoral Symphony
are purely orchestral with no singers. Biblical references
have also been given to enable the reader to look up the
context of each quotation.
(118) The
New
Athiesm by Gary Gilley, Think On These Things,
February 2009 - Volume 15, Issue 2 One of the mystifying things about the New Atheism is that
its cheerleaders are eager to make converts. We have
to wonder why? It is one thing to believe that we, and
the whole universe, are products of billions of little
accidents governed by the apparently omniscient but
impersonal power of natural selection, but why be so
enthusiastic to destroy theism and spread your own ideas
devoid of God? Could it be fear?
(119) The
UK
Assemblies Of God - A Different Movement With The Same
Name by Philip L. Powell, Christian Witness
Ministries, 1/23/08 That a spiritual plague has broken out in the Church there
can be little doubt. It is everywhere. The True Church is
being decimated while the false Church multiplies through
Church Growth, sensational appeal to the so called
supernatural and by other means. The most recent demonic
expression of The Plague is manifest through Todd Bentley
and his so called Florida Healing Revival, the latest
disclosures about which reveal it as a conception from hell
to take the �ministry� into expressions of violence.
(120) True
Love
- Part 1 by Dave Hunt, The Berean Call,
3/1/09 �Science falsely so called� (1 Tm 6:20) has lately decided
to debunk human love under the guise of supporting it.
�Science� claims to have identified a part of the brain
where �lasting love� resides.
(121) Jehovah's
Witness at Christian Research Service, 3/09
A page of articles on JWs and the Watchtower.
(122) Latest
David
Wilkerson Prophetic Prediction - Is It New? by
Jacob Prasch, Moriel Ministries, 3/11/09 Moriel Ministries and Jacob Prasch have received multiple
inquiries regarding the issuance of a prophetic prediction
by David Wilkerson dated March 7th, 2010. The complication
is that although having some additions, it is not new but
reiterates one made in 1992 when he said it would be �soon�
17 years ago, and is confusing in that it urges a 30 days
emergency food supply be kept on hand, but stating he has no
idea of when.
(123) Testing
Music In The Church - Part 2by Sandy Simpson,
3/18/09 For my previous article on testing music in the churches,
go here. Since the
first article I wrote on testing music in the churches there
have been developments in Christian music that are even more
alarming.
(124) Put Your Hand
In My Side - Meditation on the Scars of Jesus by
Pastor Bill Randles, Believers In Grace, 4/21/09 When after his resurrection, Jesus appeared to his badly
frightened, and dejected disciples, He showed them His
scars. He ate fish with them, spoke to them and rolled up
His sleeves and opened His robe to show them His actual
scars in hands and side. One of the things this story
illustrates is that Jesus truly �has come and remains in the
flesh�. One of the heresies of the early church was the
Docetic teaching. Docetism, from the Greek word Dokeo? def.
�to seem�, is the teaching that Jesus only seemed to be
Incarnate, He really wasn�t �in the flesh�...
(125) Hawaii
says Aloha to Islam day by Mike Oppenheimer, Let
Us Reason Ministries, 6/1/09 The Hawaii Legislature makes decision to honor Islam.
(126) The
mindset of a cult leader by Mike Oppenheimer, Let
Us Reason Ministries, 7/25/09 How to identify a true shepherd from a false shepherd.
(129) Christian
Bookstores
- Why compromise costs in the long run by Jim
Fletcher, WorldNetDaily, July 26, 2009 With attendance down significantly at the Christian
Booksellers' Association trade show last week, I want to
examine some reasons for the decline in Christian retail �
without focusing on the much bemoaned economy. Discussing
the real reasons for that decline, however, can't be done in
polite company.
(130) The
Influential
Nature of (Eastern) Orthodoxy Endangers Christians
by Richard Bennett and Stuart Quint, 8/14/09 The Orthodox Church makes a startlingly bold claim to
preserve the �pure apostolic faith.� However, the light of
God�s Holy Scripture exposes the core teachings of Eastern
Orthodoxy as false. Eastern Orthodoxy merely preserves the
tradition which men have developed within Orthodoxy, and not
those things which God has explicitly revealed in His Word.
Eastern Or-thodoxy in its sacramental system, its doctrine
of salvation, and its understanding of Scripture falls short
of God�s inerrant Word.
(131) Would
the
Devil Do This? by Herescope, 8/27/09 If I were the devil, I'd be real upset at churches. I'd
spend a lot of time and effort trying to destroy them. My
major efforts haven't yet worked, so I'd go to work on pesky
things that can be cultivated to destroy a church from
within itself.
(132) Do
You
Fear God? by Herescope, 9/9/09 For several decades our society has brazenly displayed the
slogan on T shirts to auto windows, "NO FEAR." David, in
Psalm 36:1, makes it clear that this generation of sinners
is not unique in their folly. "The transgression of the
wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God
before his eyes." Perhaps this generation is even more
brazen, for they have not only "said in their hearts," they
have blazoned it in bold advertisement!
(133) Meditating
Upon
AA by John Lanagan, Herescope, 9/17/09 AA's 11th Step states: Sought through prayer and meditation
to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood
Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the
power to carry that out. "Don't make a big deal about AA's
'prayer and meditation,'" writes pro-AA author Dick B. ...
"It is nothing more than praying and studying or 'pondering'
what you are reading." This is simply not so. As discussed
in 'Alcoholics Anonymous and Contemplative Spirituality,'
advocates of contemplative spirituality are using AA and
other 12 Step groups as a launching pad for their meditative
practices. Nor is AA's contemplative potential a new thing.
As a treatment website notes, "AA and 12 Step Fellowship
have known for years that spirituality or some form of
contemplative meditation is an important part of treatment."
(134) Oprah
Winfrey
Promotes Pantheist Eckhart Tolle - How Biblically
Illiterate America is Being Deceived by Bob
DeWaay, 11/09 What sort of god needs to read a book or go to a seminar to
discover his own identity? According to Oprah Winfrey and
Eckhart Tolle, millions of such deities find it necessary to
act on that need to awaken to their own godhood. These are
human beings who lack a sense of consciousness of their
divinity, and Oprah and Tolle have set out to remedy that
situation.
(135) Break
Forth
Update: Will Christian Leaders Cause More Confusion Than
Good? by Lighthouse Trails, 11/16/09 If your head is spinning, trying to keep up with the latest
happenings of the leaders of the evangelical Christian
church, it�s no wonder. For many, it�s becoming increasingly
difficult to see clearly through the muddy waters of
organized Christianity. More and more leaders, who have been
considered orthodox and traditional, are ending up on
speaking platforms with those from the
emerging/contemplative/New Spirituality arena.
(136) Christ
and Allah by Larry DeBruyn, Guarding the Flock
Ministries, 11/30/09 In contrast to orthodox Christians, no Muslim would ever
confess "Jesus is Lord" (1 Corinthians 12:3) and worship Him
(John 20:28). Therefore Muslims, as well as Jews, do not
worship the same God as Christians. We worship the Lord
Jesus Christ (Phillippians 2:9-11).
(137) A
Permissible Deception by Mike Oppenheimer,
1/27/10 It is 2010, what is the church like today and what to be
aware of in the future. What the church has allowed has
brought us to the state we are in.
(138) Are you
a new ager? by Mike Oppenheimer, 1/27/10
Questions to personally ask oneself about their spiritual
state.
(139) Replacement
Theology by David Hocking, Hope For Today,
2/21/07 Replacement Theology is the belief that the Church of today
has replaced Israel in God�s prophetic program. It teaches
that God judged the Nation of Israel for their sin and
disobedience in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second
Temple (Herod�s restoration project) in 70 AD, and that
Israel has forfeited the right to God�s �everlasting
covenant�!
(140) Approximately
100
Million American Church Members Have Very Little to No
Understanding of Bible Prophecy by Bill Koenig,
World Watch Daily, 3/27/10
Today there are approximately 100 million American church
members who have very little to no understanding of Bible
prophecy. These church members are from replacement theology
churches that don't teach Bible prophecy and who look at
prophetic scriptures as allegorical and not literal.
Consequently, they do not understand the importance of Israel
to the God of Israel or God's redemptive plan for Israel and
the nations.
(141) The
Victory
of the Cross by Berit Kjos, 4/7/10 Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Fanny Crosby, who wrote
that joyful hymn, was truly blessed with an unwavering
confidence in God's loving grace! Born into a humble family
in 1820, she became totally blind through a medical error
six weeks later. But her overwhelming lifelong response was
gratefulness, not bitterness or complaints.
(143) Who's
Taking
Our Liberty? by Paul Proctor, April 21, 2010
For those who are just now waking up to the reality around
us, our precious liberty is under siege here in America.
But, will that loss of liberty be the end of he road? If
Almighty God, the giver of liberty, permits it to be taken
it away, for whatever reason, how then can we or anyone else
take it back? �But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it;
lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.� � Acts
5:39 Since we know persecution is coming and may not
be avoidable, what should Christians do to prepare? Is there
a divine purpose behind oppression � that what men intend
for evil, God might intend for good � and isn�t the cross on
which Jesus was crucified for our sin a perfect example of
this?
(144) Balaam
by Bill Randles, 4/28/10
Perhaps the most misunderstood story in the Bible is that of
Balaam, the pagan prophet. When it is told, it is usually
related as a morality story, merely a caution against greed in
ministry. The love of money indeed is part of the story
- as well as the danger of false prophets and corrupt
ministers. But lately I have come to realize that there is an
eschatological dimension to this story that too often is
unappreciated. It is amazing how current and relevant the
story of Balaam really is to today�s geo-political situation.
Read Part
1, Part
2, Part
3, Part
4 & Part
5.
(145) The
Situation
Is Grave - Are You? by Paul Proctor,
NewsWithViews, May 8, 2010 My hope is that when crisis comes to America and to the
world, which I believe is very near, Christians will once
again embrace the duty and disposition we were called to and
forego the foolishness and frivolity that has kept us from
our spiritual rescue mission � recognizing with grave
concern the urgency of the hour.
(147) Dr.
John
Piper and Unanswered Questions by Ken Silva,
6/17/10 Apprising Ministries now brings you a follow up to
Questions Concerning Dr. John Piper where I told you that
when Dr. Piper made the ill-advised decision to invite
Leadership Network�s propped-up Purpose Driven Pope Rick
Warren to DG 2010 as a keynote speaker it set off a rippling
effect where people, and not merely discernment ministries,
have started to look a little closer at his theology,
educational background, and associations; e.g. his
charismatic bent, Fuller Theological Seminary, and the late
Ralph Winter.
(148) Already
Gone by Ken Ham, 9/6/10 In this
powerful
book and DVD
popular author Ken Ham and consumer behavior
research/analyst C. Britt Beemer combine to reveal trends
that must be dealt with now . . . before we lose another
generation! The trends are frightening, but Already Gone
shows how to win back our families, our churches, and our
world!
(149) Knowing
and Loving God by The Berean Call, 10/1/10 The new theology denies us this path of victory. Its joy is
selfish. To obey the first and great commandment is
necessarily to deny self as Christ commanded (Mt 16:24). Nor
can one deny self and at the same time love, esteem, and
value self. Seeing God's love as a response to my
significance and worth salvages just enough value for self
to deny God's truth. Let us forget ourselves, our needs and
hurts, and seek to know and love God (Father, Son and Holy
Spirit) because of who He is and His love and grace to us.
His love will then flow through us to others, whom we will
then esteem better than ourselves (Phil 2:3). Such is the
path to true joy (Heb 12:2).
(150) Is
Your
Denomination A Sinking Titanic? by �Nathan�,
10/1/10
Now, think for a moment. Could a Christian denomination go the
way of the Titanic? Could the process of sinking be avoided?
Is it possible that the captain could foresee the inevitable
but do nothing to prevent it? Over the years of history, many
denominations and movements that were once sailing �smoothly�
went down just like the Titanic. Apparently, given time, this
is what happens, and it just cannot be avoided. Why is this
so? The answer is simple. Christians are humans and human
behavior can be predicted.
(151) Are
You
A Contender Or A Pretender? by Paul Proctor,
October 1, 2010 But, here in the increasingly �tolerant� western world,
churches are, for the most part, being destroyed from
within, leaving a different kind of casualty for Christians
to grieve over. It is truly a sad thing to see and an all
too common sight � one this writer has not only commented on
numerous times, but also witnessed firsthand.
(152) Occult Invasion into the Churches
Date: October 01, 2010
Host: Vic Eliason, Crosstalk America
Guest: Dave Benoit
Listen: RealAudio
| Windows
Media|MP3
| Order
Tape
or CD Dave Benoit has served over 30 years as an evangelist. He
will be the featured speaker at a VCY America rally October
2 at 7pm at the Waukesha, Wisconsin Exposition Center. The
title of his presentation is, "Disarming the Powers of
Darkness Part 2: The Spirit Gate". Dave�s main message on
this Crosstalk broadcast was that the church is in a state
of slumber; sleeping while the �ship� is sinking as was the
case with Jonah. In the meantime our nation is going through
a wholesale embracing of false doctrine. From werewolves to
Islam to the lies perpetrated in the media, there is a
spirit behind all false doctrine. Dave covers these problems
and more as he exposes the spirit of the occult invading the
church and society.
Updated! (152) Dancing
With
the Stars - �The Vibrant Dance of Faith and Science,� A
Cosmic Two-Step by Pastor Larry DeBruyn and Sarah
Leslie, 11/10/10 - Read Part
1 & Part
2
Billed as �How Science Supports Christianity and Christianity
Supports Science,� on October 26-28, in Austin, Texas,
Christianity Today co-sponsored a symposium called �The
Vibrant Dance of Faith and Science: Empowering the Church to
Transform the Culture.�[2] This gathering of evangelical
luminaries underscores the concerns addressed in the previous
6-part series on Herescope, �FROM
COSMOS,
TO CHAOS, TO CONSCIOUSNESS.�
(153) The
Second
Great Evangelical Meltdown by Richard Nathan,
M.A., Inheritance of the Saints, October 10, 2010 This article is the first in a series about ongoing sea
changes in Evangelicalism today. The series will utilize
Scripture and church history in an attempt to clarify those
issues that are tending to weaken, break down, and misdirect
Evangelicalism. Even though the effects are obvious, the
forces behind these changes are not. Read Part
1 & Part
2.
(154) Christ
& Christmas by Dave Hunt, The Berean Call,
December 1989 This twenty-year old message from Dave has not lost any of
its relevance for the church today. There is still much
confusion about the mission of Jesus and the kingdom of God.
Many diverse movements that profess to be Christian and
biblical are coming together in an attempt to help establish
Christ's physical kingdom on earth prior to His
return. Since the time that Dave first penned this
article, the "kingdom here and now" proponents seem to be
increasing in their influence exponentially, as we have been
pointing out in our series "The Temporal Delusion." Part III
is scheduled for January 2011. Although Dave has, for the
most part, retired from ministry, we are thankful to be able
to mine the treasury of what he has written over the years
and present his material to our readers on an ongoing basis.
The Lord has graciously given him tremendous insights as a
watchman regarding trends and issues that continue to
adversely affect the church today and in the days to come.
(156) The
Incarnation:
The lowly path of our heavenly King by Crossroad,
12/18/10 Following Him, we have nothing of lasting significance to
lose, and we have everything to gain! Walking with Jesus in
His lowly path -- never ceasing to demonstrate His love, yet
never compromising His truths to win approval -- we enjoy a
peace and joy that far surpasses all earthly thrills. Our
lives will be full of challenges, but He has promised to
provide all the resources we need. �My grace is sufficient
for you," he assures us, "for My strength is made perfect in
weakness.� Hopefully, you and I will echo Paul's heartfelt
response: "Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my
infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in
needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ�s sake.
For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
(157) Warning:
Energy
�Healing� and Reiki May Be Offered to You at Your Hospital
by Lighthouse Trails Editors, 12/20/10 Rand says that the general public is �turning with
ever-increasing interest to complementary health care,
including Reiki,� and according to one study, one in every
three Americans has used this type of �care.� Another survey
showed that �1.2 million adults and 161,000 children
in the U.S. received one or more energy healing sessions
such as Reiki.�
(159) Earthquakes &
Destruction: The Wake-Up Call
by Paw Creek Ministries, 1/17/11 Eight thousand turtle doves fall out of the sky in Italy.
Two million fish die on the beaches of the Chesapeake Bay.
One hundred thousand fish die in the Arkansas River. Forty
thousand velvet swimming crabs dead on England�s beaches.
Hundred of tons of fish dead and dying on the shores of
Brazil. Flocks of birds falling out of the sky in Wilson
County, Tennessee.
(160) Good Church Choices
by Sandy Simpson, 2003 This page is some recommendations on how to find a good
church. What you need to find is a church that not
only has orthodox doctrinal statements but teaches, both
explicitly and implicitly, in line with the core doctrines
of the Faith. These are Bible-believing
Christ-centered churches that are balanced in their
theology. Be sure to test all churches before you
become involved. Here are some tips for finding a good
church.
(161) Deception
in
Disguise by Heidi Swander, February 24, 2011
"Mormon leaders call their empire the 'Kingdom of
God.' However, their 'God' is an extraterrestrial from
[the planet] Kolob, definitely not the God of the Bible; and
the 'Zion' to which their spirit-brother-of-Lucifer Jesus
Christ will return to reign, is Independence, My kingdom
comeMissouri." So writes author and former Mormon Ed Decker
in his book My Kingdom Come.
(162) Surprising
List
of Speakers at �Rediscovering God in America� Conference
Draws Strong Concerns by Roger Oakland, Understand
the Times International, 3/26/11 Are you familiar with these names: David Barton, Newt
Gingrich, George Barna, Mike Huckabee? Do you know what
Barna Group is? Do you know who David Barton is? What about
Newt Gingrich? Do you know what role these names are
playing? WHAT IS GOING ON? Looking at the list of speakers
for the Rediscovering God in America reminds me of a book I
once read called Who�s Who and What�s What?. Check out Barna
and Barton and see for yourself their backgrounds and the
things they are doing, then check out the Jesuit plan to
establish the kingdom.
Georgetown Times: David Wilkerson � founder of Teen
Challenge which has its South Carolina headquarters in
Georgetown County � has passed away. Wilkerson founded Times
Square Church in New York City and was the focus of the book
and movie The Cross and the Switchblade. Wilkerson founded
Teen Challenge in 1960. The goal of Teen Challenge is to
help troubled youth and adults, particularly those with
life-controlling problems due to drugs or alcohol. Over five
decades, the Christ-centered Teen Challenge program has
consistently shown one of the world�s highest success rates,
according to the organization�s website.
Some new evidence has become available recently in what
appears to be a "changing of information" coming from David
Barton
(165) The
Queering
of America's Churches by Devvy Kidd, News With
Views, 6/14/11 Shame on the churches in this country who condone that
which God has called an abomination. God's laws and what he
commands us to do in our lives isn't a fad. God's laws and
what he commands us to do has not changed over the
millenniums, only people have by cultural influences. It's
easier to embrace sin than to live as our Creator has
commanded. For decades, the created have mocked God by
willfully accepting a bastardized version of His word all in
the name of political correctness and tolerance......
(167) Offensive
Music
in the Church, Host: Vic Eliason, VCY America,
7/20/11 Many people appreciate the preaching of their pastor but
are put-off by the music. Are you tired of standing
for long periods while the worship leader has you singing
the same chorus over and over and over again? Do you
arrive late just so you don�t have to endure the pounding
beat of what some churches call, �worship�? If the
music of your church isn�t in harmony with the preaching,
Vic understands. That�s why he opened the phone lines
to allow listeners to call and share their experiences to
see how Christians around the nation are reacting to this
phenomenon.
(168) From
Oprah to Oz--And Beyond by T. A. McMahon,
8/1/11 If you were asked to name America's most influential
spiritual advisor for the past 25 years, what would your
response be? Billy Graham? Robert Schuller? Perhaps Rick
Warren or Joel Osteen? It may surprise you to learn that
none of these men have been as successful numbers-wise as
Oprah Winfrey! Her programs drew a daily audience as high as
12.4 million and averaged 7.4 million in 2007, diminishing
only slightly when she touted Obama during the 2008 election
year. Her closing program had its highest-ever rating, with
16.4 million viewers.
(169) Glenn
Beck's
"pure personal truth" by Marsha West, Worldview
Weekend, 9/15/11 Here Glenn Beck goes again, claiming he's a Christian, this
time at Restoring Courage 2011 - Jerusalem. Glenn gets
upset when anyone questions his Christianity. That's
weird because he's a Mormon who affirms the official
teaching of Mormonism aka the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (LDS). The LDS outright deny many of
the essential doctrines of the Christian faith.
Moreover, LDS doctrine contradicts what Scripture
teaches. So of course there are Christians who
feel Beck's not a true follower of Jesus Christ -- not the
Jesus of the Bible anyway. When his "I'm a Christian"
claim is held up to scrutiny Glenn gets his knickers in a
knot. At the rally he choked up with emotion and said
in an accusatory tone that only Christians question his
salvation. (ACT Note: Glenn Beck was on TBN last night,
so now people assume he is in line with the Bible. He is
not!) Read Part
1 & Part
2.
(170) A
�New� Dark Age � In Politics and in the Church by
Mike Oppenheimer, 10/15/11 Christians should be more aware than other people because
we have the Word; we are told what will take place in the
last days (1 Tim. 3:1), and we are instructed on how to
resist it. The majority of people have been dumbed-down and
made lazy by our culture. In this void, the government comes
to the rescue. The church has the same problem at work;
people rely on big church to come to the rescue when they
should be doing the work. This is because of our lack of
Bible knowledge and lack of being equipped to evangelize and
fulfill Jesus� commission.
(171) Another
Hijacker
of Evangelicalism by Jan Markell, October 18,
2011 Jim Wallis wants to re-define evangelicalism. I find that
scary and will explain why. Over the decades, it has become
more and more difficult to give evangelicalism a definition
as it has been morphing. But Wallis insists that he is much
more conservative than his friends who make up the
"religious Left" when, in reality, he is their fearless
leader. He is respected by the White House and even by many
evangelicals who lean Left on social issues. Do a Google
search on Wallis and you'll come up with 4,500,000 hits.
He's been a busy guy!
(172) God's
Plan for the Clueless: A personal testimony by
T.A. McMahon, The Berean Call, 11/1/11 When I speak to young Christian adults, whether they are in
the workplace or in college, a message that I hope
encourages them concerns God's willingness to guide their
lives if that is their desire. I use His involvement in my
own life throughout my 67 years as an example. The following
is an abridged version of God's gracious guidance, much of
it well before I came to know Him personally.
(173) Calvary
Chapel
Alert For Pastors and Church Leaders - Documenting the
Progession of Compromise and Ecumenical Relations
compiled by Spiritual Research Network, 11/4/11 The ministry of SRN has chosen to have this page remain on
this website due to the increasing Ecumenical relations that
a number of very well known Calvary Chapel pastors are
involved in, i.e. Rick Warren working together with
Greg Laurie (and Chuck Smith) at the Harvest Crusade; and
now Lt. Gen. (Ret.) William "Jerry" Boykin speaking at
numerous Calvary Chapel venues / churches.
(175) Repent,
While
There is Still Time by Rick Frueh, 1/19/12 I can no longer believe that many so called �evangelical�
churches are even Christian. Churches by the tens of
thousands, led by their pastors, have strayed so far from
the New Testament directive that they are no longer
Christian.
(176) Wisdom
Cries
out From a Sinking Ship by Pastor Bill Randles,
1/25/12 God's wisdom is always crying out to every generation,
whether it be through the Scriptures, the church, or Israel,
there is always a Divine witness to truth trying to get
people's attention as life pushes them on to their final
destination. I believe that one of the ways God's wisdom
cries out to this generation is in certain current events.
(177) Would
the
Son of God contradict the Father? by Marsha West,
February 10, 2012 Is it true that Jesus never mentioned anything about
homosexuality? That He never brought it up, even once? Most
of us have heard the line that in the Gospels there's no
record of Jesus condemning homosexuality. There are
individuals, especially from the militant homosexual rights
movement, who utter this fabrication with all the raw
hostility of liberals who think abortion is their God given
right.
(178) Oprah
Continues
Forward With Her New Age Gurus by Warren Smith,
Lighthouse Trails, 2/18/12 LTRP Note: This month, New Ager Gary Zukav announced that
Oprah would be joining him in a Super Soul Sunday (on
2/12/12) as part of his Awakening to Spiritual Partnership
Course. Oprah has been a fan of Gary Zukav�s for many years.
In fact, it was she who propelled Zukav into prominence
after his first appearance on the Oprah show in 1998,
after which his book on spirit guides, The Seat of the Soul,
soared to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list. As
Ray Yungen points out, �The book�s basic message is,
�Dwell in the company of your nonphysical Teachers and
guides [spirit guides]� (p. 39). Some have wondered what
direction Oprah would go now that her daytime television
show has ended. It is clear that she will be including the
New Age/New Spirituality in her future (as she has in her
past) and in the future of her millions of followers. Below
we are reposting Warren Smith�s article on Oprah and New
Ager Eckhart Tolle, another New Age guru who is embraced by
Oprah Winfrey.
(179) Got
meat? by Marsha West, 2/20/12 Christians must come to understand that God made them and
He owns them. The parameters He has set for His people to
live by are for their ultimate good. God makes no bones
about sorcery. It's a health hazard!
(180) Crying
for
Our Country and the Church by Ted Kyle,
3/23/12 The question remains: How much do we, as God�s children,
care? Does the already deplorable and rapidly worsening
spiritual condition of our country grieve us? The answer may
tell us much about our own spiritual condition!
(181) The
Root
of the Righteous by A.W. Tozer, The Root Of The
Righteous, Chapter 1, 6/3/12 One marked difference between the faith of our fathers as
conceived by the fathers and the same faith as understood
and lived by their children is that the fathers were
concerned with the root of the matter, while their
present-day descendants seem concerned only with the fruit.
... �The root of the righteous yieldeth fruit,� said the
wise man in the Proverbs. ...
(182) Coming
Soon:
The Tribulation Temple by Heidi Swander,
6/6/12 "Anyone interested in end-time events has his eyes on the
temple project." This statement stood out to me as I read a
chapter in the updated-and-expanded edition of Tim LaHaye
and Jerry Jenkins' classic book, Are We Living in the End
Times? I remember reading the first edition of this
book years ago and thinking what a riveting and easy-to-read
commentary it was on prophecy and current events. And now
it's been updated to address all that has transpired since
9/11!
(183) Survey
Reveals
Increase in Number of 'Worldly Christians' at
Understanding The Times, 6/9/12 An online quiz started a year ago that examines how
consistently Christians are living out the teachings of
Jesus Christ has found an increase in the number of
believers who are "Christians in name only."
(184) Hazards
Of
The Occult And New Spirituality at Spiritual
Research Ministries, 8/6/12 Readers should be aware that the New Age Movement,
Wicca/Witchcraft, Magick, etc., is steeped in occult
influences. Many of the articles within the New Age and
Occult categories contain information about or descriptions
of occult practices and a Biblical perspective on it. Our
purpose in giving this information is not to endorse occult
practises but to alert you to the physical and spiritual
dangers that one faces when practising what God clearly
forbids. Our desire is to help you recognize and avoid these
practices so that you do not incur the hazards that many
have succumbed to.. Please be aware that for those of you
who are especially sensitive readers, particularly those who
have had previous occult contact, you may find this material
disturbing.
(185) Babylonianism
at
the Gates - Christians and the Encircling World of the
Occult by Pastor Larry DeBruyn, 8/24/12 So, to which group do we belong? Motyer notes that in
Isaiah there exists �a distinction between the secularized,
politicized professing people of God and those, within that
people, who turn to him in repentance and faith, who look to
his word and obey it.� Are we part of a minority who serve
as �signs and wonders,� or are we numbered amongst those who
do not fear the Lord?
(186) How
to
Recognise a Good Church by Mike Lloyd, Truth Watch
NZ, 8/27/12 Within the Christian community there is a wide divergence
of opinion, division, and even fierce competition among the
different groups. Subsequently, many believers are confused
about which church is the right one to belong to and which
church being closest to the truth is therefore worthy of
their support. Many today who are looking for a church home
have the wrong priorities. Some are drawn to a church by the
size and appearance of its buildings. Others are attracted
by an outstanding musical programme or by the personality,
appearance and oratory skills of the pastor. Some look for a
church with an order of service that appeals to their
particular liking. Others are simply denominationally loyal
or have friends that attend a particular church. It is
vitally important for believers to know exactly what to look
for in a church. It is dangerous to simply rely on feelings
and to make a hasty subjective decision based on personal
preferences of style and physical appearance, as so many do
today. A clear and objective decision, based on Scripture,
is the only successful way to assess the church fellowship a
person intends making a whole-hearted commitment to.
(187) The
Zohar
& Kabbalistic Mysticism by Berit Kjos,
8/27/12 Below are notes and quotes, not an article. The information
they contain provides valuable insights into Jonathan Cahn's
mysterious theology. They may also help to explain some of
the puzzles in his popular book, The Harbinger, with its
guru-like �prophet�, so-called mysteries, and bewildering
misapplication of Scripture. On the video in the box below,
Cahn quotes from the Zohar [the mystical rabbinical writings
behind the Kabbala] and presents his view of Golgatha
[Gulgalta]. Notice in that partial transcript that the "god"
who is credited with salvation, redemption, spiritual light
and life is merely a place or object -- a skull or Gulgalta
-- not Jesus Christ our Lord! Apparently, the rabbis behind
the Zohar have borrowed from the actual Bible but twisted
God's Word into their own esoteric message.
(188) The
Loneliness
of the Christian by A. W. Tozer From Man - The
Dwelling Place of God, Chapter 39: "The Saint Must Walk
Alone", 9/9/12 The loneliness of the Christian results from his walk with
God in an ungodly world, a walk that must often take him
away from the fellowship of good Christians as well as from
that of the unregenerate world. His God-given instincts cry
out for companionship with others of his kind, others who
can understand his longings, his aspirations, his absorption
in the love of Christ; and because within his circle of
friends there are so few who share his inner experiences he
is forced to walk alone.
(189) Cult
Alert:
The Christian Family Fellowship by The Berean
Call, 10/1/12 The Christian Family Fellowship is another non-Christian
cult spreading in the already cult-saturated landscape of
America. Unfortunately, the group is growing with
fellowships in other states. I do not know how large the
membership is but it appears to be in the thousands. This
group appears to be an offshoot of The Way International, a
decidedly non-Christian cult since it denies the deity of
Jesus. The Christian Family Fellowship Ministry describes
itself as a "studying, teaching, and fellowship ministry."
It says, "Our purpose is to study and search the scriptures
to understand their accuracy regarding Jesus Christ, who is
'the way, the truth, and the life.'" This sounds good on the
surface. But, when you dig into the site, you discover some
serious problems. The Christian Family Fellowship denies the
doctrine of the Trinity. On their website is an
article written by a Rev. Jeff Rath (August 1998) titled,
"The Historical background of the Trinity." In it Rev. Rath
states, "The trinity originated with Babylon." He then goes
on to attack the doctrine as an unbiblical teaching. He also
states that "This polytheistic (believing in more than one
god) trinitarianism was intertwined with Greek religion and
philosophy." This is a misrepresentation of the Trinity
doctrine which is decidedly not polytheistic. It is
monotheistic.
(190) Sacred
Cows
and Stars - The Cult of Evangelical Leadership
by Herescope, 10/4/12 Sacred Leaders are a temperamental puffed up lot, you know.
They require faint-hearted Sheeple to think more highly of
them, preferring them. They believe that the humble should
not be exalted, especially if it threatens their own
popularity. And any sheep with discernment should be treated
as �offscouring.� They invoke one spirit, but believe only
the Elite have many gifts. �Let all men glory in Leaders� is
their slogan, contrary to I Cor. 3:21. Puffed-up Priests,
all of them. And the sad fact is, despite all of this, the
sheep continue their faddish worship of these Sacred Cows
and Stars.
(191) Self-Elevated
Little
Popes by A.W. Pink, 10/8/12 Biographer Iain Murray has said of evangelist and scholar
A.W. Pink that �the widespread circulation of his writings
after his death made him one of the most influential
evangelical authors in the second half of the twentieth
century.� The teachings of Pink led to an increase in
expository preaching and appeals for holy living for those
who have been saved by Christ. In an article entitled,
�Private Judgment,� Pink warns against those ministers of
the gospel who would seek to usurp the authority of Christ,
imposing upon their congregations their own dictates rather
than, or in addition to, the commands of Scripture.
(192) Examining
Freemasonry:
The Question of Religion by Carl Teichrib,
Crossroad, 10/11/12 In the midst of today's spreading war against genuine
Christianity, we must stand firm in faith, ready to share
God's true Word with all who will hear!
(193) Billy
Graham
Offers Help To Mormon Mitt Romney Then Removes Section
From Website Calling Mormonism A Cult! by
SoulRefuge, 10/13/12 The Washington Post reported that Evangelist Billy Graham
offered his help to Mormon Republican Presidential candidate
Mitt Romney. Here is an excerpt from that article from the
�On Faith� section: Billy Graham offered to �do all I can to
help� GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in a Thursday
(Oct. 11) meeting at the evangelist�s North Carolina home.
Romney campaign spokesman Rick Gorka told reporters after
the visit that Graham told Romney: �I�ll do all I can to
help you. And you can quote me on that.� By Adelle M. Banks|
Religion News Service, Published: October. Another article
from a website entitled �The New Civil Rights
Movement� revealed that the Billy Graham website �scrubbed�
a statement which labeled Mormonism as a cult, shortly after
the meeting between Billy Graham and Mitt Romney. Evangelist
Franklin Graham, the son of Billy Graham, was also present
at that same meeting. Franklin Graham is the President and
Chief Executive Officer of the Billy Graham Evangelistic
Association.
Updated! (194) The
Cult
of Evangelical Leadership by Herescope,
10/17/12 Sacred Leaders are a temperamental puffed up lot, you know.
They require faint-hearted Sheeple to think more highly of
them, preferring them. They believe that the humble should
not be exalted, especially if it threatens their own
popularity. And any sheep with discernment should be treated
as �offscouring.� They invoke one spirit, but believe only
the Elite have many gifts. �Let all men glory in Leaders� is
their slogan, contrary to I Cor. 3:21. Puffed-up Priests,
all of them. And the sad fact is, despite all of this, the
sheep continue their faddish worship of these Sacred Cows
and Stars. Read Part
1, Part
2, Part
3 & Part
4.
(195) Preparing
For
Perilous Times and Finding God�s Peace in the Midst of
Them by David Dombrowski, 10/17/12 Over the last ten years since Lighthouse Trails began, we
have been contacted by many who love the Lord and were
struggling with great challenges: Some were ostracized by
their churches, which had gone Purpose Driven,
contemplative, or emerging; some had division in their
families; some had financial concerns; and others were
worried about health issues � whether their own or that of
loved ones. Beyond all of this, many have expressed a sense
of uncertainty or foreboding of what the future will bring:
The Bible indicates that in the last days perilous times
shall come.
(196) Deceptions
of
the Occult by Carl Teichrib, Crossroads,
10/23/12 Yes, the physical world is a marvelous wonder, filled with
many transfixing and puzzling surprises. It still baffles
man by its beauty and complexity. So too the non-physical
universe, including mental and spiritual components, is a
place of fascination. However, when dabbling and dealing
with the supernatural � and the mind sciences that sometimes
attempt to explain or exploit it�a mental, emotional, and
spiritual minefield is encountered. And just as wandering
into a physical minefield will destroy the body, so too will
a spiritual minefield destroy the soul.
(197) The
�gods�
of Babylon by Pastor Larry DeBruyn, Guarding His
Flock Ministries, 10/25/12 Enter old-age Babylonism. Yahweh addresses them: �Now,
then, hear this, you sensual one, / Who dwells securely, /
Who says in your heart, �I am, and there is no one besides
me� � (Emphasis mine, Isaiah 47:8). And again, �Your wisdom
and your knowledge, they have deluded you; / For you have
said in your heart, �I am, and there is no one besides me� �
(Isaiah 47:10b). Who is this sensual and deluded one who
dares to assume the divine name (i.e., �I am�) of Yahweh?
Why, it�s the Babylonians! About Isaiah�s address to the
Babylonians, one commentator observed, �There is even an
assumption of divine supremacy in these words, when compared
with the frequent use of the pronoun I, in the solemn
declarations of Jehovah . . .� [3] Another notes that
Babylon was, �frivolously deifying herself.� [4] Like
devotees to Eastern-pantheist-mystical religion, and the
Schucman-like spirituality being infused into the American
consciousness by Marianne Williamson and Oprah Winfrey, the
Babylonians thought they were gods. [5]
(198) The
Gods
Of Babylon by Larry DeBruyn, 10/29/12 Though contemporary Mormons now disavow his statement,
Lorenzo Snow (1814-1901), the fifth president of The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, once said, �As man is,
God once was; as God is, man may become.� Pretending to be
within the pale of Christendom, some Word of Faith teachers
boldly tell their followers, �You are gods.�
(199) Franklin
Graham
"shocked" his site called Mormonism a cult by
Stand Up For The Truth, 11/16/12 I think I am just as shocked as Franklin Graham. So to be
clear, it is OK for him to call Jehovah�s Witnesses, the
Unification Church, Unitarians, Spiritists, and
Scientologists cult members, but Mormons? Nope. Either they
are just a different flavor of orthodox Christianity, or
they are somehow more deserving to be �won over to Christ�
than the other cult members. Or does it depend on whom runs
for the office of President of the United States?
(200) Thanksgiving
Articles
Links at Crossroad, 11/19/12 May our wonderful Lord fill our hearts with thanks to Him
this special day!
(202) Testing
the
Genuineness of our Faith by Pastor Charles Haddon
Spurgeon (1834-1892) Untested faith may be true faith, but it is sure to be
small faith, and it is likely to remain little as long as it
is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when all
things are against her: Tempests are her trainers, and bolts
of lightning are her illuminators.
(203) The
"new
breed" of Christian fashion by Marsha West, Renew
America, 1/3/13 A couple of weeks ago, while I was surfing the net for
articles to include in the Email Brigade News Report, I came
across a piece entitled "Provocative Clothing Company
Creates Tees to Help Christian Girls be 'Playful' for
Jesus." For obvious reasons the headline grabbed my
attention. Featured in the article is a picture of an
attractive young woman in a sexy pose seated on a bed
wearing a tank top with the words "God knows my secrets."
(204) Texas:
Curriculum
Teaching Allah Is the "Almighty God" by The Berean
Call, 1/5/13 Texas: Curriculum Under Fire For Teaching �Allah Is The
Almighty God�, Calls Boston Tea Party �A Terrorist
Organization� [Excerpts] �In the 70 percent of Texas public
schools where a private curriculum has been installed,
students are learning the �fact� that �Allah is the Almighty
God,� charge critics of a new online curriculum that already
is facing condemnation for its secrecy and restrictions on
oversight.
(205) Generational
Sins
& Blaming the Past by Martin & Deidre
Bobgan, PsychoHeresy Awareness Ministries, 1/12/13 Psychological counseling theories and therapies encourage
individuals to look outside themselves to explain why they
do what they do and why they feel the way they do. This
blame game all started in the Garden of Eden and has
continued throughout the centuries. The blame game gained
status during the last century through Sigmund Freud and his
followers, who placed the main source of adult problems back
into one�s early childhood. The parents, especially the
mothers, were the culprits, and of course the parents were
simply passing along their own problems, which likewise had
their source in their parents, going back generation after
generation all the way back to Adam and Eve. Through Freud
the blame game was dressed in medical garb and has now risen
to great prominence in the present therapeutic culture of
our psychological society.
(206) When
Is
Yoga, Yoga? by Roger Oakland, 1/25/13 According to the American Civil Liberties Union, students
in public schools cannot be indoctrinated with any specific
religious belief. Education must be religiously neutral.
However, it can be documented that when children are being
introduced to yoga and witchcraft in public schools, parents
are told not be alarmed.
(207) Threatened
Lawsuit
by The Harbinger Publisher & Author by David
James, 1/31/13 We have received letters threatening legal action related
to the publication of my book The Harbinger: Fact or
Fiction? These letters were from a lawyer with a firm which
�serves as litigation counsel for Charisma Media, publisher
of The Harbinger by Rabbi Jonathan Cahn and published by
Charisma Media.�
(208) The
Emerging
Galactic Religion: Science Fiction and the Rise of
Technocratic Posthumanism by Dr. Martin Erdmann,
2/28/13 Medicine is no longer restricted to healing.
Biotechnology�s popular uses constitute a long list, among
them weight loss, hair growth, birth control, teeth
straightening, and sex selection of children.[1]
Transhumanism takes human enhancement further, in morphing
the vision of perfect man into a human-machine complex
properly called �posthuman�. This is an effort to break
every human limitation and redefine personhood.
(209) Noted
Apologist
Calls Out Evangelical Leaders Who 'Undermine the Word of
God' by Russ Jones, Christian Press, 3/9/13
A noted biblical apologist and expert on creationism is
calling out several of his colleagues. An audience of some
300 people at the recent National Religious Broadcasters
(NRB) convention in Nashville were shocked to learn of the
number of evangelical leaders who don�t believe in a literal
6 days of creation narrative.
(210) Starbuck�s
CEO
telling Christians to take a hike (Video) at Focal
Point, 3/25/13 At the annual shareholder's meeting on Wednesday, Starbucks
CEO, Howard Shultz, told Christians, and all who believe
that marriage is the union of one man and one woman for
life, "we don't want your business".
(213) In
Loving
Memory: Dave Hunt 1926-2013 by The Berean Call,
4/5/13 Dave has left us a legacy of inestimable value. We are
blessed to be able to see and hear and read what he has
taught about the evidence for God in a breathtaking number
of materials. From explaining about the history of
Christianity, to exposing the deception that has crept into
the church, to teaching about the prophecies that are being
fulfilled even today, this humble, brilliant man will go on
teaching us for a very long time. We look forward to the day
when we will see him again.
(214) In
Memory of Dave Hunt by Mike Oppenheimer,
4/8/13 The time goes by so quickly and what we do for the Lord
will last into eternity, nothing else. To me the real heroes
of the faith are those who risk their reputation, ignoring
what others may think of them to rescue those caught in
spiritual bondage that can cause death. To help one escape
from the clutches of the enemy of our soul takes
confrontation and being readily equipped to answer the
objections. For this we will be eternally grateful. We are
just one of the many lives Dave had touched by his
faithfulness to the truth. We will remember Dave as being an
exemplary example in this.
(215) Be
Watchful! by Pastor Charles Haddon Spurgeon
(1834-1892) Note: We, too, may be "hard-pressed" in the years ahead.
The world is changing fast, and Christianity is increasingly
mocked, banned, and despised. History reminds us that
persecution comes and goes; and now, after a long season of
peace and freedom, we may again face hatred and
cruelty. But those who belong to Jesus have a place of
peace and refuge. He is our hiding place, our strength
and our joy. How blessed we are to belong to Him at
such a time as now!
(217) Calvary
Chapel
Pastors Respond to Our Lonnie Frisbee Commentary
by Roger Oakland, 4/18/13 We are grieved by the number of people who still will not
think for themselves. For those who want to know the truth,
please watch and listen to witnesses who were there during
the days of Lonnie Frisbee and to Lonnie himself when he
talks about who he was and what he believed. Read
the original commentary on Frisbee called "Another
spirit
or the Holy Spirit?".
(218) UPDATED! Islamic
Teachings That Prove Their Religion Is False
compiled by Sandy Simpson, 4/1/08 This article presents documented
proof that Mohammed was a false teacher and a false
prophet ... thus the Qur'an and other Islamic holy
writings by Mohammed and his followers are based are
false. More evidence that the "god" Allah they
worship is a false god. Their false religion is
based on a false prophet, false scriptures and a false
god. This update includes pictures in the
article. Stay tuned for this article to be released on
DVD.
(219) The
10
Things You Need to Know About Islam by Ron
Rhodes, 2013 One out of every five persons on the
earth is a Muslim. In the past 16 years, the number of
Muslim mosques in the United States has mushroomed from 30
to over 3,000. An Islamic leader recently inaugurated a
session of the United States Senate, praying in the name
of Allah. Chances are that if you don't currently have
Muslim friends, you soon will. To understand and
communicate with them, you need to know... Are all Muslims
the same? Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?
Was Muhammad really a prophet of God? Do the Quran and the
Christian Bible agree? What are the major doctrines of
Islam? What are the five major obligations of Muslims? How
is the basis of salvation in Muslim theology? Has the
Bible been corrupted, as Muslims claim? Was Jesus a mere
prophet, as Muslims claim? What do Muslims say about
Judgment, heaven, and hell? What are the best strategies
for dialoguing with Muslims? This concise,
easy-to-understand guide answers these questions and
others, and also provides a powerful Christian apologetic
response. This book is engineered to guide Christians
through the most important information with clear
explanations and solid biblical reasoning. This is a
must�have resource for individuals and churches trying to
discern today�s news stories.
(220) Worldview
and
Islam at The Berean Call, 5/2/13 Today, there are cross-cultural
church planters who are making catastrophic mistakes in
accommodating Islamic theology and practices in their
fledgling congregations. They are intentionally
incorporating Islamic practices that they do not
understand. Instead of allowing the converts to move away
from Islam, they are encouraging them to stay within the
socio-religious community and continue to participate in
the practices, which are formational for Islamic theology
and worldview. While it is hoped that these converts will
continue to grow in Christian nurture and practice, it is
difficult to conceive how this will happen as long as they
are being directed back into Islam rather than out of it.
(221) Calvary
Chapel
Breached by Jim Fletcher, Prophecy Matters,
5/8/13 This week, Sami Awad, a Palestinian
Christian from Bethlehem (and director of the Holy Land
Trust), announced on Facebook that he will be speaking at
several churches on the West Coast this month. The May
10th date caught my eye and leaves me dismayed: May 10 San
Diego, CA. North Coast Calvary Church. 7-9 p.m.
(222) North
Coast
Calvary Chapel Breached Indeed! - What Will The North
Coast Calvary Chapel Leaders Do? by Chris
Lawson, 5/11/13 The current issue at North Coast
Calvary Chapel (NCCC) in Carlsbad, California is rather
bleak to say the least. The fact that yet another article
had to be written exposing Calvary Chapel compromise goes
to show that there is no slowing down of ecumenical
compromise within the Calvary Chapel movement. There is
plenty of documentation available on the Internet exposing
years of Calvary Chapel compromise. Christian apologetics
ministries have sought to address these things for a long
time now, but shouldn't it be Calvary Chapel pastors
keeping each other accountable? Of course it should be!
(223) Peter
Enns
Continues to Promote Heresy by Ken Ham, 5/16/13
Many of you may be familiar with
Peter Enns, who is a former fellow with BioLogos, an
organization dedicated to promoting a form of theistic
evolution (or �evolutionary creation� as they call it). We
both spoke at the same homeschool convention a few years
ago. During my talk, I showed a few video clips of him,
demonstrating in his own words that he doesn�t believe in
a literal Adam or Eve or in a literal Fall. After we were
told by conference organizers that I could critique Enns�s
beliefs during the conference, we had informed them that
we were considering it, and we were cleared to do so.
Well, I was dropped from the next homeschool convention
and Peter Enns was retained.
(224) Calvary
Chapel
Founder Chuck Smith Denounces North Coast Calvary Chapel
Invitation of Palestinian Activist by Lighthouse
Trails, 5/17/13 In a dramatic showdown last week
within the Calvary Chapel movement, the leadership of the
California-based association of churches rebuked an event
held at North Coast Calvary Chapel that featured a
presentation by Palestinian activists. Called �Hope for
the Holy Land,� the seminar program aims to present the
Palestinian narrative to church audiences. Observers are
saying that what made the North Coast event such a
flashpoint was the fact that since its inception, Calvary
Chapel has been staunchly pro Israel.
(225) Shhh...
It's
a Secret God Told Me to Tell You! by Pastor
Danny Isom, 5/19/13 The secret things belong to the Lord
our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our
sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this
law. \(Deut. 29:29) As the Preacher has already told us,
�There is nothing new under the sun.� (Ecc. 1:9) So why
should we be surprised that yet another person has been
the exclusive recipient of yet another �secret� from God
and, for the first time in the history of the world, is
making it known to us? For some reason, instead of writing
it down in one of the original languages of the Bible and
making it freely available to all like the original
Prophets of old, this time around God chose to have it
printed in English and sold for $16.99 ($9.00 on the
Kindle). For a fee, the �prophet� will come and speak
about it. False teaching disguised as �revelation� like
Jonathan Cahn�s The Harbinger have been around since
handwriting was invented and such will, no doubt, persist
until the Lord returns. Please do not buy it or even
bother reading a friend�s copy; why should you take away
time from your personal meditation in Scripture, the only
true source of revelation?
(226) Muslim
Cleric
Invited to Pray over Fallen SEALs Damns Them to Hell
During Service at The Berean Call, 5/20/13
TBC: The Muslim cleric's remarks
during the memorial service were in Arabic. The families
of the dead men obtained a translation of the cleric's
remarks.] This is what the imam was quoting: "Not equal
are the companions of the Fire and the companions of
Paradise. The companions of Paradise - they are the
attainers [of success]. If We had sent down this Qur'an
upon a mountain, you would have seen it humbled and coming
apart from fear of Allah. And these examples We present to
the people that perhaps they will give thought." -- Qur'an
59:20-21
(227) 20
Completely
Ridiculous College Courses Being Offered At U.S.
Universities by Michael Snyder, June 5th, 2013
Would you like to know what America's
young people are actually learning while they are away at
college? It isn't pretty. Yes, there are some
very highly technical fields where students are being
taught some very important skills, but for the most part
U.S. college students are learning very little that they
will actually use out in the real world when they
graduate. Some of the college courses listed below
are funny, others are truly bizarre, others are just plain
outrageous, but all of them are a waste of money.
(228) The
Rise
of Endtime Occultism by Herescope, 6/13/13
Many evangelicals now believe that
God sent Noah�s Flood to stop the Nephilim corruption of
human DNA. From the plain truth of Scripture it is very
evident that the �wickedness of man� was very great on the
face of the earth before the Flood ... ReadPart
1, Part
2, Part
3 & Part
4.
(229) England's
"Christianity-centered"
Pagan Church by The Berean Call, 6/26/13
The mother church of the worldwide
Anglican Communion is seeking to create new forms of
Anglicanism with which people of alternative beliefs
should feel comfortable, according to The Telegraph.
(231) Exposing
Christian
Palestinianism - DVD by Caryl Productions,
7/11/13 A biblical perspective on the
relationship between Israel, the church, and the Arab
world. Some 2500 years ago, the Hebrew prophet Zechariah
foretold, "Jerusalem will be a burdensome stone for all
people: and, all the people of the earth shall be gathered
together against it" (Zechariah:12:2-3). End time biblical
prophecy is unfolding before our very eyes as the promised
ingathering of a dispersed and diverse cross-section of
Jews, including secular, atheist, agnostic, and Jewish
believers in Jesus Christ, are returning, from all over
the world, to their biblically covenanted homeland of
Israel. Controversy about the existence of the nation of
Israel is intensifying not only amongst the Arab world but
within Christianity also. A political-religious campaign
is gaining worldwide acceptance as church leaders,
denominations, charities, missions, and humanitarian
groups are uniting with Muslims and other world religions
against Israel. Caryl Matrisciana narrates this
informative three-part documentary featuring Dave Hunt and
Paul Wilkinson. Each powerful program is approximately 35
minutes in length and features fast-moving, graphic
footage that exposes the rising tide of apostasy gripping
today's church regarding modern Israel.
(232) Christianity
vs.
Psychology (MP3) Host: Vic Eliason Guest: Dr. Ed
Bulkley July 19, 2013 Ed Bulkley is the founding pastor of
Life Fellowship in Westminster, Colorado. He is also
the President of the International Association of Biblical
Counselors. He is the author of 3 books including,
�Why Christian�s Can�t Trust Psychology�, �Only God Can
Heal a Wounded Heart�, and �How Big is Your God?� He
speaks extensively on Biblical counseling. For
several years he hosted, �Return to the Word� a program
addressing Biblical counseling issues. Dr. Bulkley began
by explaining that our world has moved away from Christ
and is relying on the philosophies of this world as Paul
describes in Colossians 2:8. Since people are moving away
from the simple truth that God�s word is more than enough
to deal with any life issue when we obey him, many adults
are on anti-depressants or anti-psychotics. Children
as well are on drugs for maladies like Attention Deficit
Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder. In fact, Vic noted that 90% of school
shootings are linked to medications yet as Dr. Bulkley
noted earlier in the discussion, drugs often anesthetize
the conscience and the mind itself. Sanity comes from
obeying the Lord. Unfortunately the world has things
turned around and is communicating today that religious
practice can be a sign of deeper mental health
issues. Find out why that�s false and discover why
God�s word is mankind�s only true solution to issues of
the heart when you review this edition of Crosstalk.
(233) Why
millions
of Muslims are seeing apparitions of the Mother Mary
at Understamd The Times, 7/24/13 Comment from Understand The Times:
One of the great signs that we are in the Last Days will
be when Muslims embrace false appearances of a woman
believed to be the mother of Jesus that will bring about
peace and unity. As mentioned in the article below this
happened at Zeitun, Egypt in 1968. One of the common
denominators between Roman Catholics and Muslims is their
reverence for "Mary." Current problems in Egypt may well
bring about another round of apparitions, or as described
in biblical terms, "lying signs and wonders" that will
occur in a time of great deception.
(234) Former
Archbishop
Desmond Tutu Says He Would Choose Hell Over 'Homophobic'
Heaven at Understand The Times, 7/31/13 Speaking recently at the United
Nation's launch of its "Free & Equal" campaign to
promote fair treatment of LGBT persons, former archbishop
and South African anti-apartheid activist Desmond Tutu
declared that the issue was so close to his heart that he
"would refuse to go to a homophobic heaven" and instead
choose "the other place." The 1984 Nobel Peace Prize
laureate and former head of the South African Anglican
Church and South African Council of Churches made the
remarks last Friday, July 26, during the press event in
his home country, where same-sex marriage is legal but
where views remain antagonistic toward homosexuals.
(236)Updated!An
Evaluation
of Muslim Dreams & Visions of Isa (Jesus) by Dennis McBride, Think On These Things,
June/July 2013, Volume 19, Issue 3 - Read Part
1 & Part
2 Much confusion surrounds the numerous
stories coming from Islamic people concerning their dreams
and visions leading to conversions. �Think on These
Things� published an article by Richard Fisher in 2008
entitled �Don�t You Believe It.� The next two issues will
be composed of an article written by Pastor Dennis
McBride. I believe Pastor McBride has done an excellent
and thorough job of analyzing these experiences in the
light of Scripture.
(237) Muslims
Angry
over Virtual "Third Temple" at The Berean Call,
9/6/13 A website with a simulation of a
Third Temple has been met with an angry backlash from the
Arab and Muslim world.
(238) America's
Bible
Hypocrisy: Study Shows Disconnect Between Beliefs and
Behavior at Understand The Times, 9/10/13
The American Bible Society's annual
"State of the Bible" study shows most Americans believe
society needs the Bible, but few are finding time to read
it. A majority of people in the United States
believe the Bible contains the best advice for a
meaningful life, but they also don't want to take it, and
are too busy to read the scriptures.
(239) Four
Books
That the Enemy Has Used To Corrupt Christianity
by Sandy Simpson, 9/9/13 Four men changed the world into their
postmodern, communist, evolutionist, materialist,
Narcissistic concept of reality. There are also four
books that have corrupted Christianity worldwide.
(240) The
New
Age and the World of Occultism - Exposing the
Philosophy, the Lies, and the Dangers by Chris
Lawson, Spiritual Research Network, 9/24/13 The New Age Movement (NAM) is based
on a belief system that is essentially a Western
hybridization of pantheistic and pan-en-theistic Eastern
occult philosophy and practices. The New Age movement
encompasses countless thousands of autonomous (and
sometimes contradictory) beliefs, organizations, and
events. �New Age� beliefs also incorporate practices from
19th century Western occultism including teachings from
�channeled spirits� or �universal energy� [in actuality
they are fallen angels which the Bible refers to a lying
spirits, or, demons]. The term �New Age� is also used by
many to describe organizations, teachers and teachings,
which exhibit at least one or more of the following
beliefs: �(1) All is one, all reality is part of the
whole; (2) Everything is God and God is everything; (3)
Man is God or a part of God; (4) Man never dies, but
continues to live through reincarnation; (5) Man can
create his own reality and/or values through transformed
consciousness or altered states of consciousness.�
(241) Chuck
Smith,
86, Dies After Cancer Battle by G. Jeffrey
MacDonald, Christianity Today, 10/3/13 Chuck Smith, the evangelical pastor
whose outreach to hippies in the 1960s helped transform
worship styles in American Christianity and fueled the
rise of the Calvary Chapel movement, died Thursday, Oct.
3, 2013, after a battle with lung cancer. He was 86.
(242) Statement By Pastor Bill
Randles Regarding The Charge That Jacob Prasch Is A
Gnostic by Bill Randles, 10/4/13 I want to go on record as saying that
I do not regard Jacob Prasch, our brother and gifted
teacher as a gnostic. Neither do I see Midrash as anything
but a biblical hermaneutical tool. ... I urge all involved
to prayerfully work out any differences in the spirit of
Christ with forbearance, humility and love. - Pas Bill
Randles
(243) How
the
Mighty Have Fallen by James Jacob Prasch,
10/17/13 John MacArthur now teaches: �Those
accepting the mark of the beast and worship the anti
Christ can still be saved. Supported by Jimmy DeYoung,
this is the exact teaching of John MacArthur on the clip
below.
(244) Jesus-denial,
Bible
denial and other dangerous 'denialisms' of global
anti-Semitism by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen, Fox
News, 10/27/13 Holocaust denial is widely known and
widely understood to be a form of anti-Semitism and a tool
to delegitimize Israel. Anti-Semites do not want Jews to
be recognized as victims because sympathy for Jews impedes
spreading hatred of them. Anti-Semites also see the
Holocaust as legitimizing the notion that Jews, like other
peoples, need their own country with the political and
military means to defend themselves. All right thinking
people condemn Holocaust denial, which is not just a
fringe belief but is extremely widespread especially in
the Middle East, no less than they would condemn a
movement that denied that American slavery existed �
should anything so nutty ever come to be. Yet Holocaust
denial is but one of the many kinds of widespread
anti-Semitic denialisms that exist and powerfully grip
peoples especially in the Middle East, but also in Europe,
and even in the United States.
(245) If
I Were The Devil by Paul Harvey, 1964 If I were the Prince of Darkness I would want to engulf the
whole earth in darkness. I'd have a third of its real estate
and four-fifths of its population, but I would not be happy
until I had seized the ripest apple on the tree. So I should
set about however necessary, to take over the United States.
(247) "Are
We
Fundamentalists?" by Dr. Peter Masters,
11/17/13 THERE ARE NOW TWO KINDS OF EVANGELICAL.... The old is the
authentic, biblical position. The new is far off the
track, not in its basic view of salvation, but in its
readiness to compromise with doctrinal error and worldly
ways. The new is selling the faith for earthly respect and
recognition... and churches are being ruined.
(248) The
Secret
of Biblical Self-Improvement by T.A. McMahon, The
Berean Call, 12/2/13 The popularity of self-improvement, or self-help, books
throughout the history of publishing is rather amazing. The
reasons given for the wide acceptance of such books,
historically, and especially in our day, are many, but they
all boil down to man�s desire to improve his condition or
situation, whether financially, socially, educationally,
physically, psychologically, spiritually, or �all of the
above.� Although the goals are improvement and the bettering
of one�s circumstance, the primary method and motivation is
by self and for self : how can I improve me? Read Part
1 and Part
2.
(250) Calvary
Chapel
Bookstore on Jesus Calling: Hush!! It�s Controversial � We
Keep it in the Back Room by Lighthouse Trails,
1/11/14 Yesterday, we verified that the Calvary Chapel store is
still selling the book from the back room. A woman who is an
acquaintance of Warren Smith and had heard from Warren about
the �back room� copies has given us permission to relay this
to our readers. She entered the store, searched for Jesus
Calling in the devotional section, and when not finding it,
she approached a store clerk and asked if the store was
carrying Jesus Calling. The clerk told her it was being kept
in a back room. The clerk then disappeared and returned a
few moments later with a copy. The woman purchased the book
and left (she�ll be using it for research purposes).
(251) Silken
Traps at The Berean Call, 1/20/14 �Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following
them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and
that thou inquire not after their gods, saying, How did
these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise�
(Deuteronomy:12:30)
(252) �I
Am
Sorry You Were Offended� and Other Insincere Apologies
by C. W. Booth, 1/25/14 When Adam took a bite from the fruit, following Eve into
sin, he "apologized" to God by shifting the blame. He said
something like, "Lord, this woman that You created and that
You put here in this garden with me, she gave me the fruit,
so I am sorry if You were offended" (see: Genesis 3:12).
Sorrow and grief-driven sincere apologies always actively
acknowledge that the sinner is the one making the apology.
By active, I mean the sinner says, "I did this specific sin,
and now I am sorry; please forgive me." Those words, "I did
this" make all the difference. They say, "I actively
committed this sin. I am culpable. With my own head, heart,
and hands I have done this thing." By contrast, an insincere
apology, a blame shifting approach, is the passive wording.
It is generally characterized by the subtle implication that
you are in the wrong for being the victim. "I am sorry if
you were offended." Here the key words are "if" and "you
were offended." Nothing is admitted by the sinner. In fact,
his only sorrow is that he got caught because you took
offense, and if you had not taken offense, there would be
nothing for which to apologize. So it is all your fault, you
easily offended person, you.
(254) What
is
Now on the Horizon in a Church World Without David
Wilkerson, Dave Hunt, and Chuck Smith by Jacob
Prasch, 1/28/14 Collapse of the mega churches and beyond - In 2008, several
months before the sub prime crisis, I publicly shared a
teaching called �Everything That Can Be Shaken� which was
promptly filmed and recorded in the USA ,and UK and placed
in the public domain. I, of course, make no claim to being a
prophet and I regard those who do make such claims
concerning themselves to be are either false ones or just
plain religious crackpots. I was not the only person to
issue such a predictive warning and was probably not the
first. I was just one voice among various others that I am
now aware of (but was not at the time) who believed the Lord
was warning us that a financial crash was coming that would
impact the church, including major supposedly Evangelical
churches.
(255) Ravi
Zacharias
Asks Faiths to Oppose 'Lost Morality' Together by
The Berean Call, 1/29/14 TBC: Mormonism has never changed its unbiblical �gospel.�
Consequently, there is no �true brotherhood and sisterhood�
between Mormonism and true Bible believers. �Be ye not
unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what
fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what
communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath
Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with
an infidel?� (2 Corinthians:6:14-15 �Shared love for the
Lord Jesus Christ�? That would only be viable if the Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints and the biblical Jesus were one
and the same. No, the former is the spiritual brother of
Lucifer, i.e., Satan, according to Mormon doctrine.
Zacharias, rather than looking to Mormons for �moral� help,
needs to obey the Scriptures: II John:1:9-10 "Whosoever
transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ,
hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he
hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto
you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your
house, neither bid him God speed".
(256) From
First
to Last by Larry DeBruyn, 2/3/14 In the aftermath of reflecting upon this incident, I
thought to myself, �How I felt after the checker�s apology
to me must somewhat mirror how God feels about us when we
apologize to Him for not giving Him first place in the line
of our lives. Now I know, my experience that evening was not
exactly analogous to the Lord�s feelings about us. For
example, He doesn�t offend or get impatient with us. He�s
longsuffering. But how often do we serve ourselves and
others before before Him in the business of life? Then there
comes that clarifying moment when suddenly we realize the
error that we�ve ignored serving Him first. So we tell Him
we�re sorry. Does His heart melt toward us as mine did
toward the checkout person that evening? I believe so, for
that is God�s character. All He�s looking for from us is an
acknowledgement on our part that we have offended Him, and
when the repentance comes, that�s it! It�s over. His heart
delights in our response of admitting we erred by ignoring
Him, but now desire to serve Him first and others second
(Matthew 22:37-40). Toward such repentant hearts, Micah
tells us that the Lord does not retain �his anger for ever,
because he delighteth in mercy� (Micah 7:18b, KJV).
(257) Creating
Straw
Men from Cognitive Dissonance by Crosswise,
2/4/14 This article will address two separate yet sometimes
related phenomena witnessed in various online exchanges (and
elsewhere), namely the straw man fallacy and cognitive
dissonance. I�ll explain them one at a time, and then
I shall illustrate how the two are at times combined.
(258) Esoteric
Evolution
� An Overview by Sarah H. Leslie, 2/27/14 This is an abstract of a thesis. This abstract provides an
overview of evolution as a cosmological and metaphysical
paradigm that seamlessly unites science with spirituality in
a manner that corrupts the truth. Evolution is more than an
alternative to the creation story. Evolution is not just a
scientific concept; it is a spiritual worldview. This paper
is not by any means complete, nor exhaustive. This is simply
a broad overview of the topic of spiritual evolution,
particularly its mysticism and esoteric applications to
postmodern life in both the culture at large and also the
church.
(259) Trends
of our day - Body Piercing and Tattoos by Mike
Oppenheimer, 2/27/14 This is a difficult subject to write on, and I have
pondered this for a number of years. But I have found it to
be necessary to write on it now because of what is taking
place. I have noticed people having more and more tattoos.
It has become very �in,� to have body Piercing and
Tattoos. The popularity of Tattoo and body piercing
has increased tremendously. A 2006 survey taken by the
Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology an estimated
36% of Americans aged 18-29 now have tattoos. A Harris
Interactive poll conducted in January 2008 concluded that
14% of all adults in the United States have a tattoo, with
the highest incidence (25%) found among gays, lesbians and
bisexuals. This article I would like to address both of
these subjects, starting with body piercing.
(260) Why
is
the Millennial Generation Not Receptive to the Christian
Faith? by Gary F. Zeolla, 3/2/14 The Christian Church has a lot of work to do to become
relevant to the Millennial Generation. But it can be done.
Deviating from the Bible's teachings to accommodate the
modern world's viewpoints is one path, but I think it would
be a misguided one. A watered down Christianity is no
Christianity at all. Christians need to remain faithful to
the Bible and all of its teachings. But we need to be
prepared to reach out to those with contrary views with
knowledge and compassion, not in a judgmental or
self-righteous way. As Peter put it, "But sanctify [the]
Lord God in your* hearts, and always [be] prepared with a
defense to every[one] asking you* an account concerning the
hope [or, confident expectation] in you*, with gentleness
[or, considerateness] and respect" (1Peter 3:15)
(261) A
culture of counterfeit Christians by Marsha West,
3/3/14 Have you ever run over a dead skunk in the road? I have,
during a heat wave. The smell got into my tires and
permeated our garage for days! I'll go out on a limb and say
that no one takes pleasure in the highly offensive smell of
skunk spray, dead or alive. My point in telling you this is
that to God the stench of sin is much worse than skunk. For
an example of just how much the Lord hates sin, grab a cup
of coffee and read First and Second Kings.
(262) My
Church
Journey- 30 Years of Lies at Truth Watch NZ,
3/21/14 As our name suggests Truth Watch recognises a cardinal
truth: Christians must at all times adhere to and follow
what is biblically and therefore theologically true. This
chronicle of one Christian�s experience in the contemporary
Church underlines our assertion that the western Church has
slipped away from the truth in all sorts of areas. The
experience outlined here describes what happens when a
person stands up for biblical inerrancy and truth in today�s
Church. At first they are tolerated with some measure of
grace. Over time that grace turns into disdain and then
outright hostility and ostracism. The love for truth and
one�s brother in Christ soon gives way to intolerance and
graceless-ness. Anyone blessed with the gift of discernment,
prophecy and a love for responsible biblical exegesis in
todays �consumer church� is not welcome � see our article on
�therapeutic Christians�.
(263) A
Frank Exposure Of Freemasonry at Spiritual
Research Network, March 2014 Newsletter A philanthropic organization? A "syncretistic" Interfaith
spirituality? A brotherhood based on esoteric ceremonies,
Secretism and occult oaths? Indeed, Freemasonry is all these
things and much more, and their influence is most likely in
your very own community!
(264) Church Of
Wells by Matt Slick, CARM, 4/6/14 The Church of Wells has been under a great deal of scrutiny
nationally, even though it is a very small church in a very
small town located in Wells, Texas, a city of fewer than 800
people.1 The Church is very tight nit, and
exclusivistic. This makes sense since they teach that they
are the only true church. Usually, when this kind of belief
is held other beliefs are adopted such as 1) us against
them, 2) a sense of being persecuted for their faith, 3)
isolation, etc. These kinds of things are apparently
in the group. But these do not automatically make them a
cult. Instead, we must be careful not to make harsh and
quick judgments based on one or two points. Instead, it is
the overall behavior of how the church (and its doctrinal
teachings) that define a cult.
(266) Deception:
Christian
Publisher Sells Soul for Mammon by The Berean
Call, 4/18/14 WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group is planning to
release, through its liberal sister imprint Convergent
Books, a manuscript paradoxically titled God and the Gay
Christian: The Biblical Case in Support of Same-Sex
Relationships.
(267) Liberty
University
fines students for not listening to cultist Glenn Beck
by Pajama Pages, 4/30/14 Liberty University invited Mormon Glenn Beck to preach to
its students at its compulsory convocation last week,
handing out $10 fines to residential students who didn�t
have a suitable excuse for not attending. The Beck sermon
continues a worrying trend that signals Liberty�s rapid
retreat from Christian orthodoxy to an unapologetic embrace
of false religions and heretics, starting with
self-proclaimed messiah Rev. Moon in the 1990s, to Benny
Hinn and the Mormon church today. Though it still markets
itself as a Christian university, its definition as to what
passes as Christian is not one shared by most of the
churches that send their young people there for an
education.
(269) Pat
Robertson:
After the asteroid hit the earth and wiped out the
dinosaurs�by My Word Like Fire, 5/15/14
Pat Robertson believes that �after the asteroid hit and wiped
out the dinosaurs� � �there was a particular human being that
God touched and that was the human that started the race that
we are now part of�� Here is the full quote: ��there was a
point of time after the earth was created after these things
were done, after the universe was formed, after the asteroid
hit the earth and wiped out the dinosaurs, after all that,
there was a point in time where there was a particular human
being that God touched and that was the human that started the
race that we are now part of and I think prior to that who
knows what was here.� (start at 2:12 in video) �You�d have to
be deaf, dumb, and blind to think that this earth that we live
in only has 6000 years of existence. It just doesn�t.� (at 41
second mark in video) Ken Ham responded to Pat Robertson here:
READ
(270) The
End
of Evangelical Support for Israel? The Jewish State�s
International Standing at Lighthouse Trails,
5/29/14 We have posted the article below to show that a paradigm
shift is taking place within evangelical Christianity that
will result in further apostasy among proclaiming
Christians. When you couple the move toward anti-Israelism
within the evangelical church with the flood of homosexual
acceptance, the overwhelming embracing of mysticism
(i.e., contemplative) and welcoming of Catholicism,
and a growing hostility toward biblical Christians, it
becomes plain to see that the stage is being set to form a
one-world harlot �church� of which the Bible speaks.
(271) World
Vision
Crys �Reform� � But What About Israel and the Emerging
Church � The Story Behind the Story at Lighthouse
Trails, 6/28/14 So while World Vision is crying �reform� right now, and
most likely this will be the story that the media, both
secular and Christian, will pick up and run with, the real
story behind the scene is that World Vision is part of the
�new� spirituality/New Age �Christianity� that will help
usher in the greatest deception this world has ever seen.
And countless Christians� tax-deductible dollars will help
finance it.
(272) Christ
at
the Checkpoint: The Dangers of Deception at The
Berean Call, 6/30/14 As for Fulfillment Theology it teaches that all the
promises of the Abrahamic Covenant are fulfilled in the
person and ministry of Jesus. For those subscribing to this
nonsense, this includes the promise to Israel of the land of
Canaan. The subsequent result of this teaching is that once
again Israel�s present day restoration enjoys no biblical
significance and that those, like Christian Zionists, who do
happen to see biblical significance in Israel�s rebirth as a
nation are deluded, in error and constitute an obstacle to
peace.
(273) Kay
Arthur
With Erroneous Contemplative Interpretation Of Psalm 46:10
by Ken Silva, 7/8/14 It�s important for you to understand that Kay Arthur is
firmly within the ostensibly conservative evangelical camp.
However, phrases like learning �The Art of Being Still�
sound like something we�d hear from gurus of CSM we first
encountered in the postmodern liberal cult of the Emergent
Church, now openly operating within evangelicalism through
its foolish embrace of the Emerging Church. From all of this
by Kay Arthur�s PMI, we can see she�s appealing to � Be
still, and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10), which is a
classic verse misappropriated by instructors of CSM.
(274) California
Church
Disaffiliates With the Calvary Chapel Movement Over
Heretical Connections by Lighthouse Trails,
7/9/14 LTRP Note: As many of you know, Roger Oakland, of
Understand the Times, International, and Chris Lawson, of
Spiritual Research Network, are former Calvary Chapel
pastors/teachers, who both left the movement when their
warnings about the infiltration of serious false teachings
fell on deaf ears for several years and when they felt they
could no longer, in good conscience, remain associated with
the movement. Last week, Lighthouse Trails was informed of
another Calvary Chapel pastor, Steve Shively of Refuge
Church in Atascadero, California, who has made the decision
(along with his church elders) to disaffiliate from the
Calvary Chapel movement. The following letter was sent to
the Calvary Chapel Association on June 29th, 2014. We are
posting it with permission.
(276) Christian
Musician
Gungor Says Jesus Could Have Been Wrong About Creation
Story or Lied About It; Calls Genesis 1 a 'Poem'
by Christian Post, 9/3/14 Award-winning Christian musician Michael Gungor of the
musical collective Gungor, who recently rattled the
Christian world when he argued that the Bible should not be
read literally, took his arguments a little further last
month when he said Jesus could have been wrong about the
creation story, or might have lied about it to fit in with
popular culture.
(277) How
old
is human DNA? at The Berean Call, 9/5/14 Human mitochondrial DNA mutates at a known rate. Based on
this known rate, the human genome is very young � much
younger than evolutionary theory says it should be. It is
only thousands of years old.
(278) The
latest
threat to Evangelical support for Israel at the
Berean Call, 9/6/14
Targeting young Evangelicals at top Christian universities has
also been an extremely effective tool in the hands of those
seeking to erode Evangelical support for Israel. Read Part
1 & Part
2.
(279) Gaza
-
The End Of Israel? by Al Dagar, Media Spotlight,
Vol. 34-1, 9/10/14 THE FIRESTORM THAT is Gaza continues to blaze out of
control. In spite of the best efforts of politicians outside
the conflict zone known as
Palestine, peace is not a viable
option for either side despite the cease fires. The mass
media fan the flames with biased reporting that champions
the cause of either Israel or the Palestinian people (far
more often the Palestinians), while the average world
citizen remains ignorant of the true spiritual cause of the
warfare that will never abate until either Israel is driven
into the Mediterranean Sea as promised by her Islamic
enemies, or the Lord returns to deliver the nation as He has
promised in His Word.
(280) Blood Moons For The
Second Time Proven To Be A Baseless Hoax - The Boy
Cries Wolf Yet Again by James Jacob Prasch.
10/12/14 I happened to be in Israel for Sukkoth, the second of the
supposedly festal Blood Moons concocted by Mark Blitz,
whom given his abysmal track record - many now can only
consider to be a religious con artist out to sell books
about the 'Blood Moon' hoax that he invented.
(281) Be
Watchful! by Pastor Charles Haddon Spurgeon
(1834-1892) �We die daily,� said the apostle. This was the life of the
early Christians; they went everywhere with their lives in
their hands. [Most of us are not yet] called to pass through
the same fearful persecutions. But if we were, the Lord
would give us grace to bear the test. The tests of Christian
life, at the present moment, though outwardly not so
terrible, are yet more likely to overcome us than even those
of the fiery age.
(282) "Addressing
the
'Positive Gospel' of the Metaphysical Movement"
(an article from the Christian Research Journal, Fall 1988,
page 7) by Dean C. Halverson. Before we can accept Jesus Christ as our Savior we must
first acknowledge our need to be saved. When we do so, we
are saying that we have become aware of our enslaving sinful
nature, of the alienation that our sin has caused in our
relationship with God, of God's impending wrath on that sin,
and of our total inability to save ourselves. Try telling
someone in the Metaphysical movement (Religious Science,
Unity, "A Course in Miracles," etc.) about the wages of sin,
though, and they will look at you as though you are an
anachronism -- a throwback to a less-enlightened age. The
ideas of an enslaving sinful nature, of being alienated from
God, and of God's wrath are, to them, extremely
offensive.
(283) My
brother's
succession plan for Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa (Video)by
Paul Smith, 10/20/14
As Pastor Chuck Smith's brother I wanted to share with you
some of the events that occurred and I personally witnessed.
Thank you for all the prayers and encouragement.
(284) Rowan
Williams:
How Buddhism Helps Me Pray [Excerpts] at The
Berean Call, 10/27/14 The former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Williams has
disclosed that he spends up to 40 minutes a day squatting
and repeating an Eastern Orthodox prayer while performing
breathing exercises as part of a routine influenced by
Buddhism.
(286) Mark Driscoll
Kicked Out Of His Own Organization by Sandy
Simpson, 8/18/14 Driscoll was kicked out of the Acts 29 Network church
planting group, his own organization, for his �ungodly
behavior�. �Seattle megachurch pastor Mark Driscoll
has been removed from a church-planting network of more than
500 churches he helped found after a pattern of �ungodly and
disqualifying behavior.� (Religion News Service, by Sarah
Pulliam Balley, Huffington Post, 8/9/14) His behavior
is not the only problem with this guy. Check out his
false teachings and behavior over the years.
(287) Seattle
megachurch
dissolves after founder Mark Driscoll resigns at
Understand The Times, 11/3/14 Two weeks after lead Mars Hill Church pastor Mark Driscoll
resigned amid questions about his leadership, the Seattle
megachurch he founded announced Friday it was dissolving its
network of branches across four states. The church said on
its website that the best future for its branches would be
for them to becoming "autonomous self-governed entities."
"This means that each of our locations has an opportunity to
become a new church, rooted in the best of what Mars Hill
has been in the past, and independently led and run by its
own local elder teams," Pastor Dave Bruskas wrote on the
church's website. The existing Mars Hill Church organization
will be dissolved. The megachurch's controversial founder
resigned as elder and lead pastor on Oct. 14, following an
investigation into formal charges brought against him.
(288) Calvary
Chapel
Alert For Pastors and Church Leaders - Documenting the
Progression of Compromise and Ecumenical Relations
by Chris Lawson, 11/5/14 The previous introductory statement that was posted here
was rewritten for publication as an article. There are
numerous sources online now that are reporting on the
imbalanced Calvary Chapel leadership issues as well as the
growing ecumenical compromises. Many Calvary Chapel pastors
as well as the Calvary Chapel Association Leadership Council
(formerly CCOF Ministry, Inc.) are aware of many of the
growing problems, but little is being done to publicly
expose and correct them.
(289) Christians
Losing
Everything to Islam? at the Berean Call,
11/27/14 �Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the
excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for
whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count
them but dung, that I may win Christ � ( Philippians 3:8).
When Paul wrote the above in his letter to the Christians of
Philippi, he and the early church were being persecuted
(Paul was eventually executed in Rome). While today�s
Western Christians still quote his words in the context of
their daily struggles, an increasing number of Christians
around the world, especially the Muslim world, are still
literally losing absolutely everything for their
faith. (ACT Note: Be preparded, for the story of
this Christian will become all too common when Islam takes
over the world.)
(299) Calvary
Chapel
Costa Mesa's Chapel Store Compromised Again - Wanderlust
Productions' HOLY GHOST film documentary pulled two days
after it makes it onto the Chapel Store 'New Arrivals'
shelf by Chris Lawson, November 5, 2014 Praise the Lord! Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa's Chapel
Store did the right thing - they pulled the Wanderlust
Productions HOLY GHOST film documentary from the bookstore
shelf, and they are no longer selling it. How do I know? I
just got off the telephone (Wednesday, November 5, 2014,
11:51AM) with a Chapel Store employee. The Chapel Store
employee kindly informed me that the movie was recently
removed, two days after it was put on the shelf. Apparently
the church overseers dealt with this one quickly, which is
good! I appreciate the fact that the Chapel Store employee
talked to me about this, and I am happy to see that a couple
people have proactively dealt with this issue at Calvary
Chapel of Costa Mesa. Although the movie was pulled from the
bookstore shelf, one wonders how and why it got there in the
first place. Perhaps it was just a simple oversight. Or,
perhaps it was just another blatant compromise. This not the
first occurrence of this sort of thing happening at the
Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa Chapel Store. Related articles can
be found on the Internet, other documentation can be found
at the bottom of this article, and I wrote about this sort
of compromise in numerous Calvary Chapel's back in May of
2014. See my article here, Calvary
Chapel
Bookstores - Beyond Accountability?
(300) Self:
Mankind's
Number One Problem by T.A. McMahon, 3/4/15 Views about �self� today are confusing at least. The world
has a number of them. All teach the importance of one�s
having a positive regard for one�s self. The Bible, on the
other hand, has nothing good to say about self.
Nevertheless, the church, particularly in the last one
hundred years, has increasingly reflected what the world
preaches rather than what the Scriptures teach. As Dave Hunt
reminds us, �Although we cannot define self any more than we
can define soul or being or beauty, we can clearly see where
self was first manifested, how it happened, and the eternal
result. We can also see that self not only defines one
person as distinct from all others, but it also defines man
as distinct from God. What the Bible seems to mean by self
is man cut off from God, acting and possessing
independently� (Hunt, Beyond Seduction [Eugene, Oregon:
Harvest House Publishers] 153).
(301) Spiritual
Warfare
Part 6 - The Misguided Aims of the Counterfeit "Church"by
Berit Kjos - January, 2012 Almost two millennia ago, Jesus called His Church to follow
Him, treasure His Word and spread His gospel. Countless
thousands did. By faith, they faced torture and persecution,
hatred and death. Yet they rejoiced, for they knew they were
sharing the life and suffering of Jesus! His eternal
Kingdom was far more precious to them than any earthly
treasure.
(302) Ex-Mars
Hill
pastor Mark Driscoll returns to evangelical orbit
by Joel Connelly, 3/14/15 Controversial ex-Mars Hill Church senior pastor Mark
Driscoll will resurface at Hillsong 2015, two summer
conferences in Sydney, Australia and London sponsored by an
Australian-based, multi-city mega church. Joined by his
wife, Grace, Driscoll will not be in the pulpit but in the
interview chair before an audience expected to number in the
thousands. Brian Houston, Hillsong Church senior pastor,
delivered a statement Thursday night to Warren Throckmorton,
a Pennsylvania college professor who followed Mars Hill�s
2014 meltdown for the Patheos website. Said Houston:
�Well in advance of his resignation as senior pastor at
Seattle-based Mars Hill Church, we invited Mark Driscoll to
be one of our speakers this summer. �Rather than having Mark
preach or teach, I am excited about interviewing Mark and
Grace from our main platform during our Hillsong Conference
2015.
(303) Beyond
Seduction
- Does a Positive Self-Image Make You a Better Person?
by Dave Hunt & T.A. McMahon, 3/21/15 Our topic for discussion in this segment of our program is,
and has been for the last few weeks, what the Bible has to
say about self in contrast to teachings about self promoted
in the world, and, to a large degree, in professing
Christianity. Self is the solution to all humanity�s
problems according to the so-called wisdom of psychology. It
is the key to fulfilling human potential - that without a
good self-image or loving one�s self adequately, humans will
never improve their status or situation in life. On the
other hand, the Bible says that self is mankind�s problem,
and gives a prophetic warning about it in 2 Timothy:3:1This
know also, that in the last days perilous times shall
come.,2: �This know also, that in the last days perilous
times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own
selves�.� That says it pretty clearly, doesn�t it, Dave? I
think anybody could look around and see that�s where we are
today. Dave: On the other hand, Tom, a person could say,
�Well, haven�t human beings always been narcissistic lovers
of self?� So, yes, that is true, but today it�s gone beyond
that. It�s no longer looked upon as wrong, but it�s a
virtue.
(305) Number
of
Americans Who Say They Have No Religion Hits Record High,
Survey Findsat Understand The Times, 3/26/15
New data analysis on the 2014 General Social Survey
conducted by NORC and the University of Chicago has found
that although Americans are abandoning specific religions at
record high numbers, the rate of those who said they believe
in God has remained steady. The Associated Press identified
it as one of the major findings of the survey, which asked a
number of wide-ranging questions of the American public. The
data found that back in 1972, only 5 percent of respondents
said that they have no religion, but by 2014, 21 percent
said the same, which is a record high.
(306) 1
in 4 Americans Don't Believe in God; Lack of Trust in
Local Churches Cited as a Reason Why Adults Are Leaving
the Faith at Understand The Times, 3/28/15 Barna Group has released its 2015 study on the state of
atheism in America, and has revealed that one in four
unchurched adults in the country now identify as atheists or
agnostics. The study also found that rejection of the Bible
and lack of trust in the church are two main reasons why
people are turning away from faith. The study was focused on
those who have not attended church within the past six
months, and found that the majority of such people identify
as non-practicing Christians. One in four, or 25 percent,
however, were classed as skeptics, which Barna defines as
people who "either do not believe God exists (atheists) or
are not sure God exists, but are open to the possibility
(agnostics)." Of that number, nearly one-third said that
they have never attended a Christian church service in their
lives. Barna found that the three main reasons people decide
not to believe in God stem from rejection of the Bible; lack
of trust in the local church; and the "cultural
reinforcement of a secular worldview."
(308) Most
Americans
now say Jesus actually a sinner at Understand The
Times, 4/8/15 Despite more than nine out of 10 Americans agreeing Jesus
was a historical figure, what they believe about Him
diverges widely, according to a newly released survey from
the Barna Research Group, a nonprofit organization that has
been analyzing cultural trends related to religious belief
since 1984.
(309) Report:
Christianity Most Persecuted Faith Worldwide at
Crossroad, 4/10/15 Christians continue to be the most persecuted faith, though
the gap has dropped over time. In 2007 Christians were
penalized or harassed in various ways in 107 countries. That
peaked at 111 in 2010, dropped and then rose again to 110 in
2012, and dropped to 102 in 2013. Muslims were mistreated in
the second most number of countries. They were at 96 in
2007, peaked at 109 in 2012, and dropped to 99 in 2013. Jews
suffered in 51 nations in 2007 and have steadily increased,
with a large jump from 71 in 2012 to 77 in 2013. Persecution
of others stood at 38 in 2013; Buddhists were at 12 and
Hindus at 9. The second group facing persecution in more
countries in 2013 than 2012 was folk religions, rising from
26 to 34. What makes Jewish persecution numbers so striking
and frightening is that Jews make up just .2 percent of the
world�s population.
(310) "Positive
Psychology"
and the Armyat The Berean Call, 4/23/15 Army morale low despite 6-year, $287M optimism program
[Excerpts] More than half of some 770,000 soldiers are
pessimistic about their future in the military and nearly as
many are unhappy in their jobs, despite a six-year, $287
million campaign to make troops more optimistic and
resilient, findings obtained by USA TODAY show. [TBC:
Dave Hunt noted in the November 1992 newsletter, "
Psychology seeks to 'understand' how and why we think and
act as we do. Such an approach would help repair an engine
but not a person. We are not programmed robots.....Self had
its awful birth when Adam and Eve willfully acted
independently of God. That self, said Christ, must be denied
(Mat:16:24-26) It is not that man must cease to exist as an
individual with emotions, intellect and will. No, he
willingly allows God to fulfill through him the purpose for
his existence. Jesus, the perfect Man, said, 'I can of mine
own self do nothing...I seek not mine own will, but the will
of the Father which hath sent me' ( Jn:5:30I can of mine own
self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is
just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the
Father which hath sent me.). Only through denying self can
we enter into this relationship with the Father which Christ
enjoyed and begin to experience the life He has for us. May
this be our passion and joy. "]
(311) Philip Powell of
Christian Wintness Ministries has gone to be with the Lord
by CWM, 4/26/15 It is with blessed Hope I write this morning, to let you
know that your friend and fellow pastor, Philip Lewis Powell
has escaped his tent and has met with His Saviour over on
the other Shore. At 3:42am Brisbane Australia, this Lord's
Day, Sunday the 26th of April 2015, the call was given and
Philip answered.
(312) Unrepentant
Mark
Driscoll back on speaking circuit - forgives those who
'attacked' him by Warren Throckmorton,
5/6/15 UPDATE: For video of the end of Driscoll�s talk, scroll to
the bottom. Here is an account from someone who was in
attendance. So far, from the accounts I have seen, it
appears that Driscoll focused on how he has forgiven those
who he believes wronged him.
(313) Why
Impostors
Love the Church by Russell Moore, 5/8/15 Recently I read a book that kept me awake a couple of
nights. It was about �Clark Rockefeller,� and the scare
quotes are important. The man was neither �Clark� nor
�Rockefeller.� He was a German immigrant who crafted an
identity as an heir of one of America�s wealthiest
dynasties. He married, fathered a child, and was involved in
fraud, theft, and maybe even murder. And no one ever knew,
until the very end. What made me squirm was that fact that
the fake Rockefeller�s inroad to all his deception were
churches and relationships, particularly with women. He
would make the connections he needed in local congregations,
and he would charm the women there. At the same time, he
would parasitically imitate the men, watching and mirroring
back to them their convictions and opinions, even the
inflections of their voices. But, behind all of that, there
was nothing real but a predatory appetite.
(314) Biblical
versus
Cultural Christianity by Berit Kjos, 5/10/15
This chart is an attempt to answer those who judge
Christians by the atrocities committed in the name of
"Christianity" through the ages -- including our own times.
Those wars, persecutions, and cruelties had little to do
with Biblical Christianity. They had everything to do with
man's greedy, power-hungry human nature which seeks its own
ways rather than God's. The ungodly expressions of our human
nature may change from culture to culture, but the result is
usually the same: the people imagine a god that fits their
new cultural wants and values, and they learn to see this
distortion of Christianity as the true church. Biblical
Christianity means being joined to Jesus Christ through
faith in what He did for us at the cross, then allowing Him
to live His life through us, so that others might know Him
and see His love. (That love may include sharing His
warnings as well as His promises with those in need.) The
established Church, like Old Testament Israel, has always
tended to drift away from its devotion to God and become
just other institutions, subject to the same human impulses
and painful consequences as the rest of the world. Please
don�t blame human evils on a "straw-man" or a convenient
cultural distortion of Christianity. Consider some of the
differences between Biblical faith and today's cultural
deviations.
(315) The
Gospel
Of Self by Roger Oakland, 5/11/15 A brief examination of the books available in the
psychology section of any local book store will confirm the
fact that "self-empowerment" is being promoted as a key to
the future survival of mankind. There are countless books
published centering on the "self." Books on
"self-awareness," "self-determination," "self-care,"
"self-acceptance," and of course, "self-esteem". Without a
doubt we have become the "self-generation". As well, there
are also numerous "human potential" workshops, seminars and
weekend retreats offering individuals a personal pathway to
unfoldment, peace, power and prosperity: "You can be greater
than you think," or "visualize your dreams into reality," or
you can "name it and claim it." Also, therapies and
techniques are being popularized that will help you discover
how to create personal power and positive direction for your
life. In general, the gospel of "self" proclaims: "You
deserve it. Don't worry about what others think. If it feels
good, it�s OK."
(316) WorldNetDaily
Identifies
Agenda by Evangelical Leaders to Marginalize Discerning
Whistleblowers by Jim Fletcher, 5/11/15 "The Internets� have given everyone a voice today.
Obviously, that�s both good and bad. Computer technology has
really leveled the playing field, so the classic �writer
living in his parents� basement� can have a platform,
mostly, like a high-profile New York writer. . . . One gets
the feeling, though, that some of the high-profile folks
resent the heck out of all this. Case in point would be many
of what I�d call evangelical elites in America. These are
the famous celebrity pastors, ministry heads and media types
who have placed the mantle of leadership on themselves (for
the most part). What they detest is anyone questioning them
or their methods. . . . It�s well documented that Rick
Warren has a burr under his saddleback over those pesky
�discernment folks� who regularly point out the
easily-documented flaws in his �purpose-driven� agenda.
�Pastor Rick�s� association with New Age thinkers is part of
the public record (although, let�s be honest, the majority
of evangelicals in the pews will never care about any of
this, only that they can participate in a PDL �bible study,�
eat finger foods and go home feeling good about themselves).
When a researcher/writer like Warren B. Smith exposes Rick
Warren�s troubling network, the (still Southern Baptist)
pastor sometimes lashes out. Who can forget his almost
comical split response a few years ago on Twitter, when one
day he offered that one should be gracious when dealing with
those who disagree with one�s viewpoint. A few days later,
he urged his many followers on Twitter to �un-follow
negative twits.� It would be funny if it weren�t so
grotesque.
(317) Calvary
Chapel
Costa Mesa Pastor, Brian Brodersen, Says Sometimes It�s OK
to Attend a Homosexual Wedding at Lighthouse
Trails, 5/31/15 On Friday, a long-time Lighthouse Trails reader contacted
our office regarding the following situation. The person who
called had attended Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa for several
years but has not been attending for some time. According to
an article titled �Can I Attend My LGBT Friend�s Wedding?�
written by Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa�s senior pastor Brian
Brodersen, it is sometimes OK to attend a LTGB (Lesbian,
Transgender, Gay, Bisexual) wedding. He says it�s not OK to
attend the wedding if the two people getting �married�
proclaim to be believers in Christ, but if they don�t claim
to be believers then it may be OK.
(318) Christian
Booksellers�
Implosion by Jim Fletcher, 6/6/15 What was once a fine idea � the first five minutes someone
had it 60 years ago � has become one of those classic scenes
you want to look away from, but can�t. I�m speaking of the
slow destruction of the American Christian book industry.
From scandalous books offered in Christian bookstores, to
the recent bankruptcy of Family Christian Stores, the whole
affair reeks of mismanagement and greed.
(319) From
the
Synagogue To the Saviour by Doctor Max L.
Rossvally (1828-1892) Having been frequently asked whether all the details of
this story are strictly true, I take this opportunity of
stating that every incident occurred exactly as related.�
MLR
(320) Government
Crusade
Against Churches Begins With Removal Of Non-Profit Status
by Ben Shapiro, 7/7/15 In the aftermath of the Supreme Court decision mandating
that states reward same-sex marriages throughout the nation,
churches across the country prepare for the inevitable
assault on their tax-exempt statuses.
(321) Making
God�s
People Trust in a Lie� by Pastor Bill Randles,
7/24/15 It is happening all over again. In the church, as in the
last days of Judah, immediately preceding the devastation of
the Babylonian captivity and the destruction of the temple,
Christians are being inoculated to
conviction and preparedness by the soothing Words of false
prophets like Hananiah.
(322) The
Road
to Serfdom: Chapter 11: The End of Truth by F. A.
Hayek (First published in 1944) "The most effective way of making everybody serve the
single system of ends toward which the social plan is
directed is to make everybody believe in those ends. To make
a totalitarian system function efficiently, it is not enough
that everybody should be forced to work for the same ends.
It is essential that the people should come to regard them
as their own ends."[p.171]
(323) The
Persecution
Of Christians Is Intensifying As Anti-Christian Hatred
Sweeps The Entire World at Understand The Times,
8/5/15 There is very little that the entire world seems to agree
upon, but there is one very frightening trend that is now
taking hold literally all over the globe. A passionate
hatred of Christianity is sweeping across the planet, and
very few global leaders have been willing to step forward
and speak out against this rising persecution of Christians.
In many parts of the Middle East, Africa and Asia, believers
are being relentlessly attacked by extremists, churches are
being destroyed, and laws are being passed to try to prevent
the spread of the Christian faith. In some areas, the
violence has become so extreme that Christians knowingly
risk their own lives just to go to church services each
week. Would you risk your life to go to church? In North
America and Europe, the persecution is often more subtle.
Even though violent attacks are still fairly rare, Christian
beliefs are being undermined by new laws, comedians and
television shows regularly mock the Christian faith, and
many employers will immediately mentally disqualify a
potential candidate for a job if they discover that an
individual is a Bible-believing Christian. Sadly, this is
just the beginning. In the years ahead, those that choose to
be followers of Jesus Christ will face even greater
persecution than we have seen already.
(324) Humans
Pretending
To Be God by Roger Oakland, 8/14/15 Scientists worldwide are creating bizarre human-animal
hybrids that could wreak havoc on society. In the past ten
years alone, unforgettable advances in the field of genetic
modifications have left researchers and on-lookers stunned.
To give a concrete example, scientists have made mice with
an artificial human chromosome �in every cell of their
bodies�. Such an act is being praised as a �breakthrough�
which may lead to different cures for a wide scope of
disease. . . University of Wisconsin researchers have had
much success by transferring cells from human embryos into
the brains of mice. These very cells began to grow, and in
time made the mice more intelligent. While this may sound
bizarre to some, the fact mankind is tinkering with life
comes as no surprise to those who have read the Bible. The
Bible states that God is the creator of all life. In the
beginning, all life was created perfect (Genesis 1:26). The
Bible also clarifies that God has an adversary�Satan�who
hates God and His creation. Satan�s goal from the beginning
has been to destroy or contaminate the original creation.
(325) Former
Southern
Baptist Church to Allow Gay and Transgender Ordination,
Same-Sex Marriage by The Gospel Herald,
8/16/15 A historic, former Southern Baptist Church has adopted a
new non-discrimination policy which will allow it to perform
same-sex weddings and employ openly gay and transgender
individuals without telling them their lifestyles violate
Biblical mandates.
(326) Archaeologists
Uncover
Ancient City of Gath, Home to Goliath the Giant at
The Berean Call, 8/17/15 Archaeologists in a Palestinian city in Israel have
uncovered the ruins of a city that was once home to Goliath
the giant. The archaeologists have unearthed a huge gate and
a fortified wall in the modern-day city of Tell es-Safi.
They believe the gate and wall to be part of "the lower city
of Gath,� a Philistine metropolis of the ancient world,
according to Christian Today.
(327) The
"I AM" Movement by Mike Oppenheimer, 8/24/15
The �I AM� society was founded by Guy W. Ballard
(1878-1939) and his wife, Edna W. Ballard (1886-1971). After
his serving in the army during World War I, he superintended
his uncle's lead mine in Tucson, Arizona. His wife Edna was
an accomplished concert harpist, and like her husband also
had an interest in metaphysics and the occult. After three
years of marriage in 1916 their son Donald was born. Guy
Ballard was an ardent reader of theosophical/occult
literature, had heard the reports of strange occult events
that had occurred at Mt. Shasta. Guy Ballard was a mining
engineer in 1929. Upon completion of a job in the West had
decided to visit Mt. Shasta, California. Occultists believed
the mountain is the home of a lost race of mystic adepts
from Atlantis who live inside. Ballard was a student of
occult metaphysics and was captivated with the stories about
Shasta. He decided to visit the mountain to investigate the
rumor that a group of Divine Men called the Brotherhood of
Mt. Shasta were to be found there. This became the turning
point in the Ballard�s lives. Read The
"I AM" Movement - Part 1 The Occult ascended masters
teaching to Guy Ballard & The
�I AM� Movement - Part 2 history and teaching.
(328) Can
I
Attend My LGBT Friend�s Wedding? with commentary
by Jacob Prasch, 8/27/15 Please read for yourself. Brian Broderson�s position on
Same Sex Weddings. Need anyone say more? How convoluted,
pseudo-scriptural, and compromised can someone�s twisted
reasoning become; much less that of a supposed leader?
Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa is spiritually, doctrinally, and
morally dead. Somebody get a shovel and bury the corpse .
Invite Rick Warren to deliver the graveside eulogy. Just
bury it next to Chuck�s corpse. It died with him. Jacob
Prasch.
(329) Do�s
and
Don�ts of Witnessing to Cults by Chris Lawson,
8/28/15 Practical tips on sharing with the cultist at your door.
Various topics covered or mentioned: �Sanctify the Lord God
in your heart. �Humility, compassion, love and truth versus
arrogance, pride and strife. �Which �Jesus� are you
proclaiming - the biblical Jesus or a counterfeit
Jesus/false Christ? �Understanding Christian apologetics and
defending the Christian faith. �What is a cult and how do we
define cultism? �Confronting bad theology versus attacking
people and their character. �Defending the truth, speaking
truth, and giving biblical answers. �Communicating who Jesus
Christ really is. �Studying to �show yourself approved.�
�What exactly is �another Jesus�? �Weapons of righteousness,
Christian character, and individual giftedness in the Lord.
�The Christian warfare - understanding the enemy and our
victory in Christ. �The cultists "experience" and emotions
versus true biblical signs and wonders. �Cultists have been
trained and/or inoculated against the historic Christian
faith. �Biblical terminology in contradistinction to
destructive cultic redefinitions. �Sample definition
(�atonement�) and sample heresy (�baptismal regeneration�).
�Important things to remember when speaking with people.
�Practical �do�s� and �don�ts� when sharing with cultists.
Scriptures: 1 Peter 3:15; John 14:6-7; John 3:16; 2 2
Timothy 2:15; Corinthians 11:3-4; 2 Corinthians 4:4;
Galatians 5:22; Revelation 20:2; Jude 3,17,20-23; Isaiah
59:1; Mark 4:1-20; Isaiah 55:10-11; Colossians 4:5; 1
Corinthians 9:3; Philippians 1:7; 2 Timothy 4:16; Zechariah
4:6.
(330) Not
with
a bang, but a whimper�The Islamic Refugee Trojan Horse
by Bill Randles, 9/11/15 This is the way the world ends, This is the way the world
ends, This is the way the world ends, Not with a bang but a
whimper. TS Eliot, The Hollow Men To any thinking person,
the spectacle of hundreds of thousands of �refugees� from
Africa, and the horrors of the Syrian civil war, spilling
out onto the shores of Italy, and forcing themselves over
the barriers erected in Hungary is both heartbreaking and
ominous. Who wouldn�t be moved at the plight of frightened
women and children packed into rust ships, desperate to get
away from the wanton slaughter occurring in their Syrian
homeland? The apocalyptic warfare taking place in Syria
spares neither the elderly, the weak, women nor children.
Mind numbing atrocities are being committed on both
�sides�of the conflict. (Ishmael cannot find peace, He even
fights His brothers). Photos of precious children washed up
on the shores, having drowned en-route to European shores
tear at the western heart, which had once been softened by
centuries of Christian teaching. But a closer examination
reveals troubling details. Eyewitnesses report that the vast
majority of those seeking asylum are single males of
military age. These �poor souls� are already rioting,
and demanding their own food, upon arrival at their generous
host countries . Whoever heard of a houseguest demanding his
own food be served him at the expense of the host?
(331) Liberty
University
Welcomes Socialist Bernie Sanders to Address Student Body:
�We Have Same Goals� by Heather Clark, Christian
News Network, 9/16/15 Liberty University is listed among the colleges in the
Lighthouse Trails contemplative colleges list. It is said to
be the largest Christian college in the world. As Lighthouse
Trails has contended for many years, when a school starts
going down the contemplative path, views on morality,
politics, and spiritual matters begin to change, eventually
drastically.
(332) 'Mindfulness'
meditation
fad popular with celebrities can make you dream up false
memories at The Berean Call, 9/21/15 TBC: From the April 2006 newsletter: Psychotherapy is an
exercise in futility unless innate goodness resides within
man at his very core. Here�s why: if man has an evil nature,
as the Bible teaches, then it�s impossible for him to change
himself. In other words, if I�m innately evil, I will always
be evil because there is nothing within me to enable me to
change . But if I�m good within but am experiencing problems
of living, then through various psychological methods or
techniques, I should be able to tap into, utilize, or
realize that goodness and thus remedy the adversities I
experience. All the psychotherapeutic selfisms, from
self-love to self-esteem to self-image to self-actualization
to self-realization�and ultimately to self-deification�are
predicated upon the innate goodness of one�s nature.]
(333) The
Hebrew Prophets named in the Qur'an by Mike
Oppenheimer, 10/6/15 Most Muslims have not read the Bible carefully so they do
not know what it actually says about God, Mankind, or the
prophets. They know what their religion tells them, which is
more often contradictory to the Bible.
(334) Obama:
Christians
Threaten Nation by Bryan Fischer, AFA,
10/18/15 If you have ever wondered whether President Obama has an
abiding hostility to people of Christian faith, wonder no
more. He believes we are a threat to national security. If
you are a sincerely devoted follower of Jesus Christ, your
president believes you are a potential domestic
terrorist.
(335) Calvary
Chapel
Pastor Greg Laurie Posts Photo Standing with New Age
Advocate Roma Downey by Lighthouse Trails,
10/29/15 A Lighthouse Trails reader sent this photo (see below) to
us today. It is a picture of Calvary Chapel pastor Greg
Laurie, standing with Roma Downey and Mark Burnett and was
posted on Greg Laurie�s Facebook page along with this
caption by Downey: "So nice spending time with friends. Mark
and I had a lovely lunch today with Greg and Cathe Laurie
#harvestoc" Such a photo only heightens concerns as to the
direction Greg Laurie (one of Calvary Chapel�s most popular
pastors) is taking the church.
(336) Oprah�s
Latest
Attempt to Introduce New Age Spirituality to Evangelical
Church at Lighthouse Trails, 10/30/15 In light of your coverage regarding the Parliament of the
World�s Religions, which took place Oct.15-19 in Salt Lake
City, UT, it has been brought to my attention that Oprah�s
�Belief� (her 7-episode television series) was shown some
time during the conference, according to a post-conference
e-mail from Imam Abdul Majik Mujahid, Board Chair of the
Parliament of the World Religions. Oprah�s �Belief�
television series (7 episodes) premiered Oct.18 on OWN
Network and is Oprah�s latest attempt to introduce New Age
Spirituality and interfaith spirituality to the evangelical
church.
(337) United
Methodist
and Episcopalian Church Clergy Lead Prayer Rally to
�Bless� Abortion Clinic at The Berean Call,
11/3/15 In Ohio, United Methodist Church pastor, Reverend Laura
Young, says she believes pro-life protesters in front of
Planned Parenthood and other abortion facilities have
�misguided faith.� In fact, she thinks these clinics should
be blessed, which is why she went out to an abortion
facility called Preterm on October 8th in Cleveland. In
2014, Preterm was involved in the abortion-related death of
Lakisha Wilson. Young explained her acceptance of abortion
like this: �Christianity, like most faiths, is founded on
love. Watching protesters shouting judgment and hate based
on what they call religion is horrible. Is that loving God?
Is that loving your neighbor as yourself?�
(338) Godlessness
is
Reaching Epidemic Proportions by Howard Green,
11/23/15 Imagine the world with no rules, accountability, or
consequences for evil actions? This image is one where
people take a life with no remorse. It is a place where life
savings are greedily stolen, women and children are
abandoned, and even basic respect that was afforded to a
mother and father is absent. This place of our worst
imaginings is one fraught with lawless, heartless, and
treacherous people who are concerned with no one but
themselves. That would be a world where the concept of love
is foreign, while brutality, slander, and darkness become
the norm. This is not a description of total societal,
economic, or geopolitical breakdown sometime in the distant
future. It is an accurate analysis of condition of our world
at this moment. This is how a majority of people are living
life. These are the direct results of one fact: Godlessness
is reaching epidemic proportions.
(339) Praising
God
Through it All by Warren B. Smith, 11/26/15
Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the
LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us,
and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of
his pasture. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and
into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless
his name. For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting;
and his truth endureth to all generations. (Psalm 100:1-5)
(340) A
Difficult Response to Paul Wilkinson by Jacob
Prasch, 11/27/15 It has been a painful ordeal for Moriel and for myself
(Jacob Prasch) personally to have, without warning, been
publicly slandered and defamed on YouTube and elsewhere on
the Internet by Paul Wilkinson as "not loving Jesus Christ",
as "teaching heresy", and even as having gone into some
brand of replacement theology simply because I and others do
not agree with his particular view of the timing of the
rapture.
(341) The
Fall
and Rise of Human Violence: Why crime plunged in the 17th
century but is rising again in the 21st by Berit
Kjos - Updated December 17, 2012 As history repeats itself, the civilized world is
regressing. Paganism, promiscuity, deception and violent
crime are on the rise, while the growing hatred for Biblical
Christianity is fanned by a global media and entertainment
industry that wants nothing more than the death of Biblical
Truth and morality.
(342) Archaeologists
uncover
King Hezekiah seal by Biblical Archeology,
12/6/15 Archaeologists discovered the impression of a seal that
bears the name of King Hezekiah and was found during recent
excavations by Jerusalem.
(343) Syrian
Refugees:
Is There A Biblical Response? by Albert James
Dager, 12/17/15 God has blinded the eyes and dulled the minds of the
leaders in the West. Even those who wish to resist the
possibility of violent jihadists coming into the U.S. by
imbedding themselves among the refugees are blind. While
proclaiming that most Muslims are peaceful, they are
ignoring the fact that virtually all Muslims believe their
destiny is to conquer the world. Violent jihad is merely one
means; peaceful jihad through immigration and procreation is
as much, or more, a threat to our culture than violent
jihad. This invasion of the West is part of God�s judgment upon
the nations that have had the advantage of the Gospel for
the past millennium and beyond, yet have rejected God�s
righteousness. But God�s will shall be done, regardless of
who wins the next election. It may be just a matter of how
soon He completes His judgment.
(344) Undertaker,
Come
Quickly: Neo Evan Christianis Has Died by Orell
Steinkamp, 12/17/15 The Neo (New) Evangelical Christian experiment has failed.
It reminds me of the Titanic. This unsinkable ship left
England amid cheers and high festivity. For many it
represented the latest in human achievement. But, alas! It
was not to be. On the high seas amid the turbulence of the
seas and surrounding icebergs its underwater hull was ripped
open and seawater was pouring in. But on board gala and
gaity was in full swing. Only a few noticed a minor listing
of the mighty ship. But the band played on even while the
water compartments were taking on water from the sea. The
Neo-Evangelical Gospel ship was also launched with great
promise. This was to be the beginning of prominence for the
American and International Evangelical movement. They openly
wanted a recognition by the religious academia and to
dialogue with culture. In no time Neo-Evangelicalism was
birthed, led by Harold Ockenga, Carl Henry, Billy Graham and
the Fuller Seminary personnel. In due time Christianity
Today became its publishing oracle and Carl Henry its
editor. The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE)
became its constituency and Fuller seminary its training
ground.[2]
(345) Walking
in
His Footsteps: A Special Christmas Message by
Author uknown 1881 �My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow
Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never
perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand."
John 10:27-28
(346) Preparing
for
Persecution by Berit Kjos, 1/2/16 Jesus described the normal Christian life: "If they have
persecuted Me, they will also persecute you..." He told His
disciples, "because they know not Him that sent me." John
15:20-21 We need to take His warning to heart, count the
cost of discipleship, and pray that our Shepherd prepare us
for inevitable battles ahead. Prayerfully consider these
steps -- as a family or as an individual believer:
Pray for His guidance.
Learn from those who suffered persecution because of
their faith. (See "victory")
Memorize His Word, the victorious "Sword of the
Spirit" in every battle we face. (See Clothed with Truth)
Memorize hymns and songs that enable you to keep
praising Him and affirming His victory.
Silently practice singing to Him in the midst of all
kinds of distractions.
Practice giving thanks in all circumstances.
By His wonderful grace, "love your enemies, bless
those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and
pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you."
Matthew 5:44-45
(347) The
Five Pillars of Islam: A Christian�s Perspective by
Gary F. Zeolla, 1/3/16 The Five Pillars of Islam bring out many differences between
the god of Islam and the God of the Bible and the means of
approach thereto. The Five Pillars also bring out differences
between Islamic and Christian attitudes toward religious
practices.
(348) The
Fall
and Rise of Human Violence: Why crime plunged in the 17th
century but is rising again in the 21st by Berit
Kjos, 1/13/16 As history repeats itself, the civilized world is
regressing. Paganism, promiscuity, deception and violent
crime are on the rise, while the growing hatred for Biblical
Christianity is fanned by a global media and entertainment
industry that wants nothing more than the death of Biblical
Truth and morality.
(349) Secret
Societies
Exposed: Inside the Hidden World of Secret Societies
at Spiritual Research Network, 1/19/16 The following quotes and content on this webpage come
directly from Evangelical Truth, a ministry committed to
exposing the lies and deception of secret societies,
regardless of the consequences: "This site provides an
unprecedented insight into the mystical domain of secret
societies throughout the world. It looks at their hidden
secret society degrees, rituals, secrets and esoteric
teaching. It examines, in detail, Freemasonry, which is
widely accepted as the mother of most of our modern-day
secret society organizations. The site looks at the many
so-called Protestant secret societies, which have been
birthed by Freemasonry, like the Orange Order, the
Independent Loyal Orange Institution and the Royal Black
Institution and compares, contrasts and examines the
similarities between these neo-Masonic structures and their
ritualistic degrees. For anyone interested in the various
Secret societies of the world this site will be a valuable
resource. It essentially exposes the secret societies inside
secrets. This site creates a unique facility for those both
on the inside and outside of the many secret societies of
the world who desire to examine otherwise hard-to-obtain
internal material relating to the many esoteric secret
societies throughout the world. This informative in-depth
resource centre discloses startling evidence about the
origins, structures, secrets, degrees and rituals of bodies
which have hitherto been concealed from the public gaze.
This website will endeavour to examine in an open objective
manner the internal workings of these secret societies, and
establish their status in relation to the Christian faith
and the teaching of the Bible (a book these secret societies
so frequently employ)."
(350) Discernment
as
Free Speech: A Brief Study by Sarah Leslie,
1/28/16 Peggy Noonan wrote in her weekly Wall Street Journal column
this past December 4th her concerns that "The censorship
movement is radical. It is starting to make everyone in the
country feel harassed and anxious. It is odd to see
candidates miss a rising issue that is giving pause to so
many Americans. I pray someone will address it. Literally, I
just did. This Herescope post is an answer to her prayers.
It may be an unexpected answer and a politically incorrect
answer, but nevertheless it is a response. It represents an
exercise in the right of free speech and freedom of
religion.
(351) Once
in
Cult, Student Sees Importance of Knowing Theology
at The Berean Call, 2/4/16 Is it important for a Christian to study biblical doctrine
or should all Christians merely love Jesus and leave
theology to trained theologians? Ask David Bell, who may be
Exhibit A in the case for the doctrinal training of all
Christians....less than a decade ago he was a pastor in the
Church of God International, which branched off from the
Worldwide Church of God in 1978.
(352) Israel:
Archaeologists
Uncover Inscriptions in Jesus� Language at The
Berean Call, 2/8/16 Archaeologists in Israel have uncovered ancient epitaphs in
both Greek and Aramaic that date back to the first century.
[It was reported] that the inscriptions were found in a
cemetery that is located in the ancient Galilean capital
city of Zippori. "Zippori was the first capital of Galilee
from the time of the Hasmonean dynasty until the
establishment of Tiberias in the first century CE. The city
continued to be central and important later on," researchers
explained in a press release announcing the discovery. Four
words which are part of the inscriptions were thus far able
to be decoded. One word, in Greek, means �Jose,� a common
Jewish name during the period, the three other words are
Aramaic for �the Tiberian,� �forever,� and �rabbi.� Motti
Aviam of the Kinneret Institute for Galilean Archaeology
stated that �the Tiberian� could refer to the hometown of
the deceased, Tiberias. The word �forever� denotes that the
deceased�s burial place will always belong to him. Scholars
are unsure precisely what the word �rabbi� meant at the time
of its inscription. This discovery is important because it
proves the existence of a Jewish community in the region
from ancient times--something which the Palestinian
Authority continually denies. �The Jewish life in the city
was rich and diverse as indicated by the numerous ritual
baths (miqwe'ot) discovered in the excavation; while at the
same time the influence of Roman culture was also quite
evident as reflected in the design of the town with its
paved streets, colonnaded main roads, theater and
bathhouses. The wealth of inscriptions from the cemeteries
attests to the strong Jewish presence and the city's social
elite in the late Roman period," researchers concluded.
(Veronica Neffinger, �Israel: Archaeologists Uncover
Inscriptions in Jesus� Language,� Christian Headlines.com ,
January 29, 2016)
(353) Chronology
of
Persecution: Plots to kill Jews & Christians &
Rule an Islamic World by Crossroads, 2/9/16
Since the beginning of time, ambitious change-agents have
plotted together to fuel revolutions and transform their
world. Minor or major conspiracies have usually played an
important part in fueling radical social change. Dismissing
such secret plots as mere "conspiracy theories" has served
powerful leaders well -- at least for a while. But those who
know God see a larger picture. While human nature doesn't
change, our God still reigns! That's why the author of Psalm
2 wondered why power-hungry rulers would even try to plot
against God and His sovereign ways: "Why do the nations
rage, and the people plot [conspire] a vain thing? ... the
rulers take counsel together... saying, 'Let us break Their
bonds in pieces...'" Psalm 2:1-3 Like many leaders today,
Hitler knew how to use every crisis as an opportunity to
grab more power. So did his anti-Semitic Muslim partners
during Word War 2: Mohammad Haj min al-Husseini, (the Grand
Mufti of Jerusalem) and the rising Muslim Brotherhood. Both
aimed to eradicate Israel and radicalize the Middle East and
North Africa. Their followers have come a long way! Today,
their grand target is America. As we are told in a Muslim
Brotherhood document titled, 'An Explanatory Memorandum on
the General Strategic Goal for the Group in North America,'
"The Ikhwan [Muslim Brotherhood] must understand that their
work in America is a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and
destroying the Western civilization from within and
�sabotaging� its miserable house by their hands and the
hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and God�s
religion is made victorious over all other
religions.�' (Soros-funded "expert" defends Muslim
Brotherhood) For those who trust God, this should be a time
of prayer and preparation for the challenging times ahead.
As the West becomes increasingly hostile toward
Christianity, it's fast forgetting the truths and moral
standards that laid the foundation for Western freedom and
order. Yet, we need not fear, for--"The Lord... will be a
refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And
those who know Your name will put their trust in You." Psalm
9:9-10
(354) Upper
or
Supper Room excerpt from Illustrations for Church
Service by Walter B. Knight, 3/3/16 The early Church prayed in the upper room, the twentieth
century Church cooks in the supper room.
(355) 70%
of
Americans are Christians? Seriously? by Marsha
West, 8/28/15 A recent report indicates that 70% of Americans are
Christians. If this is true, what it says to this writer is
that a whole host of people who profess faith in Jesus
Christ neglect to read the instruction manual that reveals
everything we need to know about the object of our faith.
I'm referring to the Bible. Anyone who takes the time to
read it knows what Jesus taught and how those who claim to
believe in Him must live their lives. Clearly Christians are
not reading the Book. So, isn't it a bit odd that people who
say they believe Christ died for their sins aren't the least
bit curious about who He is and what He taught while He was
here? Jesus spent the better part of three years teaching
his disciples all sorts of things such as what His mission
was (John 1:14-18) and how they were to conduct themselves.
The Lord gave commands, not suggestions. He never said:
"It's not a good idea to murder
someone...lie...cheat...steal...sleep around...commit
adultery...practice homosexual sex...get drunk...use
drugs...have a slew of idols, or anything like that." Nor
did He say: "It would be nice if you'd consider forgiving
those who do you wrong." He never tossed them the "Good
job!" compliment when they exercised discernment. Neither
was Jesus into high-fiving and "atta boys." Whenever these
sorts of things came up in conversation, He said
unequivocally, "Do not"..."You must!" Moreover, He was clear
that in order to be saved people must repent of their sins
and turn away from the sinful life. "If we say we have not
sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us" (1
John 1:10).
(356) Muslims
Slaughter
Over 10,000 Christians and Destroy 13,000 Churches in
Nigeria by Raymond Ibrahim, 3/29/16 "Over 500 Christian villagers were slain in one night." �
Emmanuel Ogebe, Nigerian human rights lawyer, March 2, 2016.
What Christians in Nigeria are experiencing is a live
snapshot of what millions of Christians and other
non-Muslims have experienced since the seventh century, when
Islam "migrated" to their borders: violence, persecution,
enslavement, and the destruction of churches. The Obama
Administration refuses to associate Boko Haram � an
organization that defines itself in purely Islamic terms �
with Islam, just as it refuses to associate the ISIS with
Islam. In all cases, the Obama Administration looks the
other way, while insisting that the jihad is a product of
"inequality," "poverty" and "a lack of opportunity for jobs"
� never of Islamic teaching. Boko Haram, the Nigerian
Islamic extremist group, has killed more people in the name
of jihad than the Islamic State (ISIS), according to the
findings of a new report. Since 2000, when twelve Northern
Nigerian states began implementing or more fully enforcing
Islamic sharia law, "between 9,000 to 11,500 Christians"
have been killed. This is "a conservative estimate."
(357) The
Beckism of Mormonism by Mike Oppenheimer,
3/31/16 Recently Glenn Beck in response to Breitbart addressed what
he says is another Smear Campaign (Mar.25, 2016). Putting
aside the politics and accusations flung from either side I
wanted to address the Mormonism that Beck himself brought up
and his continual denial of the facts of history of his own
religion.
(358) Will
A
Gateway Be Opened When The Arch From The Temple Of Baal Is
Reconstructed In Times Square? at Understand The
Times, 3/31/16 In April, part of the Temple of Baal that stood in Palmyra,
Syria will be reconstructed in Times Square in New York City
and in Trafalgar Square in London. The specific
portion that is being erected in both cases is the
48-foot-tall arch that stood at the entrance to the
temple. The Institute of Digital Archaeology is the
organization behind this effort, and the display of these
two arches is intended to be the highlight of UNESCO�s World
Heritage Week late next month. After seeing my initial
story, one of my readers observed that an arch is really
just a gateway or a portal. In other words, it can
serve as both an entrance and an exit. So could it be
possible that we will be unknowingly setting up a gate or a
portal of some sort in Times Square?
(360) When
God
Calls a Man by Roger Oakland, 4/9/16 When God places a vision in a man�s heart, events happen
God�s way according to God�s will. When man plans things
man�s way without God, events may unfold but they are the
product of manipulation. I have learned this principal the
hard way and it took me many years. Sometimes it takes a few
hard knocks to get a person�s attention. When the truth
finally sinks it is obvious that God can use anyone,
anytime, anywhere.
(361) Victory!
The
Arch From The Temple Of Baal Planned For New York City Has
Been CANCELED at Understand The Times,
4/14/16 The Temple of Baal is NOT coming to Times Square in New
York City next month. This is great news, and it
represents an incredible victory for Christians in the
United States. As you will see below, the New York
Times, Snopes and a whole host of other mainstream news
sources reported last month that everything was on track for
reproductions of the giant 48-foot-tall arch that stood in
front of the Temple of Baal in Palmyra, Syria to be put up
simultaneously in Times Square in New York City and
Trafalgar Square in London during the month of April.
But now that will not be happening. The only arch that
will be going up will be in Trafalgar Square, and it won�t
be the one from the Temple of Baal. Instead, the
Institute for Digital Archaeology has changed plans and will
be putting up a reproduction of the Arch of Triumph which
the Romans originally built in Palmyra and that has nothing
to do with Baal. So why has there been such a dramatic
change in plans?
(362) Do
you
know why Earth Day is April 22? by Kevin DeAnna,
4/22/16 School children, businesses, clergy, politicians and even
the United States military soon will honor the birthday of
Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union. Of course, they
will call it Earth Day. Brian Sussman points out in his
explosive new book, �Eco-Tyranny: How the Left�s Green
Agenda will Dismantle America,� that the first nationwide
Earth Day was held April 22, 1970, the 100th anniversary of
the birth of the communist Bolshevik leader.
(364) �I
Never
Knew You� - Jesus by Roger Oakland, 4/25/16
There is a very sobering portion of the Bible that should
be read by every person who believes they are a faithful
follower of Jesus Christ. Following are the words Jesus
proclaimed on Judgment Day to those who stood before Him.
They had been deceived in the Name of Jesus.
(365) Atheist
Activist
Group Objects to Public School Visits to Ken Ham�s
Creation Museum by Heather Clark, Christian News
Network, 5/3/16 MADISON, Wisc. � A professing atheist activist organization
is expressing its objection to three public schools that
either have already or plan to visit Ken Ham�s Creation
Museum in Kentucky. The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF)
recently sent letters to officials with Brookville High
School in Dayton, Ohio, Jackson Independent School District
in Kentucky, and the Big Beaver Falls School District in
Pennsylvania to urge the cancellation of the trips to
Petersburg. �It is unconstitutional for a public school to
take students on a field trip to a religious venue such as
the Creation Museum, a Christian museum which promotes the
religious doctrine of creationism and lists is mission as
�to point today�s culture back to the authority of Scripture
and proclaim the gospel message,'� the letters read.
(366) Violence,
War,
Deception & Chaos by Crossroad, 5/10/16
Like nature with its storms and seasons, the world around
us keeps changing. In the midst of the spreading corruption,
are we prepared to stand firm in Christ no matter what
happens?
(367) Oswald
Chambers:
Personal Piety Combined With Flawed Theology by
Bob DeWaay, 5/17/16 We need to get back to the type of devotion described in
Acts 2:42 and leave the mystical approach behind, once for
all. We need to believe the promises of God all the while
remembering His mighty acts in history described in the
Bible. The gospel is expressed by objective truth grounded
in history such as described in 1Corinthians 15:1-11. The
Bible means what it says. The Holy Spirit inspired the
writers of the Bible. The readers need to believe what they
said and thus the Holy Spirit speaks.
(368) Study
on Church History compiled by Sandy Simpson,
5/18/16 I want to preface this study of church history by telling
you how I am going to do it. I am going to cover three
areas. First are the dates and brief descriptions of
the genesis of world religions not related to
Christianity. Second are the dates and brief
descriptions of the beginnings of movements that call
themselves �Christian� but are really false Christianity
because they teach against one or more of the core doctrines
of the Church. Lastly I will deal with the dates and
descriptions of the True Church through history to show that
God has always had a faithful remnant.
(369) When
challenges come, what�s Your �Christianity� all about?
by Mike Oppenheimer, 6/17/16 As believers in Jesus we are called to be ministers, to
reconcile people to the Lord bY the Gospel. This can take
time, patience, long suffering. It can be easy to forget
what has initially happened to us when we first believed.
The world can swallow us up in its ways to make us
ineffective. On the other hand, we can be so zealous that
pride can find a place and taint what we do and also make us
ineffective. Not only are we to disciple others but we are
to try and keep each other accountable.
(370) The
School
of Joyful Endurance by Berit Kjos, 6/19/16 Our struggles differ, but God's school of endurance fits
all our needs. And each time we pass its tests, our faith
grows ever stronger and His light of Truth shines brighter
on His pathway for our lives.
(371) Moralistic,
Mythical
and Mysticism Religions at VCY America, Host: Jim
Schneider Guest: Bodie Hodge of Answers in Genesis,
6/23/16 Bodie Hodge is a speaker, author and researcher at Answers
in Genesis and is a member of the editorial review board.
He's been involved with many books and DVD's and is a
regular speaker in the Creation Museum Speaker Series. This
Crosstalk looks at Bodie's book, 'World Religions and Cults:
Moralistic, Mythical and Mysticism Religions' Volume 2. As
Bodie made clear, there's only 2 religions in the
world�God's and not God's. All other religions take man's
ideas to supersede God and his word. So did Bodie appear on
Crosstalk to spew hate against other religions? After all,
'hate' is the word that seems to get thrown around these
days if you even question any other religion. Bodie
responded by saying he wanted to defend God and the
authority of his word. In fact, he believes that when
someone says not to attack other religions, that's an attack
on Christianity. Why? It's because God tells us to demolish
false arguments always keeping in mind that people are not
the enemy. In the first volume, Bodie hit the counterfeits
of Christianity; those belief systems that look, act or are
very similar to Christianity. This would include groups like
the Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons. This new volume looks
at Eastern mysticism religions like Hinduism and Taoism,
where the adherents see everything as being an illusion; all
is spiritual and there's nothing material. Discussion also
included the New Age Movement, paganism, vitality cults,
meditation and Yoga and Sikhism. An interesting element to
the program included mention of the resurgence of Mythology.
This included Germanic/Norse Mythology, Greek Mythology and
Latin American Mythology (sometimes blended with Roman
Catholicism). Bodie noted that for each one of these
philosophies, their ultimate 'god' or creator is impersonal.
God communicated to mankind because we're made in his image
and he is a personal God. That's why we can read a
revelation from God and understand it. Since the god of
Eastern religions is impersonal, communication is
impossible. This means that any of their supposed ultimate
gods cannot reveal anything about that religion to mankind.
So anything that any Eastern religion claims to know about
their religion is purely arbitrary and is simply from the
mind of man.
(372) A
Final Wake Up Call at Understand The Times,
6/25/16 We were musing in a conversation the other day about some
of the issues associated with the difficulties of doctrinal
divergence. Our discussion focused on a certain fellowship
of churches. Like countless others, we were greatly
disturbed by the seemingly steady shift to the slippery
slope of doctrinal relativism that seems to be plaguing many
within this movement at the moment.
(373) Homosexuality,
The
Most Pressing Issue of Our Times by Gary Gilley,
Think On These Things, Volume 21, Issue 6, Nov/Dec 2015
The LGBT agenda has made rapid progress in Western
civilization in the last few decades. In just a few short
years, homosexuality has gone from a disgraceful, sinful
lifestyle which most made every effort to hide, to a
psychological disorder that needed to be cured to a normal
alternative lifestyle, flaunted in public and defiantly
daring any to oppose it. When Bruce Jenner became Caitlyn
and shortly thereafter won the Entertainment and Sports
Programing (ESPN)�s Arthur Ashe Courage Award, it was noted
by some that very little courage was needed at all.
Seemingly, the majority within the sports world and the
American public in general, rallied in support around
Jenner. Those needing courage are the ones who, even in the
most gracious of ways, oppose the LGBT lifestyle and/or
disagree with same-sex marriage. The world has changed so
rapidly that many of us are getting whiplash. The church has
been put in a unique and difficult position by standing for
the truth which has been thoroughly rejected by the
majority. But in darkness light shines best. May the church
not cave to the demands of the many but honor the Lord who
has set them free from the bondage of darkness.
(374) "GOD
CALLS THIS "ICHABOD" California Appeals Court Rules in
Favor of Word for Today Against Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa
& Brian Broderson by James Jacob Prasch,
7/3/16 On the basis of 1 Corinthians 6:4-8 where it states
"it is better to be defrauded" than to take brother to court
and hang the church's soiled linen out in public, it is good
this phony law suit by Brian Broderson & Co. was thrown
out. It is doubly sad, however, that Calvary Chapel could
not have held Brian Broderson and CCCM to account within its
own ranks. Paul Smith and Chuck's family are plainly the
victims. It is a very sad day when a corrupt civil court
system has more moral and ethical integrity than what is
supposed to be The Body of Christ. Had the senior Calvary
pastors stood up and taken responsibility as God's Word
commands (1 Cor. 6:5) and not in so cowardly a fashion
deferred to ecclesiastical politics with its play for money
and power, it would not have come to public scandal like
this.
(375) What
if
we are proven wrong on this issue? by Sandy
Simpson, 7/5/16
What issue am I talking about? Most Bible scholars today
teach that God does not create homosexuals, that there cannot
be a correlation between genetics and homosexuality and that
it is clearly only a choice of lifestyle. I have believed for
many years that they are only partly correct. Although
it is true that God did not create certain people to be
homosexuals and lesbians and that lifestyle is a choice, I
also believe it will be found after more testing that there IS
a genetic predisposition to homosexuality. What if
homosexuality is proven at a later time to have a foundation
in the genetic makeup of a person? Does that make God
responsible to creating homosexuality?
(376) Answers
in
Genesis Noah�s Ark Replica Opens This Week in Kentucky
by Stoyan Zaimov, Christian Post, 7/7/16 The Ark Encounter, the life-sized Noah�s Ark theme-park
attraction, held its official ribbon cutting ceremony on
Tuesday in Grant County, Kentucky, ahead of its grand
opening on Thursday, July 7th, gathering a crowd of 7,000 to
witness the historic event. Ken Ham, president and CEO of
Answers in Genesis and The Creation Museum, told The
Christian Post: �In a world that is becoming increasingly
secularized and biased, it�s time for Christians to do
something of this size and this magnitude.� He told CP that
the Ark stands as a reminder. �To remind the coming
generations of the truth of God�s word. It�s our way of
presenting the truth of God�s Word to the world,� Ham
said.
(377) Guideposts:
Teaching
Little Children to Blaspheme at Lighthouse Trails,
7/15/16 Recently, I was in a hospital waiting room and reluctantly
picked up an issue of Guidepost Magazine. I very seldom read
Guidepost because the long-time publisher, Norman Vincent
Peale, promotes heresy and diabolical religions. He has also
denied the virgin birth and the necessity of being born
again. As I perused the magazine, I landed on an article by
Anna Gentile, a hospital chaplain. The article was about
Guideposts and Gentile�s work with sick children. In the
first paragraph she wrote: �Put your hand on your chest,� I
tell the young patients in the hospital where I work. �Can
you feel your heartbeat?� They nod. �Now, with each beat,
you can say, �I am, I am, I am.�� That prayer, addressed to
the great �I Am,� is at the beginning of the journal in each
Guideposts for Kids Comfort Kit I give out, and I can�t
begin to tell you how much comfort it gives.� � Happy
Birthday, Sparkle, Anna Gentile, Guideposts, July 2016.
(378) See
the
end is getting closer� by Jacob Prasch,
7/21/16 Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an anti-terrorism
law, but for the country�s many churches, the signature
sparked a demand for prayer and fasting. The bill toughens
punishment for acts deemed to be terrorism and for the
organization of �mass unrest,� according to the Los Angeles
Times. It would also introduce prison sentences of up to a
year for those who fail to report such crimes.
(379) 'Queer
Kids
Stuff' Videos Indoctrinate Preschoolers at The
Berean Call, 7/27/16 A new video series is aimed at indoctrinating preschoolers
with the LGBT message - a strategy that one pro-family
activist says is far from new. The series, titled "Queer
Kids Stuff" teaches preschoolers what the terms "gay,"
"bisexual" and "transgender" mean in an attempt to normalize
the LGBT lifestyle with youth at an early age - a tactic
that has repeatedly been used over the years to influence
impressionable children. Advocates of homosexual behavior
admit that they are trying to get to the youngsters before
they hear anything negative about homosexuality.
MassResistance founder and director Brian Camenker expresses
concern that homosexual activists are successfully
manipulating youth at an extremely influential age. "It's
painful to watch what they do because these are such young
kids,� Camenker shared, according to Fox News. �And they are
using such very sophisticated propaganda techniques on these
innocent kids - who are very vulnerable - to get them to
believe all this stuff." He says conservatives and
Christians tend to underestimate just how treacherous the
promoters of these tactics are. "Evil, I think, is not too
strong a word because anybody that would do this with kids -
particularly without parents� knowledge or permission - but
just anybody that would do that to them there's just
something wrong � something very, very wrong," Camenker
contends. Even though no preschool programs have indicated
yet that they will utilize this �queer� series, Camenker
says that it will very difficult to determine when they
actually do. (Kellogg, �'Queer Kids Stuff' videos
indoctrinate preschoolers,� OneNewNow Online, 7/6/16)
(380) Fed
Up
With False Teaching: Calvary Chapel Church Says �So Long�
to the CC Association at Lighthouse Trails,
7/28/16 A Calvary Chapel pastor who warned of false teachings and
apostate movements seeping into the Calvary Chapel
organization has been removed from his regional leadership
position, and is now removing his local congregation out of
the Calvary Chapel Association altogether.Pastor Dwight
Douville of Calvary Chapel Appleton Wisconsin was informed
last month that he was being removed from his position as a
regional leader, a position he�s held for many years. Why?
He says because personal friendships have been put above
doctrinal truth, muddying the waters of what Calvary Chapels
are all about. And because he advocated for maintaining and
staying the course while calling out wolves and yeast
seeping into Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and the organization
as a whole since the death of founder Chuck Smith.
(381) Thousands
Fasting
after Russian President Putin Signs Law Banning Evangelism
at The Berean Call, 8/3/16 Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law [the week
of July 3] a measure punishing any kind of religious
evangelization outside of churches, which some observers
have called one of the most restrictive move in "post-Soviet
history."
(382) Would
You
Be Willing to Lose All for the Sake of Christ? at
Lighthouse Trails, 8/4/16 LTRP Note: Earlier this month Putin, the leader of Russia,
brought into existence a law which prohibits the free
preaching and sharing of the Gospel. Those in violation of
this new law will be issued severe fines. In the 1960s and
1970s, Georgi Vins, a young Baptist pastor in the Soviet
Union, was in a similar situation. By the time it was over,
he spent eight years (starting at the age of 32) in Soviet
prisons. Below is an account of his father�s own persecution
and the years leading up to Georgi�s persecution and
imprisonment for his faith. Christians today in the Western
world should realize that persecution and martyrdom have
been the norm for countless believers in the past centuries
of Christianity and even in much of today�s non-Western
world. The question we have hanging over our heads lately
is, will Western Christians have what it takes to stand for
their faith and even die for their faith? With all the
comforts and freedom Western believers have enjoyed, will
this ease of being a Christian believer help or hinder our
ability to live (or die) for our faith. Suppose a government
threatens to take away your home, your job, and your
comforts if you do not stop standing for the truth of the
Gospel and share it with others, would you be willing to
lose all for the sake of Christ? Yea doubtless, and I count
all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of
Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of
all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win
Christ. (Philippians 3:8)
(383) Twelve
Steps
In The Wrong Direction - A Biblical View of
Codependency and Alcoholics Anonymous by
Gary E. Gilley and M. Kurt Goedelman, 8/7/16 A number of years ago I wrote a TOTT article dealing with
twelve-step programs as well as codependency. Recently
that article was revised by myself and Kurt Goedelman, the
director of Personal Freedom Outreach, and published in the
PFO�s Quarterly Journal (January-March 2016). Those who
consume a steady diet of syndicated television talk shows or
digest the writings of Christian psychologists such as Frank
Minirth, [1] Paul Meier, and Henry Cloud will be surprised
to learn that there is neither scientific nor biblical
evidence to support the theories of codependency.
Codependency is a hot topic within current psychology.
Before the late 20th century the word � and even the concept
� was virtually unknown. Now, nearly everyone in one fashion
or another seems to be codependent.
(384) Contending
or
contentious? by Jim Jenkins, 8/8/16 Here is what I gleaned from this brief study. To contend
for the faith once for all delivered to the saints is
arduous, and frankly agonizing at times. What I/we need to
guard against, however, is the tendency to adopt an attitude
of combativeness with others in order to arrive at the
truth. I don't want to be a brawler. I don't want to be
'that guy.' I don't intend to ever back down, but I can
pray, even agonize in prayer... that I contend for something
rather than against someone.
(385) Gender
Unicorn
Teaches Transgender Issues at The Berean Call,
8/10/16 A North Carolina school district's pro-LGBT character the
"gender unicorn" is being used for a training session in
which faculty are told parental involvement may not be
required for students struggling with gender identity
issues. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools had recently approved
measures to allow transgender students access to the public
facilities of their choice, in defiance of state law, before
backing off for now. Included in their plans for the new
measures was a recently released training presentation for
faculty that featured the "gender unicorn" character.
(386) World
Vision's
Gaza Manager Funneled Millions to Hamas: Israel at
Understand The Times, 8/12/16 Israel has accused a manager working for U.S.-headquartered
Christian charity World Vision of funneling millions of
dollars to Islamist militant group Hamas. Mohammad El Halabi
was arrested by Israel on June 15 while crossing the border
into Gaza, World Vision said in a statement. He was charged
by Israeli authorities on Thursday. He had run the
organization's Gaza operations since 2010. According to
Israel's Shin Bet security service, El Halabi diverted
around $7.2 million of World Vision money to Hamas each
year. That is the equivalent of 60 percent of the charity's
total annual funding for Gaza.
(387) Letter
to
the Editor: �Booted Out Harshly� From My Church at
Lighthouse Trails, 8/13/16 Dear Lighthouse Trails: I really appreciate all of you at
LHTs. Thank you and God bless each one of you. I went
through a very difficult period when attending
Calvary Chapel __________. I was very uncomfortable
with what they were permitting and promoting. I was very
distressed. I had concerns about The Message bible, Billy
Graham, Anne Graham Lotz�s Circle Prayer, Greg Laurie and a
few other things. I was told to spit out the bones. I asked
them to show me that approach in Scripture�they ignored me.
I raised concerns again and was booted out harshly. It was
mean. It hurt. LHT helped me to understand the concerns were
reasonable. I am still sad for the way things ended�but God
comforts me�I am okay. I think this is what
happens sometimes, and what happened to me is mild in
comparison to other situations.This has encouraged me to
read and study God�s Word. I really appreciate all
that you do- will keep you all in prayer. June (not real
name)
(388) An
Olympic
Challenge by Dr. Jim Jenkins, 8/14/16 Those entering the stadium in Rio were aptly called
contenders. For some who read this� it is time to get up and
get back into the race. For others, it is time to find your
help in the Name of the Lord. For us all, it is time to
�contend for the faith once for all delivered to the
saints.� �But Christ as a son over his own house; whose
house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the
rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.... For we are made
partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our
confidence stedfast unto the end.� (Hebrews 3:6;14) �I have
fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept
the faith.� (2 Tim. 4:7)
(389) What
Did
the First Living Cell Eat? at The Berean Call,
8/18/16 "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven,
and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they
be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all
things were created by him, and for him" (Colossians:1:16For
by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that
are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be
thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all
things were created by him, and for him:). Not long ago, I
was talking with another creationist about the impossibility
of the first living cell coming into being through natural
causes from non-living chemicals. I asked him, "Even if such
a thing were possible, what would the first living cell
eat?" Without missing a beat, my friend said: "Cellery?" The
two of us shared a good laugh together, but I can assure you
that the origin of life is no laughing matter to
evolutionists. Many evolutionists, in fact, prefer to
sidestep the issue completely, asserting that evolution
deals only with the origin of different species after that
first living cell has somehow come into being. But have you
ever stopped to think about how that first living cell could
have survived for even a millisecond? Unless its environment
was perfectly suited to sustain that cell's life, it would
have died in an instant. Unless the cell had necessary
nutrients, it would likewise quickly perish. And unless it
had the means to reproduce itself, that first living cell
would be the last. Or, perhaps, hundreds of millions of
years later, the second living cell would ooze out of a
primordial soup of non-living chemicals � and once again die
a millisecond later! No, as the great scientist Louis
Pasteur demonstrated in 1859, life comes only from life.
Pasteur confirmed what the Bible tells us � that life on
Earth came from the living God.
(390) Eusebius,
the
author of traditions and legends of Christianity
by Mike Oppenheimer, 8/26/16 In 312 The Roman Emperor Constantine accepted his own
version of the Christian faith While he was preparing for
another military campaign. The story claims he had a
vision of the cross against the sun, accompanied by the
words, "In this sign, conquer."
(391) The Meltdown of Christianity
by Roger Oakland, 8/31/16 Since the turn of the millennium, the world has witnessed a
virtual meltdown of biblical Christianity. While many are
saying Christianity is experiencing a great revival and even
a �new reformation,� this commentary will document the
demise of Christianity by showing we are experiencing the
greatest apostasy in modern-day history.
Comment
from UTT: This
survey
reflects the
reality of the
day. The
younger
generation is
no longer
biblically
literate. The
same is true
of the adult
population and
even those who
attend church
in most
places. Their
is a famine in
the land.
Those who are
still
following the
Lord are
calling out
for men and
women to be
raised up to
form a remnant. A
recent
nationwide
study revealed
on Friday 10
major findings
about the
influence of
the Bible on
American teens
and their
interaction
with God�s
Word �
including the
fact that just
3 percent of
teens read the
Bible every
day.According
to the 2016
Teen State of
the Bible
research, a
majority of
teenagers in
the United
still have a
reverence for
the Bible, but
their views
about what it
actually means
to them has
evidently been
influenced by
many of
today�s
secular
influences
that they have
been subjected
to via the
public
schools, the
media and the
entertainment
industry.
There is a lot of talk
these days in Christian circles about the great outpouring
of the �Holy Spirit� that is just around the corner. This
�outpouring� will supposedly bring �another Jesus
Movement�. [1] While this would be a
wonderful thing if the �spirit� was the Holy Spirit, there
is reason to believe we are living at a time when �another
spirit� [2] may be the spirit that is in
the forefront.Not long ago, I came across a page on the
Internet posting an interview done at the 2016 Calvary
Chapel annual pastor�s conference held in Costa Mesa,
California. The person doing the interview was Josh
Turansky. The two being interviewed were Raul Ries of CC
Diamond Bar and his son Ryan Ries of the Whoesoevers, a
heavy rock band that promotes satanic symbolism as a means
of attracting the youth to biblical Christianity.
(394) Georgia ACLU Leader Quits Over Young
Daughters� Encounter With Men in Women�s Restroom at
Lighthouse Trails, 9/16/16 ATLANTA � The head of the Georgia chapter of the American
Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has resigned from her position
over her disagreement on transgender restroom use following an
experience where her own young daughters became frightened in
encountering three large men in the women�s restroom. Maya
Dillard Smith says that she realized that her values were
different from those of the ACLU, which has backed the Obama
administration�s controversial transgender restroom mandate
for schools and has expressed opposition against North
Carolina�s restroom law. �It became very evident to me that
the ACLU and myself were simply principally and
philosophically unaligned on a number of issues,� she told
Fox�s Megyn Kelly this week. �And I found myself and at the
crux of the transgender rights and transgender restroom
controversy.�
(395) Sanhedrin
Demand
for End to Muslim Rule on Temple Mount Draws UNESCO
Response at Understand the Times, 9/22/16 Comment from UTT: This article could be classified on the
lunatic fringe. To hint that Israel has no right to declare
the Temple Mount as a Jewish Holy site is like saying that
Mecca is a Jewish Holy site. Does the United Nations have
any common sense or are they given over to a delusional
spirit? Don't ask the Pope in Rome that question. He says
that the god of Islam is his god.
(396) Islamic
Movement
in U.S. Preparing for Battle at VCY America, Host:
Jim Schneider, Guest: John Guandolo, 9/23/16 While life certainly appears to be going on normally in
most sectors of American society, preparations are being
made for war against us; a war that a particular enemy wants
to fight on our own soil. Sadly, our government has known
about the preparations for this war since the early '90's.
Our government speaks as though there's nothing to worry
about and describe those who've given us a taste of what may
come via their terrorist acts as nothing more than mentally
deranged individuals.
(397) ReThink
Apologetics
Conferences teach Christian youth to think clearly
at Spirit of Error, 9/24/16 If you live near Southern California and you have a junior
high, high school or college-aged student, I urge you to
take them to Stand to Reason�s �ReThink Apologetics Student
Conference,� tonight and tomorrow in Costa Mesa, California.
Upcoming ReThink conferences will be held in Dallas, Texas,
and Birmingham, Alabama. These conferences�featuring some of
today�s top Christian apologists�prepare students to defend
their faith against intellectual attacks from skeptics and
to learn to share their faith in an intelligent and gracious
manner. In short, they will help develop them into
clear-thinking, winsome Christians. And there�s a bonus:
when your children learn to think clearly about their faith,
they�ll be inoculated against the unclear thinking that
clouds the minds of so many who�ve bought into the harmful
teachings and practices of the New Apostolic Reformation. If
you don�t live near one of the conferences, then consider
checking out the other resources offered by Stand to Reason.
This organization is doing excellent work helping
Christians�young and old�learn to think more clearly about
issues of Christianity and the surrounding culture. Greg
Koukl�s weekly podcast is something I wish every Christian
listened to.
(398) Remembering
The
Persecuted Christians (Audio) at VCY America,
Host: Jim Schneider, Guest: Paul Popov, 10/1/16 Paul Popov is the CEO of Door of Hope International. They
are a voice and a helping hand to persecuted Christians
worldwide. When he was five years old (in 1948), his father,
Haralan Popov, a prominent Protestant minister, was brutally
taken from his family by the KGB and arrested on false
charges of being a 'spy for America'. Paul, with his family,
were branded as 'enemies of the state'.
(399) The American Media, the Change in Control
of the Internet, and the Threat to Freedom & Truth
by Bill Randles, 10/5/16 If they shut down the Internet, a light goes out. I will
then be relieved of the responsibility to write as copiously
as I have (1000 articles, several books). I will know the
darkness is descending and that soon the Lord will return .
. . we must work while it is light . . . Maranatha!
(400) Author Ray Yungen has gone to be with the Lord
by Moriel, 10/17/16 It is with a combination of rejoicing and deep sadness that
Moriel & Jacob Prasch learned that Christian author and
apologist Ray Yungen has gone home to be with Jesus. In
heaven there is indeed rejoicing. For we who remain to carry
on the battle that Ray fought with such Christ centred
integrity and dedication however, it is a day of deep
sadness. Although the separation is but temporary, until we
are reunited with Ray again in the day Jesus returns , we
shall certainly miss him dearly. Yet, as with Dave Hunt,
though Ray is absent from the body but present with The
Lord, we meanwhile, shall continue to be inspired by his
fervency, fortitude, and dedication to Christ.
(401) Praying
for
the Persecuted Church (Audio) at Crosstalk, Host:
Jim Schneider, Guest: David Curry, 10/20/16 Outside of their day-to-day comings and goings, people are
far too often oblivious to what's taking place in the world.
Sadly, many Christians are like this as well with some
attending church, coming home and not paying any attention
to the things of God or even their own faith until the
following Sunday. While America carries on that routine,
there are many people who are being killed each month due to
their faith in Christ. Christian churches and properties are
destroyed. Others are arrested with some put in prison and
even beaten or raped due to their faith. Joining Crosstalk
to discuss this issue was David Curry. David is the
president and CEO of Open Doors, a nonprofit organization
focused on serving persecuted Christians in over 60
countries. Not only does David think that most Americans
don't know about persecution happening to Christians
worldwide, he also believes most Christians in America don't
even know. He feels that people don't want to know because
if they don't know, their senses won't be assaulted. Adding
to this is the fact that the media pays little attention to
it. From a media perspective it can seem episodic, with an
incident here and there, so people think if they're not
hearing about it on CNN, then it's not happening.
Unfortunately it is occurring and in pernicious ways
throughout the world. Government may be at the heart of the
problem while at other times it may be due to extremist
groups. Whatever the cause, David believes there are about
five or six major factors driving persecution. Open Doors
ranks about 60 nations as the most difficult places on earth
to be a Christian. One is North Korea where people worship
the current leader as well as those of the past. They
imprison people for owning Bibles, they've killed people for
talking about Jesus and there are no open and free churches
in the entire nation. The good news, according to David, is
that there are 400,000 followers of Jesus in North Korea.
The church of Jesus Christ is there and still surviving
although we also know there's at least 70,000 that are in
labor camps because of their faith. In China, David noted
that there are elements of the government that understand
the importance of the Christian church due to its moral
component. Also, in the northwest part of the country
they're facing the problem of controlling radical Islamic
elements. David went on to comment about the vigilante-style
'justice' of Islamic extremism showing up in Germany and
Pakistan, the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted
Church on November 6th, the numbness of modern Christians to
the persecuted church, comments from Crosstalk listeners and
more.
(402) A
Celebration of a Servant�s Promotion by Mike
Oppenheimer, 10/23/16 In life, we come across certain people who are
extraordinary in character. Ray Yungen was just such a
person. It was Ray who first made us aware of the Catholic
contemplative mysticism and certain New Age practices
becoming popular and entering the church. He did more than
point them out, he explained what they were and why a
Christian should not participate in this kind of
spirituality. As he explained about centering prayer, also:
contemplative prayer was a means for all to find the God
within by attaining oneness with self. This is the basis for
Eastern religions from which mystical traditions originate.
Ray did not parse the truth, but he was considerate in the
way he presented it to those caught in deceptions. A
ministry is validated by a person�s example of being a
servant, willing to help others, and not just by what they
know. His knowledge did not surpass his caring, and his
passion was genuine in helping others who were deceived by
contemplative and New Age practices. Ray was always pleasant
to speak with and be with.
(403) Muslim
Dreams
and Visions by Gary Gilley, 10/28/16 Again, I understand the assertion that Isa isn�t sharing
the gospel but is merely preparing dreamers for the gospel
that is to come in greater fullness via a human evangelist.
But I still question the inconsistencies between Jesus�
preparation of unbelievers while on earth and Isa�s
preparation via dreams. Also, in some of the accounts I�ve
read, Isa does, in fact, call on the dreamers to believe in
him. So the claim that he merely prepares them to receive
the gospel isn�t always consistent with the testimony
record. Additionally, I have to wonder why Jesus wouldn�t
share the gospel with Muslims if He were appearing to them.
He�s the most capable and powerful evangelist the world has
ever known. Yes, Rom. 10:13-15 says salvation comes by
hearing the gospel preached by a human, and that is part of
the divine decree I mentioned above. But those who affirm
that Jesus is appearing to Muslims also affirm by
implication that God isn�t confined to His own decree in
these instances, so why would the human evangelist be
necessary at all except in a follow-up capacity?
(404) Millennials
Agree
With Marx More Than the Bible, Study Finds at
Understand the Times, 11/5/16 Comment from UTT: Postmodernism did not happen by chance.
Behind thie Marxist agenda there is a wide spectrum of
educators with an agenda to brainwash the world into
believing that there is no God and there are no values. As
Marxism provided the basis for the communist ideology
throughout the world, postmodernism is the current version
that has had a huge impact on the world and the church. The
education of the younger generation is the key to advancing
the program. This world view is now fully entrenched in the
church and the majority of young people have no concept what
biblical values are let alone the crux of the Christian
faith which is acknowledging Jesus Christ as Creator and
Savior.
(405) The
Calvary
Chapel Movement and the Sinking of the Titanic by
Roger Oakland, 11/8/16 I expect there will be some open discussion now by various
spokespersons of the Old Calvary and a lot of dirt thrown
around. I expect to see the whole movement shattered into
various directions. I am reminded of how God allowed
confusion to come at the Tower of Babel when he saw the
wrong in what man was trying to do. As for Calvary Chapel,
some will form alliances believing they are reconstructing
the Titanic. But that will not stop the sinking, and perhaps
that is exactly what God intended should happen. Just as
Chuck Smith himself said in the video, pastors need to
follow Jesus, the Good Shepherd, and His Word and forget
about political alliances and following men and their
movements. Time will tell, won�t it?
(406) Around
the
Oval Table by Corrie Ten Boom, 11/13/16 Can a piece of furniture be important? The oval table in
our dining room was the gathering place for hopes and
dreams, the listening place for prayers and petitions, and
the loving place for joy and laughter. But Sunday, it was
something more�it was the special place for family and
friends.
(407) Ironside:
“Substitution�?—He
Took Our Place by Harry Ironside, 11/21/16 Although the word substitution is not in the Bible, it
stands for a great truth that runs through the Scriptures
from Genesis to Revelation. That is, the fact that the Lord
Jesus Christ, in infinite grace, took the place of poor,
lost, guilty sinners, and made it possible for a holy God to
reach out in mercy and save all who would come to Him in the
name of His beloved Son.
(408) Commentary:
What
Do Hitler, Alice Bailey, and Replacement Theology
Adherents Have in Common? by Philip Gray,
11/22/16 What Do Hitler, Alice Bailey, and Replacement Theology
Adherents Have in Common? Basically, the answer to that
question is that in all three cases, they reject the Jews as
God’s chosen people. Those who embrace Replacement Theology
probably don’t realize that the thinking behind Replacement
Theology is some of the thinking behind occultist Alice
Bailey as well as Hitler when it comes to the Jews. Now we
are not saying that people who adhere to Replacement
Theology would want to kill the Jews as Hitler did; but
Replacement Theology adherents need to understand that
behind this view of the Jews lies a far more sinister
aspect. Satan hates the Jews (partly because he knows God
will use them in the culmination of things in the last days
to end Satan’s days). That view of the Jews can start
“innocently�? by saying the Jews and Israel are no longer
significant with regard to Bible prophecy. But it is not a
far step from that thinking to anti-Semitism.
(409) Almost Saved by
Sandy Simpson, 11/29/16 There are many so-called “Christians�? today who are
clearly “almost saved�? by their testimonies and/or
actions. But to be “almost saved�? is to be completely
lost. A person who is drowning and almost saved
drowns. A woman who is almost pregnant is not
pregnant. King Agrippa said, “You are almost
persuading me to be a Christian (Acts 26:28)�? but being
almost persuaded is not enough to be saved.
(410) The
Calvary
Chapel Association Announces Complete Separation from
Brian and Cheryl Brodersen, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, and
the Calvary Chapel Global Network at Lighthouse
Trails, 11/30/16 Understand the Times, International posted the following
letter yesterday (November 28th) that was sent out worldwide
to Calvary Chapel Pastors by the Calvary Chapel
Association. November 28, 2016 Calvary Chapel Pastors,
Pastor Chuck Smith chose a group of men to lead the Calvary
Chapel movement after his passing. The Calvary Chapel
Association Council was a plan he reiterated on numerous
occasions. A Council provides checks and balances, and a
collective wisdom to help steer us in the right direction.
The CCA Council consists of men from across the country who
are committed to the core values that have made us Calvary
Chapel. Like many of you, we have given our lives to build
Calvary Chapel churches. What makes the 1700 churches
“Calvary Chapel�? are the values Pastor Chuck instilled in
us – our doctrine and philosophy of ministry. The principles
we were taught and the transformative power of God’s Spirit
have proven to be more than sufficient. The CCA Council’s
primary goal is to maintain what has been our Calvary Chapel
identity for fifty years, while seeking the Holy Spirit for
fresh power and wisdom to advance God’s Kingdom. We believe
Calvary Chapel has a unique and important role in the Body
of Christ. Pastor Chuck left us a glorious legacy. Yet the
new Calvary Chapel Global Network, established by Brian
Brodersen, now threatens that legacy. This network goes by
the name “Calvary Chapel,�? but has no framework for
affiliation or required commitment to the Calvary Chapel
core values. Such a network will ultimately de-emphasize our
Calvary Chapel distinctives. The CCGN establishes a
different version of Calvary Chapel, and will cause
confusion. Brian claims the authority to represent, and even
more critically, to define, what Calvary Chapel is and is
not. In a recent letter to the movement, Brian quoted Amos
3:3, “Can two walk together unless they are agreed?�?
Brian’s resignation from the Council, acknowledges he
disagrees with the way the CCA Council would lead and define
Calvary Chapel. This has created a crossroads that none of
us on the Council wanted.
(411)The future of discernment
and apologetics ministries by Sandy Simpson,
12/3/16 I admit that I am very skeptical about the future of
discernment and apologetics ministries. I don't see the next
generation coming up to replace those who have stood for the
truth for so long. Fortunately many apologists have gone to
be with the Lord but who will replace them? I don't see
replacements coming up who will take the place of those who
have been fighting the fight the years.
(412)Caryl
Matrisciana
Has Gone to Be With the Lord at Lighthouse Trails,
12/4/16 Dear friends: Around midnight on December 2nd, Caryl
Matrisciana passed away peacefully at her home. She had been
battling cancer for over a year. Caryl was a devoted mother
and grandmother as well as a film maker, author, speaker,
and a valiant defender of the Christian faith. She has left
a legacy that many will draw from for many years to come.
Please pray especially for her family during this time.
There will be a memorial service at a later date that we
will announce when we have that information. For those not
familiar with Caryl and her work, you can visit her site at
www.caryltv.com.
(413)Children
at
Risk: “Ruling Soon on Obama’s Forced Transgender Treatment
For Youth�? by Michael F. Haverluck,
12/23/16 A Texas judge is expected to decide the fate of President
Barack Obama’s new rule that would take effect on New Year’s
Day and force doctors to provide transgender medical
treatment for children who desire it.The ruling will
determine whether the Obama administration will be able to
give the LGBT community yet another victory before the
outgoing president leaves office to let the current
President-elect Donald Trump take over next month. “[The
transgender] treatment would be required under Obama’s
federal rule – even if the physician is convinced it would
harm the child,�? WND reports.
(416)A
Nation Divided - The United States of America by
James Dager, Media Spotlight Vol. 39, No. 4 (Winter
2016) Darkness is enveloping the United States of America. It is
a festering cancer that has been growing for decades, but
metastasized exponentially over the past eight years. The
darkness is that which unfolds from the dark souls of a
great number of American citizens who have been deluded by
Satan to believe that the blessings bestowed upon them by
our gracious God are to be despised. In place of those
blessings, they desire anti-Christ, perverse, and satanic
“blessings�? that allow them to vent all their hatred and
animosity toward everything decent in human society.
(417)2016
Year
in Review at Lighthouse Trails, 12/31/16 Every year around this time, Lighthouse Trails presents its
Year in Review. Over the next few days, we will be posting
our top stories from different categories from 2016. This is
an opportunity to read stories you may have missed and also
to get a wide-lens glance at important things happening in
the church and the world from a discernment and biblical
point of view. As always, our primary focus at Lighthouse
Trails is the Gospel. We hope this Year in Review will point
readers to that very message. Read Part
1, Part
2, Part
3, & Part
4.
(418) Celebrity
Culture
and Social Media by Dr. David Gooding,
1/14/17 We can easily become caught up in the maelstrom of the
media circus. Deluged each day by the media with scandal,
gossip, immorality, and the details of their private lives,
we cannot help but be influenced…and defiled. Centuries ago,
James asked one of the most searching questions found in the
Scriptures: “What is your life?�? (Jas 4:14). It was asked
in the context of the mass pursuit of material treasures,
and movement without a sense of the sovereign hand of God in
one’s life. How much more applicable it is when it comes to
the pursuit of entertainment. James teaches us that life
outside the will of God is only a vapour which vanishes
away. It has little staying power, little substance and
little influence. In contrast to all the vicarious living
which marks the society around us, Paul could speak of his
life: “For to me to live, Christ!�? (Phil 1:21). Elsewhere
he could say, “Nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ
liveth in me. And the life that I now live in the flesh, I
live by the faith of the Son of God Who loved me and gave
Himself for me�? (Gal 2:20). Paul lived Christ before the
world. It brought him none of the fame men crave; it was
seemingly marked by sorrow, burden and hardship, rather than
happiness. But it was a life which brought pleasure to God,
blessing to the world, profit to the assemblies and future
honour at the Bema. It was, as well, a life which was
supremely satisfying and fulfilling to him. Listen to his
words on the eve of his departure: “I have finished my
course�? (2 Tim 4:7). Another, John the Baptist, on seeing
Christ honoured, could say, “This my joy, therefore, is
fulfilled�? (John 3:29). Paul, John and a long line of
saints have found their joy and fulfillment in living for
the Lord Jesus Christ. We follow Him, feed upon Him, and
remain faithful to Him and to His Word. Life is too short
not to invest it in an eternity which is exceedingly long!
(419) Preliminary
to
Armageddon . . . Paris Jan 15 by Bill Randles,
1/15/17 An event is occurring today which portends to be one of the
last preliminaries to the shattering events outlined in the
book of Revelation, and the end of the world as we know it.
The event is the opening of a new Embassy, the Palestinian
Embassy in Vatican City. This will be the opening of the
first Palestinian Embassy in the European Union. The main
characters in this scenario are Pope Francis and Mahmoud
Abbas, the Palestinian State and the Vatican. Mahmoud Abbas
is the recognized president of the Palestinian State. The
State has been designated by the U.N. and is to be located
in the place in which the God of the Bible gave land to
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—notably Judea and the Gaza strip.
(420) Israel
Watches
Unimpressed as Nations Gather to Decide Fate of Holy Land
by Ryan Jones, Israel Today, 1/16/17 The nations of the world gathering in Paris on Sunday to
determine the fate of the Holy Land. Israel was not among
them, and watched wholly unimpressed as the international
diplomats engaged in “pointless�? dialogue. Trying to sound
a note of balance, French President Francois Hollande said
that both Palestinian terrorism and Jewish settlements are
holding up peace in the Middle East. Israel Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu was dismissive. “The conference that is
convening today in Paris is a pointless conference,�? he
said at the start of Sunday’s cabinet meeting. “It was
coordinated by the French and the Palestinians and aims to
force conditions on Israel that conflict with our national
interests.�?
(421) Does
the world have a problem with Islam or does Islam have a
problem with the world? by Mike Oppenheimer,
1/27/17 The Messiah - Our messiah returns to save Israel and the
saints. The Muslim messiah (Isa) Jesus, comes to destroy
Israel, the churches and convert the Christians to
Islam. Why do they hate Jesus? Because he tells them
the truth of their condition which is only found in the
Bible. The words of Muhammad cannot be compared to the words
of love Jesus told his followers: “Love your enemies, and
pray for those who persecute you�? (Matthew 5:44). As you
want people to treat you, so treat them�? (Matthew 7:12).
“You shall love your neighbor as yourself�? (Matthew 22:39).
“This is my commandment that you love one another�? (John
15:12, 17). You cannot find anything of equal value in Islam
or any philosophy or religion on earth. In fact, as
Muhammad was dying, he asked Allah, to curse the Jews and
Christians (Bukhari, Vol. 1, #427). Contrast this with Jesus
asking the Father to forgive while he was dying- FOR them.
This is God’s heavenly love that is supernatural, eternal
and melts the heart of anyone who takes the time to see who
Jesus really is.
(422) Pastor
Resigns
From David Platt’s Southern Baptist Mission Board Over
Legal Brief Supporting New Jersey Mosque by
Heather Clark, Christian News Network, 1/31/17 A pastor who had served as a trustee of the Southern
Baptist Convention’s (SBC) International Mission Board, led
by “Radical�? author and former Alabama pastor David Platt
[see the LT articles on Platt below], has resigned out of
his concerns over the board’s participation in an amicus
brief supporting the construction of a New Jersey mosque.
Dean Haun, the pastor of First Baptist Church of Morristown,
Tennessee, told the Baptist and Reflector this week that he
wasn’t aware that the Board had joined in the brief until he
started receiving email and phone calls from other pastors
who were troubled about the matter. The Mission Board, the
SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, and the Baptist
Joint Committee for Religious Liberty were among 20 groups
that had joined the legal filing, including the American
Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists, the International
Society for Krishna Consciousness, the Sikh Coalition, the
Interfaith Coalition on Mosques and many others. The matter
centered around the Islamic Society of Basking Ridge, which
had sought to build a mosque in Basking Ridge, New Jersey,
but was denied following community opposition. It sued in
March of last year, and the Becket Fund for Religious
Liberty assembled a coalition of faith groups supportive of
the Society’s rights for an amicus brief to be filed with
the court.
(423) Five
Reasons
to Say No to a Church Covenant in Fraudulent
Authority: Pastors Who Seek To Rule Over Others, Chapter 10,
by Wade Burleson, 2/8/17 Jesus, in his sermon on the mount, had this to say about
oaths: But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by
heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because
it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city
of the great King. Neither should you swear by your head,
because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But
let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’
Anything more than this is from the evil one. – Source:
Matthew 5:34-37, Holman Christian Standard Bible Nowadays
many churches require that prospective members sign a
‘membership contract’ or ‘church membership covenant.
(424) British
Anti-Semitism
rises to record levels at Understand The Times,
2/10/17 Comment from UTT: It should be no surprise that
anti-Semitic incidents are rising in England. Statistically
this can be related to the number of Muslims that have
immigrated to England. The number of anti-Semitic incidents
in Britain rose by more than a third to record levels in
2016, according to data released Wednesday by the Community
Security Trust (CST), which monitors anti-Semitic incidents
and provides security to Jewish communities. The group
recorded 1,309 incidents of anti-Jewish hate last year,
compared with 960 in 2015, a rise of 36%, according to a
report in the Guardian. The previous record number of
incidents was in 2014, when 1,182 were recorded.
(425) The
Punishment
for reading a Bible in Saudi Arabia by Admin, The
Muslim Issue, 2/11/17 This is the new form of punishment in one of the Saudi
nations. According to reports sent to us from Arabia, this
is a new punishment used on at least one person found to
possess a bible. Since then, four more people have come
forth and confirmed that they have seen people with similar
punishments. Saudi Arabia refuses to recognize the religion
of immigrants, and allows any non-Muslim within a certain
distance of Mecca to be killed.
(426) U.S.
Preschool
Teacher Urges: ‘Kill Some Jews’ by Chelsea
Schilling, WorldNetDaily, 2/23/17 A Jew-hating Muslim preschool teacher in South Arlington,
Texas, was fired Wednesday after she urged her social media
followers to “kill some Jews�? and tweeted: “How many Jews
died in the Holocaust? Not enough…HAHAHAHA.�? Nancy Salem
taught preschoolers at the Children’s Courtyard in South
Arlington. She is also an activist with Students for Justice
in Palestine at the University of Texas, Arlington,
according to campus watchdog group Canary Mission. Salem
also supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions
movement, or BDS, an anti-Israel movement that advocates
severing global economic relations with the Jewish state.
(427) Who’s
to
Blame for Bookstore Closures? by Jim Fletcher,
2/26/17 News came this week that Family Christian Stores is finally
shuttering all 240 locations. The 85-year-old chain filed
for bankruptcy protection in 2015, and now the end has come
for the Christian retail giant that employed 3,000 and
stretched across 36 states. As one writer put it, Amazon
warlord Jeff Bezos deserves much of the credit for turning
most independent bookstores into karate schools or bakeries.
But there is another, more specific reason Family Christian
Stores is gone. They did it to themselves. The explosion
came from within, as decades of pandering to the
lowest-common denominator within evangelicalism resulted in
poorly educated Christians who have read more about Jesus in
“Jesus Calling�? than from the Bible.
(428) This
is
Not a Review of “The Shack�? by Cedric Fisher,
3/7/17 I’m not going to write a review or detailed critique of
William P. Young’s book or movie both titled The Shack. The
reason is because there are already a number of good reviews
available. You can access plenty of information on
Lighthouse Trails Research. What I will do is present a
warning. First, I want to point out that there are some
heresies and deceptions that one should not need a review to
recognize and reject. The televangelist selling God’s favor,
which increases with the size of the donation, is one.
Another one is a preacher smoking pot or getting drunk on
video while claiming that it is the way to get closer to
God. One more is the preacher that declares that God has
entrusted only him with new revelation essential to
understanding the Bible. Likewise, does anyone really need
to inform a true Christian about what is wrong with The
Shack? Now for the warning. God’s word declares that the end
times will be very dangerous for Christians. There will be
many spiritually wicked individuals masquerading as servants
of God. They will present heresies and other lies for the
purpose of deceiving God’s people. However, some professing
Christians declare that it is impossible for Christians to
be deceived and apostatize. If that is true, then who is
Satan deceiving and who is apostatizing? The lost are
already deceived and cannot apostatize from faith that they
do not have. Obviously, the deception has to be very clever.
If it were disguised as an orange, it would appear exactly
as a genuine orange. Therefore, we can expect lies disguised
exactly as truth. However, if people accept enough false
oranges loaded with a mind-numbing drug, it stands to reason
that false oranges will no longer be needed. Then whatever
is being disguised by the falseness will be offered without
pretense.
(430) They
Love
Error More Than Truth by Cedric Fisher,
3/20/17 Professing Christians are fawning over every heretic,
heresy, heretical book, and blasphemous movie. They will
race off to conferences with a speaker lineup that reads
like a “Who’s Who�? in false “ministers of righteousness.�?
The truth floats on by them, but they eagerly reach out,
grab, and gush over every falsehood. But they will not
rejoice over or promote truth. Further, they refuse to
invest any time and energy defending anyone who presents
truth when they are under attack. So God sends His
messengers to warn them just as He sent prophets to apostate
Israel. But will they listen? They will not listen. We are
in the last of the last days before this earth is shaken by
the consequences of its rebellion. God knows their hearts
are hard, their ears are dull, and their eyes refuse to see,
but He sends His messengers anyway. Why? He sends them
because God is just, He is merciful, and God is love.
He is not willing that the wicked should perish. He
sends His messengers because He wants people to heed, return
to Him, surrender, reject wickedness and accept
righteousness, and be spared the consequences of their
sinfulness. But they reject God’s messengers. They call them
mean-spirited, hateful, ignorant, self-righteous, and even
diabolical, for the sole reason that His messengers pierce
their fickle and carnal hearts with anointed truth. When
they speak harsh rebukes to God’s messengers, they are
speaking against Him. Condemning God’s messengers is as
condemning the message and the One who sent it. It is as
rejecting His righteous authority.
(431) Screwtape Legacy
by Sandy Simpson, 3/22/17 The book by C.S. Lewis called “Screwtape Letters�? was a
clever idea in exposing a number of tactics of the
enemy. Those principles are still at work today in
many churches. Following is a list of some of the
things the enemy wants to see in churches and Christians in
order to bring them down.
(432) IRS
Fast Tracked Tax Exemption For Satanic Group At Elementary
School at Christian Daily Media, 3/24/17 Documents obtained by Judicial Watch show the IRS
fast-tracked tax-exempt status for an After School Satan
Club in Tacoma, Washington, while the federal agency was
discovered to be either denying conservative and Christian
groups the same status or making them wait for years.
According to the watchdog group that uncovered the IRS
scandal during the Obama administration, the After School
Satan Club at Point Defiance Elementary in Tacoma for its
tax-exempt status designation on October 21, 2014 and
received it only 10 days later on October 31, 2014.
Breitbart News reported in October of 2016 the announcement
by the Satanic Temple of Seattle for its proposal of the
After School Satan Club in the Point Defiance Elementary
school. "After School Satan Clubs will focus on free
inquiry, rationalism, science, and character building", the
temple's website says, and continues: All After School Satan
Clubs are based upon a uniform syllabus that emphasizes a
scientific, rationalist, non-superstitious world view. While
they claim the twisted Evangelical teachings of The Good
News Clubs "robs children of the innocence and enjoyment of
childhood, replacing them with a negative self image,
preoccupation with sin, fear of Hell, and aversion to
critical thinking." After School Satan Clubs incorporate
games, projects, and thinking exercises that help children
understand how we know what we know about our world and our
universe. Judicial Watch reports Reason Alliance, based in
Somerville, Massachusetts, operates as the Satanic Temple of
Seattle with Lilith X. Starr as the director. The group's
documents show the parent permission form used for children
to join the club asks for the name of the child's church and
pastor. Records also indicate that Starr told Carla
Santorno, superintendent of the Tacoma school district, that
After School Satan Clubs are led by caring Satanists. In
October of 2015, the Obama Department of Justice anounced
that Lois Lerner and other IRS officials involved in the
targeting of conservative groups tax-exempt applications
would not have criminal charges filed against them. Our
investigation uncovered substantial evidence of
mismanagement, poor judgment and institutional inertia,
leading to the belief by many tax-exempt applicants that the
IRS targeted them based on their political viewpoints."
Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Peter J.
Kadzik wrote in a letter to House Judiciary officials. "Poor
management is not a crime" Kadzik continued, "We found no
evidence that any IRS official acted on political,
discriminatory, corrupt, or other inappropriate motives that
would support a criminal prosecution."
(433) The
Foe
We Prefer to Ignore by Berit Kjos, January
2010 Notice the VISIBLE foes in this North Korean drama. They
were the blinded puppets of Communism -- indoctrinated in
atheism and trained to hate God and His people. Meanwhile,
the INVISIBLE foes were the "spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly realms" (Ephesians 6:12). Dedicated to the
destruction of Biblical faith, they are now generally
ignored in our post-modern culture. But their deadly schemes
were all too familiar to the persecuted Christians in
Marxist and other anti-Christian nations. As Pastor Richard
Wurmbrand wrote in Tortured For Christ (1967), “...there are
no nominal, halfhearted, lukewarm Christians in Russia or
China. The price Christians pay is far too great....
Communist persecution has backfired and produced serious,
dedicated Christians such as are rarely seen in free
lands.�?
(434) ‘Bible
Answer
Man’ Hank Hanegraaff Leaves Evangelicalism, Joins Eastern
Orthodox Church at Lighthouse Trails,
4/15/17 LTRP Note: The following news article is posted for
informational and research purposes and not as an
endorsement of either the content or the source. It is no
surprise to Lighthouse Trails that Walter Martin’s successor
Hank Hanegraaff (host of the Bible Answer Man) has converted
to the Orthodox Church (which is a bridge between
Protestantism and Roman Catholicism). Several years ago, we
saw something like this coming because of Hanegraaff’s
embracing of Rick Warren, Richard Foster, and other
ecumenical contemplative figures.
(435) Israel:
Replacing
What God Has Not (Booklet) by Mike Oppenheimer,
4/20/17 LTRP Note: As we approach this year’s Holocaust Memorial
Day (April 24th) and in view of a recent article we posted
where we referred to God’s view of Israel, we are reposting
Mike Oppenheimer’s article/booklet titled Israel: Replacing
What God Has Not, which we originally released four years
ago. And if you have never watched Caryl Productions
documentary film Christian Palestinianism, we highly
recommend it. In view of secular media’s bias against Israel
and much of the Protestant and evangelical church turning
against Israel as well, this is an issue that Christians
need to understand. We hope the DVD as well as Mike
Oppenheimer’s report will help with that. Both are from a
scriptural perspective.
(437) How
to
Find a Bible-Believing Church by Lighthouse
Trails, 5/6/17 We have often been asked, “How do I find a good
Bible-believing church?�? There are many believers who are
struggling to find one in their own communities. To start
with, we usually recommend they make phone calls to
potential churches and ask a few concise questions such as:
“Do you have a Spiritual Formation program at your church?�?
or “Has your church implemented aspects of the Purpose
Driven Movement anytime in the past 10 years?.�? Since
thousands of churches would answer yes to both or at least
one of these questions, they are worthwhile to ask, and it
would certainly narrow down the scope of one’s search. Here
are a few other questions that could be asked:
(438) Cry
for
Discernment! -- God's Forgotten Promise by C. W.
Booth, 5/24/17 In recent years the church universal has witnessed false
messiahs lead groups of people into the jungle and into
urban communes to commit mass suicide, the banning of prayer
in public school, mass public marriages of strangers to each
other by self-appointed earthbound-gods, the word "hedonism"
change from an evil philosophy of worldly living to
supposedly being the key to salvation, the rise of the
"unity over doctrine" movement, the advancement of the
"partially mistaken New Testament prophets" theory in
fundamentalist circles, and laughter replacing Bible
teaching in many churches. In all this, where has the
discernment of the righteous ones gone?
(440) Buried
in
Unmarked Graves by Roger Oakland, 5/31/17 Vast are the burial grounds resulting from man-centered
Christianity. When men follow men rather than the Good
Shepherd, they seek after wealth, kingdoms, power, and
illicit sexual relationships—anything to feed the flesh,
which we know is never satisfied. When this happens, it is
no longer Christianity but rather another “Christianity,�? a
dead and harmful religion (which is man’s invention)
promoting another Jesus. Religion robs the innocent from
true freedom in Jesus. The temples, the cathedrals, the
shrines, and the modern day megachurches often testify to
the accomplishments of man more than they speak of the
wonders of God, who sent His Son to redeem us from our sins.
(441) Fighting
Fear
in a Fearful Day (Booklet) by Maria Kneas,
6/6/17 The Bible tells us to “cast�? our cares (fears, anxieties,
worries, and concerns) on God because He cares for us (loves
us and takes good care of us). That means giving our cares
to God, and leaving them with Him—not taking them back
again: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for
you. (1 Peter 5:7) This is easier said than done. We have to
learn how to do it. Like many things in life, it takes
practice. We can ask God to enable us to do it, to give us
the grace for it, and to help us appropriate and work with
the grace He gives us.
(442) Baptist
Prof
To LGBT Group: Our Kids Are Not Your Kids by
Robert Oscar Lopez, The Daily Caller, 6/7/17 In a recent press release, a group called Faith in America
has announced they will intrude into multiple public spaces
of Phoenix during the yearly convention of the Southern
Baptist Convention. Their goal is to demand that Baptists
remove homosexuality from their list of sins and give Faith
in America’s advocates bargaining power for a long-term
conversation with the SBC. The conversation would hinge on
what Baptists can do to make LGBT youth—which Faith in
America calls “yOur youth�?—happier and more affirmed within
Baptist churches. Given the frightening extent of LGBT
efforts to force sexually suggestive curriculum to students
as young as four, and given the efforts by grassroots
Baptists to counter many unscrupulous tactics by people
behind these efforts, the SBC should not give any appearance
of agreement with Faith in America’s claims.
(443) Welcome
to
Rome! by Judson Casjens, 6/11/17 Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs poll, conducted May 3-7,
2017, found that a “leftward movement in perceptions of what
is morally acceptable has been ongoing,�? with a shift in 13
of 19 issues over time (since 2001). In another section of
the same poll, Gallup found that just 24 percent believe the
Bible is the literal word of God—the lowest in Gallup’s 40
years of asking Americans about their biblical beliefs. On
several key social issues Americans responded in the most
recent survey that it is morally acceptable to use birth
control (91%), get divorced (73%), engage in opposite-sex
sexual acts outside marriage (69%), engage in same-sex
sexual acts (63%), have a baby outside of marriage (62%),
commit physician-assisted suicide (57%), view pornography
(36%) and practice polygamy (17%). Southern Evangelical
Seminary President and Evangelical leader Dr. Richard Land
said the Gallup findings on social issues and faith in the
Bible’s validity are certainly linked: “There’s been a
marked movement left in everything except adultery,�? Land
said of the surveys. “Cheating on one’s husband or wife
still remains taboo. But as more and more people view the
Bible as a book of fables, we can see an increasing level of
paganism of the United States. The apostle Paul would
recognize contemporary America because it looks a lot like
ancient Rome and Corinth—except with modern conveniences.�?
(444) Discernment
Ministries
Not Needed? Would the Apostle Paul Agree? by
Lighthouse Trails, 6/15/17 This week, someone sent us an online article, written by a
pastor who said that the church does not need discernment
ministries anymore. While the pastor’s comments that
such ministries are making great money by doing this kind of
work were erroneous, it was the pastor’s rationale and
conclusions about discernment ministries as a whole that
were most troubling. His rationale was that discernment
ministries should not be criticizing and challenging leaders
and teachers within the church (but rather outside the
church; e.g cults, Mormonism); his conclusion was the church
does not need discernment ministries and people should stop
listening to them. He lumped all discernment ministries
together, suggesting that they are all jealous of each other
and spend a lot of time fighting amongst themselves. He
suggested that many of these discernment people will end up
dying early anyway because of the high level of stress
involved. Needless to say, we found such an article very sad
because we knew there would be people who would read it and
would be persuaded by the pastor’s words.
(445) Southern
Baptists
go 'gender-inclusive' on Bible at Understand the
Times, 6/23/17 The Southern Baptists have now adopted a
“gender-inclusive�? translation of the Bible. And Gallups
warns the denomination seems to be trying too hard to appeal
to a secular, anti-Christian culture rather than simply
standing for truth.
(446) Heaven
Would
Not Be Heaven If You Went There by Gary F. Zeolla,
7/1/17 “I’m a good person. I am sure I will go to heaven.�? Are
you really a good person? Let’s see what the Bible has to
say about that.
(448) Some
Red
Flags When Evaluating a Ministry by David
Kowalski, 7/4/17 Anytime we are just getting acquainted with a ministry, we
look for ways to evaluate it. Sometimes problematic elements
are obvious from the beginning but at others the problems
are not so evident at first. Cults and heretics often do not
promote their unique, false teachings or aberrant practices
to strangers and newcomers. The Unification Church and
Scientology are two groups that are particularly noted for
this. Still, we can look for red flags that may indicate a
need for closer inspection. A red flag differs from a false
teaching or bad practice in that the red flag is a sign that
something might be wrong. Upon seeing a red flag, we should
never form any kind of conclusion without further
information. The group or person may just be imprudent or in
some sense unusual without being unorthodox or wrong in what
they do. It is nevertheless useful to know the signs of
possible problems with a minister or ministry. I have given
below twelve such signs.
(449) A
Rebellious Generation: Youth Out of Control by Jim
Schneider, VCY America, 7/20/17 Jim began this broadcast by quoting from 2 Timothy 3:1-5.
This description is indicative of the very society we're
living in today, and the participants are often young
people. He presented numerous news stories from this year
alone that prove the point.
(450) Rick
Warren,
Mark Batterson & Priscilla Shirer: Keynote Speakers at
AOG General Council by Barbara Wilhelm,
7/26/17 Currently there are several names on the bestseller list
among Christian leadership who have gained incredible
popularity. But not everything is as it appears. The Bible
calls us to prove all things (I Thess 5:21) and upon further
investigation it can be seen that three of these names have
become involved in some deeply erroneous teaching. The
Assemblies of God host an event every two years called
General Council where they bring all pastors and leaders
from across the globe together for a time of encouragement
and instruction. Unfortunately, Rick Warren, Mark Batterson,
and Priscilla Shirer, the three leaders referred to above,
have been chosen as the keynote speakers this year when
General Council meets in Anaheim at the beginning of August.
Each AG church has the authority to act independently on
their own behalf but the fact that those in authority in the
AG have chosen these three individuals is reason for great
concern.
(451) Dr.
George
Wood Responds to Lighthouse Trails Article on AoG
Resolution 3 and Israel by the Editors at
Lighthouse Trails, 8/2/17 On July 28th, Lighthouse Trails posted a commentary by
Lighthouse Trails author Cedric Fisher titled “Assembly of
God (AOG) General Council to Vote on Resolution Against
Israel.�? This commentary set off a fire storm on the
Internet, and on Saturday July 29th, Lighthouse Trails
editors received an e-mail from Dr. George Wood (General
Superintendent of the Assemblies of God). Dr. Wood is
familiar with Lighthouse Trails because of a controversy in
2013 where Dr. Wood gave his blessing and permission for
contemplative emergent Ruth Haley Barton to speak at the
2013 AoG General Council Conference resulting in some
Lighthouse Trails articles addressing the seriousness of
such promotion. Shortly after Lighthouse Trails editors
received the e-mail from Dr. Wood on the 29th regarding our
recent posting of Cedric Fisher’s commentary, we learned
that the e-mail was being distributed on the Internet.
Because Dr. Wood has made his e-mail public, we are
(34)