Apostasy/Lukewarm

by

Christianity: It’s all about music?


In light of all the discussion surrounding music, I thought this piece by Columnist Ben Ratliff of the New York Times on High Desert Church in Victorville, California is apropos. If I didn’t know any better after reading his whole article, I’d think Christianity is all about music.

I’ve quoted fifteen points from this article (and numbered them for your convenience if you wish to comment on particular ones). I think you’ll find them rather interesting!

1).Mike Day, singer and guitarist, gathered his rock band around him. Dressed in a faded black T-shirt, jeans and skateboard sneakers, he bent his shaved head. “God,” he said, “I hope these songs we sing will be much more than music. I know it’s so difficult at times when we’re thinking about chords and lyrics and when to hit the right effect patch, but would you just help that to become second nature, so that we can truly worship you from our hearts?” A few minutes later the band broke into three songs of slightly funky, distorted rock with heaving choruses . . .

2).There has been enormous growth in the evangelical Protestant movement in America over the last 25 years, and bands . . . now provide one of the major ways that Americans hear live music. [Of] the house bands that play every weekend in High Desert Church there are a dozen or so [who] scavenge some of their musical style from the radio and television. They reflect popular taste, though with lyrics about the power of God, not teenage turmoil.

3).“When you start a church,” said Tom Mercer, 52, the senior pastor, “you don’t decide who you’re going to reach and then pick a music style. You pick a music style, and that determines who’s going to come.”

4).HighDesertChurch has a sprawling concrete campus that includes a lavish auditorium, a gym, classrooms and office space for its 70 employees.

5).A number of factors encouraged the church’s expansion . . . . in 1993 the church hired Jeff Crandall, the drummer for a Christian punk band called the Alter Boys, as its music director. Mr. Crandall, 46, spent more than a decade crossing the country in vans, playing in churches, nightclubs and high school gyms, fighting the battle for a more progressive and aggressive worship music. “I knew that the future, even in the early ‘80s, was with bands in churches,” he said. “I liked hymns as a kid, but I just didn’t see myself waving my arms and directing them. I’ve always been one of those guys who tries to figure his own way.”

6).What he did was to pack the church with rock ‘n’ roll. He organized a rotation of bands . . . playing to multiple services. And then he let them play, loudly.

7).High Desert Church holds three different large services over the weekend for three different age groups, with music tailored to each audience . . . Seven . . . the 18-to-30-year-old set . . . Harbor, the 30-to-55 group . . . and Classic, for people 55 and over.

8).The church also maintains even more bands for services at the junior high, high school and elementary levels. Each band carefully calibrates its sound toward the pop culture disposition of the target age group.

9).Young people and future generations are in fact the fixation of High Desert Church, which has already broken ground on building a children’s ministry complex called Pointe Discovery, a $20 million project financed entirely by worshiper donations. “If I ask God’s people to give me $20 million,” Mr. Mercer said during an interview in his corner office, “when I stand before God someday, I don’t want to hear him say, ‘Dude, you wasted a ton of my money.’ I want him to say, ‘You did a good job.’ My definition of a good job is that it will impact people until Christ comes back.”

10).Praise-rock is at the heart of that impact. The teenagers and young adults at High Desert . . . say they joined the church for the teaching and the community, and stayed because of the bands. But some are clearly more enthusiastic about the music itself. “I started out in Harbor, but I moved to Seven because I liked the music more,” said Tony Cherco, 32, a recent arrival to the church who would not have been out of place in the EastVillage: he wore a long beard and large rings in his earlobes. “Between Pastor Tom and the music of Seven, I was like, yes!”

11).To generalize, the music tailored to the Seven service is modern rock, with a modicum of wired aggressiveness. (In its sets before and after the pastor’s sermon, the band does play some adaptations of hymns, including a power-chord version of the doxology. It was arranged by the worship minister Matt Coulombe to approximate the droning, locomotive style of the secular New York rock band Secret Machines, one of his favorite groups).

12).The music of Harbor, meanwhile, resembles U2 from about 1985, while the Classic crowd gets a softer and more acoustic sound, like the West Coast folk-rock of the 1970s. For the children, in both their Sunday school classes and youth group events, the music is pop-punk. The idea is to keep their attention with high energy, then to slide gradually toward contemplation.

13).On a Saturday afternoon in October a group for the junior high contingent, called Power Surge, which included four guitarists and two bassists, played in the church gym, rehearsing a version of the Jason Wallis song “Hey God.” Fifteen girls performed choreographed hand motions to the music, which sounded like pious Ramones:

Hey, hey, hey, God I love you

Hey, hey, hey, God I need you

I know there’s not anything you can’t do

I know there’s nothing you won’t see me through

Hey God!

14).For the most part the groups at HighDesertChurch don’t write their own songs; they are high-functioning garage bands, playing cover versions. But they operate in a large, modern auditorium with top-quality sound, lights and video operated by young volunteers; there are smoke machines and overhead screens that announce the title of each song and its lyrics.

15).Bobby Stolp, 39, a drummer in several different bands here, agreed. “It’s all about the heart of worship,” he said. “God can enjoy a distorted guitar as well as a clean guitar. Especially when you’re playing it for him.”

by

A new way to describe false converts?

As I was driving along I-40 here yesterday, I saw something that started a chain of free-association in my head, and landed me on this thought: should we begin calling false converts “cowboy Christians?” Allow me to explain:

You see these guys all the time. They look the part. They act the part. They dress the part. They use all the right words and phrases. They walk around wearing the Wrangler™ Jeans, western shirts, a belt buckle that doubles as a full-length mirror, Justin™ Boots, cowboy hat. They’ve always got a wad of chew in their cheek, they go line-dancing every weekend, they go watch the rodeo every time it comes to town, and they drive a big, huge, full-size pickup truck,with dual rear wheels–and a sticker in the back window that says something like “Cowboy Up!”

By all of their outward appearances, you would swear they are a cowboy. There are truly real cowboys out there–but this guy ain’t one of them.

But they’re not.

What does this have to do with the church? This:

You see these guys all the time. They look the part. They act the part. They dress the part. They use all the right words and phrases. They walk around wearing the kahki dress pants, polo shirts, and they carry the biggest study Bible they can find. They’ve always got a smile on their face, they go to a building every Sunday and hear a speech, they have a couple CD’s from a singer that used the word “God” or “Christ” in one of their songs once, and they drive a big, huge, full-size pickup truck, with dual rear wheels–and a fish sticker on their back bumper.

By all of their outward appearances, you would swear they are a Christian. There are truly real Christians out there–but this guy ain’t one of them.

But they’re not. They think they’re saved because

  • they go to church (check)
  • their parents went to church (check)
  • their kids go to church (check)
  • they have had their children dedicated (check)
  • they have had their children baptized (check)
  • they send their monthly donation to the church (check)
  • they volunteer at the homeless shelter (check)

    • “OK, we’ve got the checklist finished! Now we can just sit back and wait for that sweet by-and-by, ’cause we’ve got our ducks in a row, and we’ve got our ticket stamped!”

    What they do not know–perhaps because their pastor has never told them–is that salvation is not about looking the part. It’s not about whether you wear a shirt-and-tie, or an old pair of jeans, when you walk in Sunday morning. It’s not about a list of “Things To Do” that we need to perform in order to get enough gold stars and smiley faces on God’s Heavenly Chart.

    Salvation is about seeing ourselves for being the dispicable creatures we are, and knowing that Christ Jesus–the Son of the Living God–came to earth, wrapped Himself in this disgusting stuff we call flesh, took our wounds, our stripes, our death, and made them His own, so that we could be the righteousness of God in Him. It is about seeing that all of our good deeds, and all of our “church” and all those little trinkets we call “good deeds” are nothing more than rags that are covered with the filth of human effort, and the stench of self-righteousness.

    A person can look the part, they can dress the part, they can talk the part. But unless that person sees that there is absolutely no way for them to reconcile themselves to God apart from repenting from their sins and confessing Christ Jesus as their Savior AND Lord, they are a “Cowboy Christian.” They look like one–but they ain’t.

    Isaiah 53:3-6—He is despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

    Isaiah 64:5-7—You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, who remembers You in Your ways. You are indeed angry, for we have sinned—in these ways we continue; and we need to be saved. But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. And there is no one who calls on Your name, who stirs himself up to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and have consumed us because of our iniquities.

    2nd Corinthians 5:21—For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

    Philippians 1:9-11—And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

    by

    The Supremacy of Me Redux

    As a follow-up to CD’s post, I found this video of how the Seeker-Sensitive, Flesh-Driven Purpose-Driven follower would sing “Ode To Joy,” and who the focus of their worship really is:

    In case you can’t understand the lyrics, here they are:

    Me me me me
    Me me me me
    Me me me me
    Me me me me
    (Repeat)
     
    Galatians 6:14—God forbid that I should glory but in the Cross of Christ, by which the world was crucified unto me, and I was crucified unto the world!

    by

    The Gospel is supposed to be the stumbling block and offense, not our behavior.

    Welcome to Western Christianity! Whenever someone does something (no matter how juvenile, disrespectful, offensive, or crass it may be) as long as they slap the label “Christian” on it, it magically becomes acceptable, in spite of the standard of conduct representative of God’s elect as found throughout the Scriptures. And worse, there’s also an endless supply of professing Christians who will defend and support even the most irreverent and offensive pragmatic acts. I know, I used to be one of them.

    The person in the following video unnecessarily causes himself to vomit during his “testimony,” I suppose for the purpose of illustration. Try pulling this stunt in a kindergarten, at a convalescent home, or in front of a family and see the reaction you get. I expect this behavior from the world, not from a professing Christian who is giving a testimony. This is appalling and is an offense to any reasonable thinking person. It makes a mockery of Christianity and is a reproach to the name of Christ.

    And when this childish behavior (from someone who claims to have been converted two years earlier) is questioned, the relevant, everything-goes crowd rushes to defend it.

    Those who would generally support and defend this behavior are usually found in support and defense of similar behaviors such as those found in this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, this post, and this post. Ironically those same people who smile approvingly at the antics in these posts are the first to condemn what we do here on DefCon.

    Case in point:

    I left the following comment on A Little leaven after I came across the video featured in this post (see here).

    What came out of his mouth was awful! And I’m not talking about the corn flakes, I am talking about his “theology.” – The Pilgrim

    It didn’t take long for the defenders of disgusting, innapropriate, juvenile behavior–all in the name of Christ, of course–to come rushing to his defense. The first challenge came from “Barb” who obviously took offense to my comment. Granted, she did not approve of his puking during his testimony, but it was obvious she took more offense at anyone who dared question him:

    Defending/Contending: Please read my comment on this post if you haven’t already (it’s at the very top), and then, in light of those considerations, explain just what is so very wrong with this young brother’s “theology.”

    I give Barb the benefit of the doubt that her inquiry was serious (in spite of her preemptive log-in-the-eye remark), however, then came condescending “Chadm” who arrogantly snubbed his nose at anyone who would dare question the guy in the video, and left this pompous comment (among others):

    Barb- I seriously doubt we will get a response from Chris or defending contending….Theres much to say until its time to defend and contend……..<‘}}}><

    The strongest opposition against striving to live a life of decency and holiness comes not from the world (they’re anxiously waiting to meet a Christian who actually practices what he preaches), but it comes from the very ones who claim to be Christians.

    Now, I have no idea if the guy in this video is saved. If he truly has been regenerated, then the Holy Spirit will begin to work in his life (even though he claims God came into his life two years ago) and he’ll curtail his behavior that most reasonable people (saved and unsaved) find appalling.

    However, if he has not been regenerated and he is just another victim of a false conversion, then those who defend, promote, and encourage him to continue in this type of behavior all the while directly or indirectly assuring him that everything’s ok, when it’s not, will have his blood on their hands come the day of judgment.

    And finally, in regards to Barb’s inquiry, here is what I meant in regards to his theology:

    1). This guy’s current condition came about after he felt there was more to life, not because he recognized the sinfulness of his sin, his hopeless situation, and his total dependence on the shed blood of Christ. It’s the old “add Jesus to your life as an accessory to make it better” doctrine.

    2). He wrested Revelation 3:20 (not Revelation 13:20) from its original context and intended use, (it is a message to the churches).

    3). He attempts to place our salvation into our hands, as if we have any power to save ourselves and thus portrays our sovereign God as helpless.

    4). He claims God can’t/won’t do anything and won’t “come in” until we do something first. Again, he’s putting salvation into man’s hands as he claims that God wants you to stand up and open the door.

    5). He tells us that we should make that choice, because “it’s worth it.” Again, this puts salvation into the hands of man and also trivializes the gravity of the need of salvation by saying “it’s worth it.” This is a very man-centered, self-centered “Jesus-will-make-your-life-better” message, (although this guy never mentions Jesus in his testimony) and it’s not a “gospel” you’ll find preached anywhere in Scripture.

    6). And finally, he says that God wants to reach out to you but you have to start running toward him. Again, here he portrays God as helpless and that the price Christ paid to redeem His elect wasn’t enough because God still requires man to do his part. This is classic Mormonism.

    Now if your theology lines up pretty well with his then I don’t expect you to see the error, nor do I expect you to agree with me, so wrangling over your Arminian and Pelagian leanings will be pointless as will any wrangling done on my part.

    by

    How do you read Romans 1:16?

    For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . . Romans 1:16

    How you read Romans 1:16 tells a lot about you. Which of the following best resembles how you interpret the text?

    For I am not ashamed of the gospel (the death burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior), for it (the preaching of that gospel and absolutely nothing else) is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (not a superficial shallow mental ascent, but a complete dependence and trust upon Christ) . . .

    – Christian

    For I am not ashamed of the gifts of the spirit, for they are proof of the power of God and proof of your salvation to everyone who believes . . .

    -Charismaniac

    For I am not ashamed of pleading for money, for sowing your faith seed offering is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . .

    -Word of Faith Charismaniac

    For I am not ashamed of Mary, the Pope, and the Mother Church, for they are the power of God and the only way to salvation to everyone who believes and receives the sacraments, attends meritorious masses, is baptized, keeps the law, does good works, purchases indulgences, endures purgatory, etc. . . .

    – Roman Catholic

    For I am not ashamed of the gospel of the New Earth that we peddle door to door, for the Watchtower is the only ones who speak for God and is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and exhaustively works their tails off for the Watchtower almost every waking hour of the day for their entire life to obtain Jehovah’s favor, which is not guaranteed . . .

    – Jehovah’ Witness

    For I am not ashamed of the restored gospel, even though I am ashamed and embarrassed about our church history and the things our church prophets have said (that was just their opinion and they were not speaking for God when they said all those awful things) for the Melchizadek Priesthood which only we have is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and follows the following conditions as outlined in Gospel Principles pages 303-304 (1997 edition): 1.) We must be baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ. 2.) We must receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. 3.) We must receive the temple endowment. 4.) We must be married for time and eternity.In addition to receiving the required ordinances, the Lord commands all of us to– 1. Love and worship God. 2. Love our neighbor. 3. Repent of our wrongdoings. 4. Live the law of chastity. 5. Pay honest tithes and offerings. 6. Be honest in our dealings with others and with the Lord. 7. Speak the truth always. 8. Obey the Word of Wisdom. 9. Search out our kindred dead and perform the saving ordinances of the gospel for them. 10. Keep the Sabbath day holy. 11. Attend our Church meetings as regularly as possible so we can renew our baptismal covenants by partaking of the sacrament. 12. Love our family members and strengthen them in the ways of the Lord. 13. Have family and individual prayers every day. 14. Honor our parents. 15. Teach the gospel to others by word and example. 16. Study the scriptures. 17. Listen to and obey the inspired words of the prophets of the Lord. Finally, each of us needs to receive the Holy Ghost and learn to follow his direction in our individual lives.

    – Mormon

    For I am not ashamed of the value found in all religions regardless of whether or not they conflict with one another on core issues , for whatever truth is for you, it is the power of God, gods, goddess, no god, or whatever you believe for a better world to everyone who believes or chooses not to believe . . .

    – Universalist Unitarian

    For I am not ashamed of shameless church marketing, for the end justifies the means and pragmatism is the power of God for filling seats on Sundays to watch our awesome worship rock band followed by our hip and and oh, so cool pastor and we’re also giving away free gas cards to everyone who attends our local campus . . .

    – Seeker-Friendly

    For I am not ashamed of supporting any socialist cause or liberal issue, for a woman’s right to choose and a homosexual’s right to marry is the power of self–empowerment for salvation from the oppressive chains that the white, Anglo-Saxon, Capitalist, fascists have placed on the backs of everyone in this nation . . .

    – Liberal

    Romans? Is that in the Bible?

    – Emergent / Emerging

    ** Update ** This post was picked up by Todd Friel and featured on Way of the Master Radio. To find out more, click here.

    by

    How can you tell when professing “Christians” are following the Gospel according to Todd Bentley instead of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

    By observing their reaction to someone preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

    In this actions-speak-louder-than-words and the-proof-is-in-the-pudding post from Tony Miano, you can check out for yourself the way Bentley-ites react to the preaching of the Gospel.

    It’s very revealing; the Gospel is an obvious stumbling block to them. Read all about what happened when Tony Miano tried sharing the Gospel to Bentley-ites (including pictures and audio) in his post here.

    Here’s an excerpt:

    So, people go to Lakeland and the Galen Center, and other places around the world to “get some” of what Bentley and others are offering. They “repent and believe,” so to speak, and then Jesus is quickly brushed aside for what they really came to receive–manifestations, spirits, angels, healing, predictions about a better life, and a spiritual shot in the arm.

    Thanks to Loretta Heiden for making me aware of this (and by the way, I love the new header on your blog).

    by

    The heretic and the not-so-good apologist.

    What do you get when a heretic and a not-so-good apologist duke it out on the topic of Hell’s existence? You get a debate that leaves you feeling a little empty . . . like a fantastic opportunity was lost.

    The one defending the truth of the doctrine of Hell tries with all his might, but I think he was a poor choice to represent the case for Hell. What do you think?

    Debate Part One

    Debate Part Two

    by

    The theology (or lack thereof) of Unitarian Universalists.

    After hearing about the recent tragedy (caused by the evil of man’s wicked heart) at a U.U. gathering in Tennessee (and FourPointer’s post on the incident found here), I did a little looking into what this group is about and thought I’d share my discoveries with you. The following information was obtained here.

    What do the Unitarian Universalists reject?

    The One true God

    We do not have a defined doctrine of God. Members are free to develop individual concepts of God that are meaningful to them. They are also free to reject the term and concept altogether. Most of us do not believe in a supernatural, supreme being who can directly intervene in and alter human life or the mechanism of the natural world. Many believe in a spirit of life or a power within themselves, which some choose to call God.

    Jesus Christ

    We do not believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, performed miracles and was resurrected from death. We do admire and respect the way he lived, the power of his love, the force of his example and his system of values. Most UUs regard Jesus as one of several important moral and ethical teachers who have shown humans how to live a life of love, service and compassion. Though some of us may question whether Jesus was an actual historical figure, we believe his teachings are of significant moral value.

    A primary way we differ [from Christians] is that we do not regard Jesus as a unique revelation of God. Most UUs (even UU Christians) would reject a literal interpretation of accepted Christian beliefs such as the Virgin Birth, the miracles of Jesus and the Resurrection. While UU Christians would accept a symbolic interpretation of these events, most UUs view Jesus as a moral and ethical teacher and no more than that.

    The Bible

    We regard the Bible as one of many important religious texts but do not consider it unique or exclusive in any way. We do not interpret it literally. We think some parts of it offer more truth and relevance than other parts. Although UUs respect the Bible and regard some of its content as great literature, it is not a central document in our religion.

    Life after death, and Heaven & Hell

    Very few UUs believe in a continuing, individualized existence after physical death. Even fewer believe in the physical existence of places called heaven or hell where one goes after dying. Since there is no way to know for sure if we go any place when we die, very few, if any of us believe in the physical existence of a place called heaven or hell.

    Sin

    We do not believe that a person is born and enslaved in the manner that the doctrine of Original Sin teaches. You could attend a UU church for years and seldom hear the word sin.

    Salvation and the need for a redeemer

    Salvation is not a word we use frequently. We do not believe people are born into a state of sin from which they must be saved in order to avoid spending an eternity suffering in hell. Since we believe in neither original sin nor hell, we do not feel a need to be saved from either. No. We believe we should be judged by how well we live our lives and serve others, not in what a redeemer will do for us. We respect religious and spiritual leaders such as Jesus, Moses and Buddha for what they can teach us about living, not as redeemers in the traditional sense.

    So, what do the Unitarian Universalists believe, accept, and affirm?

    Evolution

    We believe that more complex life forms have evolved from less complex life forms.

    The wholesale slaughter of the unborn

    As an institution, we are strongly pro-choice, as are most individual UUs.

    All religions have truth

    We believe there is wisdom in most, if not all, of the world’s religions. We feel each is valuable for what it can tell us about ourselves and our world, and how its members find religious meaning and direction.

    Social issues

    Recent issues include: clean sources of energy, fossil fuels, energy conservation, pollution, abortion, gun control, immigration, hunger, the homeless, racism, nuclear arms proliferation, and health care.

    I also found out what a U.U. “church service” is like.

    Our typical service follows a Protestant structure: hymns, readings, meditation, singing by the choir, organ music and a sermon. Although the service’s format is similar to a Protestant church, the content is quite different. God or Jesus is hardly ever mentioned and rarely are there Bible readings. Though the words prior to the meditation might sound like a prayer, they are not addressed to and do not request the support, inspiration, help or blessing of a supernatural deity.

    And finally, the following videos should also prove to be very informative as to what this group believes:

    TV Commercial

    The puppet show explanation

    The deliberate twisting of the Biblical account of Adam and Eve

    by

    Does anyone else see the similarities?

    I discovered the following comparison chart on the blog End Times Deception.

    Toronto/Brownsville/Lakeland

    Manifestations

    Kundalini Yoga

    Manifestations
    Uncontrollable laughter Laughing and weeping are as unintentional and uncontrollable as hiccoughs
    Jerking, tremors, shaking Jerking, tremors, shaking
    Involuntary body movements Postures or moving one’s body in unusual ways
    Spontaneous trance states Spontaneous trance states
    Making animal noises, roaring, barking, mooing Spontaneous vocalizations
    Muscle twitches or spasms Muscle twitches or spasms
    Guidance through inner voice falsely thought to be God. False visions and dreams Guidance through inner voices, visions, dreams
    Being “drunk in the spirit” Mental confusion, difficulty concentrating
    Feeling rushes, heat, electricity Energy rushes, electricity circulating in the body
    Many fleshly sensations Vibrating, tingling sensations
    Supernatural smelling of scents Experiencing the smell of flowers, incense
    Out-of-body experiences Out-of-body experiences
    How one receives this “blessing”
    Impartation through the laying on of hands    		 How one receives Kundalini Awakening
    Through the laying on of hands during “Shakti-pat” initiation
    Who can administer this “blessing”?
    Anyone who has received the false anointing    		 Who can give Shakti-pat?
    Anyone who has received the ability from the Guru or one of his disciples

    Read more about it here.

    And for those who want to see a video comparison, I found the following videos on YouTube:

    Can anyone tell the difference between the things being done in the next video by this charismatic, energetic, Alex P. Keaton look-a-like named Dr. Richard Bartlett who’s peddling the New Age, and what Todd Bentley and other Word of Faith, self-proclaimed prophets of God are doing? The similarities are striking.

    I suppose I shouldn’t “touch” this guy because he’s obviously performing “signs and wonders,” and to millions of biblically illiterate experience-chasers, this proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’s anointed.

    Dr. Bartlett even has testimonials like faith healers have.

    Here is some additional material.

    by

    Strange fire.

    I am sure some of the people in the following two videos sincerely believe that they are participating in a form of “worship” that is acceptable to God. I grieve for them, especially the young, because I was there not too long ago myself. With very limited Biblical literacy and understanding, I too was swept up in all the emotion that these kinds of “shows” are designed to create. I was front and center to the wolves in the pulpits and the snakes with the guitars who were drumming up false fire and false excitement because the Holy Spirit was not in it.

    VIDEO 1

    The deep doctrinal truths found in the lyrics of Rick Pino’s worship music reflects the deep doctrinal truths found in Todd Bentley’s messages.

    If you can get through the first 4 minutes of annoyingly juvenile repetitious “worship,” you get even more annoyingly juvenile repetitious “worship.”

    HT: Dale McAlpine

    See another, more deeply disturbing, Bentley “worship” service here on this previous post.

    VIDEO 2

    And if the first video isn’t bad enough, Mr. Pino caters to the lusts of the flesh as he takes an 80’s secular song and interjects the name Jesus into it.

    “Jesus spins you ’round like a record” (where’s that in Scripture?). But it’s what he makes the people do with their socks–in the name of Jesus–that’s really disturbing.

    See more foolishness from Rick Pino here.

    by

    How to make your husband a false convert and cause your kids to reject the Christian faith.

    Worldly wisdom from a Christian women’s magazine

    on a matter already addressed in Scripture.

    My wife still receives the magazine Today’s Christian Woman after subscribing to it a couple years ago (before we knew better). TCW is published by Christianity Today (which is a perfect name for it because it bears no resemblance to the Christianity of yesterday). TCW’s target audience is mainstream, affluent, suburban, women of the Laodicean church.

    In their latest July/August issue, I came across a little blurb designed to help women get their unregenerate husbands into a church to warm a seat. I decided to reprint the blurb (which was adapted from a book) below for the readers of DefCon to see how far American Christianity has fallen.

    Pew Partners.

    Wish your spouse spent Sunday mornings with you? Choose a church with these man-friendly characteristics.

    * Large congregation

    * No denominational affiliation

    * Strict Scriptural adherence

    * Young, multiracial crowd

    * Authoritative, male pastor

    * Informal dress

    * Modern technology

    * Fun services

    Adapted from How Women Help Men Find God by David Murrow (Thomas Nelson)

    Granted, not all of the suggestions are bad, but the overall theme is what’s of concern (how much poison would you like in your glass of water?).

    I can’t help but wonder what a mess this will create if someone follows this and it works. Instead of an unregenerate man who stays at home on Sunday mornings who could still possibly be reached with the gospel one day, you now have an unregenerate man sitting in a circus church on Sunday mornings who was manipulated into church by his wife and had his fleshly needs catered to by the ear-tickling pastor during one of those great modern technological church extravaganza shows.

    Furthermore, the husband is now inoculated from the true gospel because he thinks himself in good standing with God because he’s begun attending church, (and no one in that church would dare challenge him to examine himself daily because that would be “judging”).

    This spiritual self-deception will only be furthered if the husband ends up repeating a lifeless prayer of salvation after hearing a non-threatening, positive, upbeat, message on the life-lessons of King David during one of those “fun services” in which the pastor coaxed the audience to “try Jesus, He’ll make your life better.”

    Sadly, unless a true conversion has taken place, this man will just be “playing church” and everything will remain the same as it was at home before he began attending church. His kids will grow up understanding what a true hypocrite looks like because daddy doesn’t act in church the way he acts throughout the rest of the week. This will more than likely turn his kids off to the Faith and they may rebel and reject Christianity based off this experience of growing up with a fake Christian in their midst.

    But what does the Scriptures say about how a godly wife is to handle her unbelieving husband? Surprisingly it makes no mention of church attendance at all:

    In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior.  (1 Peter 3:1-2)

    Ahh, so according to Scripture, the real work is done in the home–in your everyday life–not in some church that caters to men’s needs.

    By following the clear command of Scripture it would be better for the wife to remain faithful to the Lord’s instruction and not compromise, capitulate, and water-down her witness by resorting to manipulation in order to get dad to merely be a presence in a church.

    It would be better for her children to grow up seeing the contrast between a godly mother and an ungodly father, and learn from their mother’s steadfast faithfulness to do what is commanded of her in Scripture. The above suggestions from TCW, however, would have the kids grow up with mom the compromiser of the faith, and dad the hypocrite of the faith.

    What a train wreck we create when we attempt to do the job of the Holy Spirit and cajole, trick, manipulate, and force people into the kingdom of God via church attendance. But hey, all that matters is you got your “pew partner,” right?

    by

    Archbishop of Canterbury: ‘Christian doctrine is offensive to Muslims’

    Mail Online

    Source: Mail Online

    In a highly conciliatory letter to Islamic leaders calling for an alliance between the two faiths for ‘the common good’, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, pronounced that not only is Christian doctrine offensive to Muslims, but that the Christian belief in the Trinity – that God is Father, Son and Holy Ghost at the same time – ‘is difficult, sometimes offensive, to Muslims’.

    The Archbishop went on to push an ecumenical social ‘gospel’, saying:

    ‘We can together speak for those who have no voice or leverage in society – for the poorest, the most despised, the least powerful, for women and children, for migrants and minorities; and even to speak together for the great encompassing reality that has no voice of its own, our injured and abused material environment.’

    Where’s that heckler who ranted against Gene Robinson when we need him, again?

    Source: Mail Online.

    by

    Another sad example of pragmatic church marketing.

    For those who read my previous post on horrendous church ads and billboards (found here), I have one more to add. Behold the following sign which declares this church “Ichabod!”

    So my question is this: What is the context of the sign?

    1. Beatles-style worship.

    2. Beatles-led worship (like this Elvis-led worship).

    Or

    3. The worship of the Beatles.

    by

    Does Anyone Else Find This Weird?

    At WorldNetDaily’s Weekend Commentary, Jonathan Falwell wrote about the increasing revulsion of the Bible and how the United States has, as a nation, discounted and ignored God’s Word. He concluded by exhorting Christians to continue reaching out despite the fact that the world will hate us and revile God’s Truth.

    Well said, Pastor, though I found this a little disturbing yet slightly amusing as I finished reading your article:

    REMINDER: On Aug. 11-13, the historic Thomas Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Va., will host the Innovate Church conference, with “The Purpose-Driven Life” author Rick Warren serving as our headline speaker. Other special guests include: Chuck Colson, Tom Mullins, Jim Cymbala and Ed Stetzer.

    It makes me wonder what your stance is, really. On one hand you decry the revulsion of God’s Truth and exhort many to boldly go forth with it, yet on the other hand you have invited one man — Rick Warren who not only waters down the Gospel but preaches another — to your church to “… empower and energize the ministries of pastors, pastors’ wives, church staff members and lay leaders across our nation”?

    Is it me or is there a sharp contrast between what he writes and what he seems to subscribe to?