heresy

by

Dangerous pragmatism.

I just read a great article on why a transformed life is not proof of salvation that I highly recommend to all DefCon readers. It is well thought-out, well-written, and can be found here at Better Than Sacrifice.

Here’s an excerpt:

The seed which fell upon stony ground appeared to burst into life – it ‘immediately sprang up’. Why? ‘Because there was no depth’. Far from the immediate flourishing of growth being an indicator of eventual fruit, that growth was caused by the seed falling upon unprepared ground. This is sobering; the implication is that a quick conversion – an abundance of early growth – might very well prove to be ill-grounded. . . .  The seed which fell on stony ground is likened to one who hears the Word and immediately receives it with joy. Yet there is no depth there, no true understanding of what has been declared.

If this is sometimes the case with those who hear the true Word of the Kingdom, properly proclaimed, how plainly this exposes the dangers of our modern watered-down presentations of man’s sinful state. Rather than risk offending people by telling them of the wrath of a holy and just God toward sinners, we instead talk of having ‘made mistakes’ and ‘messed up our lives’. Instead of warning of the coming judgement, we tell people that God loves them, omitting any mention of His holiness and justice. Rather than call sinners to repent, we entice them with the offer of a better, more abundant life.

And thus we emasculate the Gospel, robbing it of its majesty and power. For if God is not angry with sinners, the punishment of His Son in their place on the cross can make no sense. Truly, it is this kind of diluted evangelism that results in false converts, lacking depth and with no understanding of the amazing grace that has been poured out upon sinners through the cross of Jesus Christ.

The Church’s task is not to make the Gospel palatable to unbelievers. It is to preach repentance and the forgiveness of sins in Christ so clearly that the offence of the Gospel – Christ crucified in our place, the just suffering for the unjust – is plain to everyone who hears.

Our message should be such that it is impossible for anyone to accept, except the Holy Spirit be at work supernaturally in people’s lives. The Church is charged with preaching the Law in all its severity to frighten comfortable sinners, and then to comfort frightened sinners with the Gospel.

HT: CrossTalkBlog

by

Quotes (769)

“The ways of destroying the church are many and colorful. Raw factionalism will do it. Rank heresy will do it. Taking your eyes off the cross and letting other, more peripheral matters dominate the agenda will do it-admittedly more slowly than frank heresy, but just as effectively over the long haul. Building the church with superficial ‘conversions’ and wonderful programs that rarely bring people into a deepening knowledge of the living God will do it.

Entertaining people to death but never fostering the beauty of holiness or the centrality of self-crucifying love will build an assembling of religious people, but it will destroy the church of the living God. Gossip, prayerlessness, bitterness, sustained biblical illiteracy, self-promotion, materialism-all of these things, and many more, can destroy a church. And to do so is dangerous: ‘If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple (1 Cor. 3:17).’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

D.A. Carson

by

A Mormon explains the LDS gospel (or the lack thereof).

It was two years ago (July 2008) that a Mormon named Keith visited us on a post regarding Faith and Works. During this discussion I tried to get Keith to explain how I could be saved if I only had a few minutes to live. Keith did a lot of talking (including changing the conversation, accusing me of trying to manipulate him, and accusing me of asking a trick question), but he never answered the question.

I decided to publish this discussion (with all of our typos) in this post to show you exactly how Mormonism advances “another” gospel; one that gives false hope to a dying man, if any hope at all.

You can check out the entire conversation (and how it began) by checking on the comments section of this post from December of 2007.

When you get to the end of the discussion, if you are still perplexed as to what one has to do to “be right with God” according to Mormonism, the answers are actually listed here: Requirements for Mormon salvation.

Enjoy the conversation.

_________________________________

Ok, Keith, here it goes:

It’s late at night.

You hear something at your front door.

You investigate.

You find me laying on your porch step covered in blood.

You see a blood trail where I dragged myself which leads to the street where fresh skid marks are present on the asphalt.

I was just hit by a car that sped off.

You call to your wife to dial 911 and you kneel down to offer any assistance that you can.

I only have a few minutes left to live (and by your estimation of my condition you know it’s true).

I’m in fear of facing God and I ask you one simple question.

“How do I get saved?”

You’ve got five minutes.

The clock is ticking . . .

– The Pilgrim

Keith says:

Ok, this is a trick question for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but this is what I will say. My dear friend you are not lost because God in his wisdom has made a plan for every one of his children. Your acceptance of Jesus Christ at this time will be to your great advantage and your sorrow and asking for forgiveness for your sins will be of merit for you. When you get to other side you will find that you still have an opportunity to learn of his work. Through the miracle of the restoration of the Gospel the Lord has made it possible that your baptism can still be done and you can upon meeting the requirements have the blessings of the Gospel in your life. Now Pilgrim, rejoice in the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ because it is through him that you will live again and receive his great blessings. I love him and I want you to know that I know that he lives and that through him you will be resurrected and can receive forgiveness of your sins and be accepted into his presence. Now should we pray together and ask for God to hear your plea.

As you know Pilgrim your understanding of the term of salvation and mine are different and just because we understand the same scriptures differently does not make me wrong and you right. I am interested in your reply.

Continue reading →

by

Independence Day and the state of the church in America.

Today marks the 234th anniversary of our nation’s birth, but this occasion brings to mind two problems that I see within Christendom; both of which have the same solution.

Firstly, why do we (every year at this time) feel the need to mix nationalism with the church? On this Sunday, Christians will be running from church to BBQs and parties; some won’t even need to leave the church property as all the festivities will be rolled into one like a church in my local area advertising the events they’re having at their “community freedom festival” which include:

Pony rides / Face painting / Food and drinks / Sno-cones, popcorn, cotton candy / Games and prizes / Bounce houses / Giant slide / Dunk tank / Crafts for the kids / Live music / And much more.

Remember, dear readers, this is a “church.” The only reference on their advertisement that has anything to do with Christianity (not even the name of the church indicates it’s a church) is the slogan “Christian Fellowship” under the church name. If you miss that, you won’t even know it’s a church.

Then there’sthis church’s 4th of July baptism fiasco:

“You don’t want to miss this weekend at NPC. There will be a special dueling guitar performance, spectacular pyrotechnics and hundreds of people getting dunked at Freedom Splash. It’s a great way to begin your Independence Day festivities! . . . Freedom Splash is a weekend designed for hundreds of families, adults, teenagers, and kids to get baptized. We invite you to take this step this weekend! We will have 2 giant swimming pools set up outside the main entrance. After attending service make your way out to the pools, sign in, and get baptized. . . . Jesus asked us to make our faith public by being baptized, so invite your family and friends to come and witness this step in your faith journey. You will receive an awesome Freedom Splash t-shirt to wear the day of the event (there is a $5 donation for the t-shirt, if you can’t pay still come and sign up).”

I am not opposed to celebrating Independence Day, but I am opposed to the mixture of the things of this world with the things of God, even if the thing being mixed is commendable, like patriotism.

The inescapable fact of the matter is that our nation today bears very little resemblance to that which was birthed in 1776, and I seriously doubt we will ever recover from its current state of moral and spiritual decay to return to what it once was.

Yet today, many of the messages in churches will have an Americana theme, and “God bless America” will be peppered throughout numerous sermons, as if God somehow overlooks the sin of this nation and its people because, after all, we’re Americans.

Today is the Lord’s Day, but what will be the main theme in many churches in America? I ask you to examine for yourselves what the emphasis will be on. Will it be on Christ or the country? What should the emphasis in church be on?

This leads me to my second concern: This independence day, should we be celebrating or mourning, partying or repenting? There’s an elephant in the room that no one seems to be talking about.

This, I know, will ruffle some feathers (even amongst the faithful readership of DefCon) but it needs to be said: Since when did Christianity become a political wing or special interest group?

As the masses in Christendom still seriously think they can ask God to bless this nation, they continue to hold out hope for America by means of political action. So many professing Christians I know of can spend countless hours talking politics, and countless hours working toward obtaining the desired results of the next election, yet how many of them talk about the Gospel with those same family members, neighbors, and friends?

I’ve bullet-pointed a few more of my concerns:

–  How much time and effort do Christians spend on politics compared to Bible reading, prayer, family devotions, evangelism, etc?

– Are there any politicians who—if they win—would really make a difference? Look at how many elections we’ve had since Roe v. Wade (many of which put pro-life Republicans into power), yet the genocide of the most innocent and defenseless class in our society rages on as we “legally” put more children to death daily than the terrorists had killed on 9/11.

– Are there any politicians who—like many who founded this country—are selfless in their political endeavors? Can you (honestly) name one politician who is involved in politics for the people and not for their own greed and self-interests? If you can, then I ask you, “Do they have a chance of winning?”

– What are Christians fighting in the political arena for? If they elected every person on the ballot that they thought was the best for our country, would it really change anything? Would they be capable of renewing the hearts of the people?

– Be careful what you wish for: You want to elect people who will re-institute school prayer? If they reversed the ban today, I fear your children in the government schools would be bowing to Mecca tomorrow.

– What is more important and has greater eternal consequences? The spreading of your politics views, or the preaching of Christ and Him crucified?

– How do you ever expect to reach your unsaved neighbor or coworker (the one who happens to be a staunch liberal democrat) when they see your car plastered with political bumper stickers and your front lawn littered with campaign signs, all of which advance a political worldview that is in complete opposition to their political world view? Have you not already polarized them before they meet you and have you not already turned them off to any other message you may bring before you even open your mouth?

– Is it politics and social issues that are the power unto salvation, or is it the Gospel?

– How much does evangelism suffer because politics reigns supreme in the lives of so many Christians?

My plea is that we will remove our heads out of the political sand. We will not change the inevitable course this country is on (if you can’t see the handwriting on the wall, you’re not paying attention).

In just my generation alone, homosexuality went from a taboo, to being embraced, to being celebrated, to being a morally virtuous lifestyle, to laws being passed that make those who oppose it fit to be charged criminally for “hate crimes” (as if there’s such a thing as a “love crime”). Mark my words, you will not stop the current tide no matter how politically active you are. Homosexual marriage will become a reality in this country; abortion will continue in this country; spiritual decline and carnal decadence will continue in this country, no matter who gets elected.

History shows that when a nation gets to where we are, it crumbles from the inside and is soon taken over by other nations that only had to sit back and wait for the moral rot to hollow out our foundations. (There’s even suggestions that this nation has already been abandoned by God, in spite of our plethora of “God bless America” bumper stickers, hats, and t-shirts.)

Jesus, the Disciples, and even the Apostle Paul never tried to change hearts by political action, nor did they try to legislate morality in the Roman world. They were too busy preaching “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Yet American Christianity is too busy to preach the Gospel because they are so enamored and preoccupied with worldly politics.

Let me ask you, how many people do you expect to see in heaven because of your political efforts? Is God more glorified through the preaching of His Son, or through the preaching of the benefits and virtues of the latest political flavor of the month?

I’d like to conclude by clarifying what this missive is NOT about. Unfortunately I must do this because blogging experience has taught me that my words will be misunderstood and even twisted to create arguments that I never advanced:

– I am NOT against attending (or even hosting) Independence Day parties and BBQs; I’m simply saying that worldly celebrations should not be mingled (and ultimately eclipse) Jesus Christ on the Lord’s Day (or any other day for that matter).

– I do NOT rejoice at seeing what America has come to. I do NOT like when bad things happen to it. I am terribly sad to see what it has become and am angered when it is attacked. It still hurts to ponder the events of 9/11.

– I do NOT hate this country. This is the country of my birth and I have always been happy to live here. I still get teary-eyed during the playing of the Star Spangled Banner and Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA.

I love what this country was, but am grieved by what it’s become. The country we have today is not the country that was founded by this nation’s forefathers, and there’s nothing you or I can do to stop or reverse the condition we find ourselves in. Instead, I urge you to return to your first love, the Lord Jesus Christ. Turn your affections once again to Him, His Church, and to the work of building up His kingdom—not by worldly Dominionst means—but by making disciples.

We should be identified first and foremost by our religion, not our politics. And our ultimate allegiance should not be to a political party, a flag, or a nation, but to the Lamb of God who is worthy to receive honor, and glory, and power, forever and ever, Amen.

See also: Has the Religious Right lost its voice in American politics?

_______________________________________________________

by

Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.

If you only watch one documentary on Islam, make it Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.

I’ve included all ten parts of this shocking documentary below, including the film trailer and a clip of what those in the media are saying about it.

What the news media is saying about the film:

Film Trailer:

Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.

Part One:

Part Two:


Part Three:

Part Four:


Part Five:


Part Six:


Part Seven:


Part Eight:


Part Nine:


Part Ten:



by

Examining the Christian Horror novel genre with Ted Dekker’s “The Bride Collector.”

In the past, we’ve covered such oxymoronic concepts as Christian Goth, Christian Fight Clubs, Christian Spice Girls performances, and Christian Poker Tournaments, now the latest incompatible hobby to distract cultural Christians is Christian Horror.

Kevin Swanson, in this 26-minute audio clip, takes on one such novel by Ted Dekker entitled The Bride Collector. You will be shocked at what this book is about, especially when you understand that it’s written by an author professing to be a Christian and being marketed to readers who profess to be Christians.

“We get all excited when we find Christians who are out there making an impact on culture and politics and stuff. But what happens when their worldview is far more humanistic than Christian. . . when their metaphysical construct presents man as sovereign, and God as a little wimpy dude who just loves everybody?

“Kevin Swanson wades into the Christian horror genre, and analyzes one of the most popular Christian writers of the day. What happens when ill-equipped Christians wander into the war of the worldviews? It’s a bloody mess!”

by

Mormon church releases statement on Blood Atonement.

The ever-changing mainstream Mormon church has taken yet one more step to distance themselves from the original teachings of their church. This is just another step to appear more “Christian” as they reject the doctrinal roots of their founders. Can anyone recognize Mormonism anymore?

Here’s the very brief article:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released this statement Wednesday:

In the mid-19th century, when rhetorical, emotional oratory was common, some church members and leaders used strong language that included notions of people making restitution for their sins by giving up their own lives.

However, so-called “blood atonement,” by which individuals would be required to shed their own blood to pay for their sins, is not a doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We believe in and teach the infinite and all-encompassing atonement of Jesus Christ, which makes forgiveness of sin and salvation possible for all people.

Source: Deseret News

Could the timing of this press release have anything to do with this week’s execution by firing squad of Ronnie Lee Gardner in Utah?

<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>


Find out more about the truth of Mormonism’s doctrine of Blood Atonement from these previous DefCon posts:

The Mormon doctrine of Blood Atonement as taught from the mouth of (Mormon Prophet) Brigham Young.

The Doctrine of Blood Atonement as taught by the Mormon organization.

by

One of the oddest videos around.

This is one of those videos that’s beyond words. It leaves you wondering what in the world did I just witness?

A Little Leaven calls it “Misadventures in Liturgical Dance,” but I call it “A Romish Mess.”

by

“Chuck Smith, Calvary Chapel, and their Ignorance Fest on Calvinism.”

As a follow-up to Brother Michael’s previous post on Chuck Smith (found here), I’m presenting an audio clip of a critique that James White did in response to an audio clip of Chuck Smith and other Calvary Chapel speakers in which they attacked the Doctrines of Grace, equated Calvinists to cultists, and even opposed God’s sovereignty.

by

Film review: The Bible vs. Joseph Smith.

Joel Kramer and Sourceflix have hit another home run with their latest release, The Bible vs. Joseph Smith.

DefCon has been pleased to feature Joel Kramer’s past documentaries DNA vs. the Book of Mormon, The Bible vs. the Book of Mormon, and Lifting the Veil on Polygamy, and now The Bible vs. Joseph Smith continues in the excellence of quality, production, and product.

Joel Kramer sits down with a lifelong Mormon and puts Bible prophets and Mormon prophets to the Deuteronomy 18 test “to see which prophets are truly speaking for God.”

This video not only deals with such problems as the Book of Mormon error of stating that Jesus was born in Jerusalem, but it also deals with Joseph Smith’s problems of false prophecy, so clearly in fact, that I suggest to you that this video conclusively proves that Joseph Smith was a false prophet.

“In a conversation between a Christian and a Mormon, the prophets of both the Bible and the Book of Mormon are put head to head in a test to see which prophets are truly speaking for God. If even one prophecy fails to come true, that prophet is a false prophet, and must be put to death.”

by

Quotes (746)

Scripture declares clearly, and without a doubt, that there is only one cleansing agent for the sin of believers. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). Yet, Rome diverts its people from the Savior’s blood and instead offers a place called purgatory as a dreadfully contrived hoax.

– Mike Gendron

by

Bruce McConkie’s “Mormon Doctrine” out of print due to low sales.

For those dealing in counter-cult apologetics, if you do not have Bruce R. McConkie’s Mormon Doctrine you better get your hands on it soon, as it’s about to get harder to find and possibly more expensive to purchase. Anyone dealing with Mormons knows the value of this book, and now it will no longer be in print due to a decreased demand. I procured my copy a few years back and I won’t be selling it anytime soon.

Part of me wonders if the decision to stop printing it has anything to do with how much of the real Mormonism it reveals: God was once a man; you can become a God; the black race is cursed; Christ couldn’t atone for all sins and you yourself must atone for some of your own sins by your own shed blood just to name a few.

None of these teachings, I might add, were of McConkie’s own imagination; he merely expounded on already established LDS teachings and doctrines, even though the mainstream LDS organization has been back-peddling from many of these core Mormon doctrines in recent years as they’ve done a phenomenal job at PR in their attempt to look just like Christians. This, of course, is perplexing when you consider that the genesis of their very existence was precipitated on the idea that Christians are apostate.

Oftentimes when a non-Mormon quotes from Mormon Doctrine he is met with the typical Mormon responses that it is not authoritative, it is not scripture, it is not part of LDS canon, and it was only McConkie’s opinions. Ironically these excuses are never appealed to whenever they quote from the Mormon apostle’s work.

This selective use of LDS teachings by Mormons makes the following article from the Salt Lake Tribune even more revealing as they admit:

Although McConkie, an LDS apostle who died in 1985, took sole responsibility from the start for Mormon Doctrine ‘s content, it often was quoted over the pulpit and treated by members as quasi-official. The book, with its presumptive title, seemed to provide an answer to every question and left little room for ambiguity.

“Mormon Doctrine served two generations of the Mormon rank and file as the main authoritative source of LDS teachings,” said LDS sociologist Armand Mauss. “With its authoritative tone and constant promotion from high places, it came to be regularly cited in the church curriculum, especially in [Church Educational System] materials, and soon took on almost a scriptural stature.

You can read the entire article of the demise of McConkie’s tome on the Salt lake Tribune website by clicking here or below by clicking the following link:

Continue reading →

by

When the world gets it but the “church” doesn’t.

I just saw this news piece in which a softball coach required eight of her players to drink soda out of a shoe. The matter is being called a mistake and the coach has apologized. Yet, when “Christian” youth groups in American churches participate in drinking foot bath water and licking peanut butter out of armpits and off toes, for some reason they view this as ministry.

by

Another CCM star comes crashing to earth.

As we’ve reported on numerous occasions in the past, the rot that is underlying in the Contemporary Christian Music industry seems to keep oozing to the surface as time marches on. We’ve seen numerous examples of this and it appears that there’s no end in sight for the skeletons falling out of the closet of this “Christian” music industry.

The latest news to reverberate through today’s “positive and encouraging” Christian music world is that there is yet another Christian musician who has chosen their sin over their Savior. According to this news article, CCM recording artist Jennifer Knapp has now “come out of the closet” as a “gay Christian.”

Jennifer Knapp doesn’t consider herself to be a crusader for the gay community and she still considers herself to be a Christian, a gay Christian [Emphasis theirs]. Her new album will be a little more mainstream and she hopes her fans, Christian and non-Christian alike, will give it and her a chance.

I encourage everyone not to ridicule Ms. Knapp like some will do, or coddle and affirm her in her sin like many will do, but sincerely pray for her to be convicted of her sin and turn to the only One who can truly make her a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are all great sinners in need of a greater Savior and the fact is, if we claim to have fellowship with the Savior but walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth (1 John 1:6).

And in spite of this and many similar stories of CCM artists who have embraced their sins in contradiction to holy writ, the drumbeat continues as thousands of professing Christians will continue to thrive on intoxicating doses of Contemporary Christian Music, thrust themselves deeper into idolatrous frenzies at CCM concerts, and continue to garner most of their theology from music lyrics.

I ask, how many more Christian musical artists, icon, idols have to come forth announcing their decision to embrace and practice their love of sin before evangelicals begin taking a serious look at what they entertain themselves with?

I read a great quote from a commenter a few years ago on another blog that is so apropos:

“When I got saved I threw away all my secular music. When I really got saved I threw away all my Christian music.”

by

The Church of No Offense

[This article by Paul Proctor really speaks to so much of what we see in the church today.  The church that uses pragmatic and carnal means and foolishly believes that these flesly tools are going to do a spiritual work.  Sadly, this betrays a complete ignorance of the truth that faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God.  The word of God that likewise must be quickened or made alive by the Holy Spirit else it will fall upon deaf ears. 

But such truths are not believed by countless preachers who would rather employ gimmicks, rock and roll, skits, dramas and the like, instead of faithfully preaching the whole counsel of God’s word.  And why not because you cannot grow a successful money-making business unless you have a product that will appeal to a mass market.  Peter Drucker taught his church growth disciples well and they are doing their utmost to give the people what they want.   

Enjoy the article…brother Michael]

By Paul Proctor
April 7, 2010
NewsWithViews.com

From compromise to capitulation

There was a time during Jesus’ earthly ministry when the crowds that followed him grew quite large. He had become what we would call today, a “celebrity” and, by those same societal standards, a “success,” even though He had not yet faced the cross for which He came.

The Gospel of John tells about “a great multitude that followed Him because they saw His miracles.” When Jesus looked up one day and surveyed the enormous crowd before Him, He knew they needed to eat. So, taking “five barley loaves and two small fishes” that were found among them, He fed His followers. The men alone numbered five thousand.

Considering the seductive tactics many churches use to draw crowds these days, it is important to note that Jesus did not use food or the promise of it to bribe people into following Him. More…

by

Quotes (728)

Christian mothers too often neglect their home-centered role for the empty promises of fulfillment in the workplace, while they warehouse their children in daycare centers. Parents send their children to secular schools where God is outlawed, and they allow them to watch trashy movies and listen to vile music—and hang out with those who do the same. After years of training in the ways of rebellion through godless schooling, debauched entertainment, and peer association, Christian parents are somehow surprised when their teenagers rebel, forsaking the God of their fathers.

– Philip Lancaster

by

Easter 2010.

Last Sunday was Resurrection Sunday (Easter) and I thought I’d give you a peak at what services were like at a few churches in America.

SOS church had a message based on Avatar.

You’re invited this Easter. Bring your family and friends to come and experience CHRIST IN 3D! The one true AVATAR!

Granger church had a message based on The Matrix complete with a marching band.

You never know how GCC might open an Easter service. This year, for the “Wake Up! What if some dreams only come true when you’re awake?” series, it was a little bit of The Matrix and a marching band of volunteers performing “This Too Shall Pass.” It was an unexpected and must see arts element.

And North Point church had a laser light show described as a “spectacular Easter laser show” to kick off their “Paparazzi” theme.

If your pastor presented a doctrinally sound exposition of Scripture that exalted the risen Lord without all the distractions, consider yourself blessed and part of an ever-shrinking and endangered populace within American Christianity.

___________________________________________________

See also, last year’s DefCon post: What is the sermon topic at your church going to be for Resurrection Sunday?