The Great Conflict

By Justin Edwards

Loran Livingston teaches on the Woman, Child, and Dragon from Revelation 12:1-17 as the When Christ Returns series continues.  Reading this chapter reveals that Israel is the focus of the Great Tribulation period that will ultimately result in the national salvation of God's people. While individual Jews are coming to the cross of Jesus Christ during this dispensation of grace (the Church Age), all living Jews by the end of the Great Tribulation will recognize Him as their Lord and Savior.

The Lord Jesus Christ is coming any moment for His Church. Are you making your calling and election sure? Do you have biblical assurance of your salvation? Time is of the essence to make sure you are in right standing with God through His Son Jesus Christ. It's time to get off the fence if you have one foot in the world and one foot in heaven - because remember, Satan owns the fence.

Don't be left behind to face what the Bible describes as the most evil and destructive time this world has ever known. Be certain that you will spend the rest of eternity with Jesus Christ. Come to Him with nothing in your hands. He's waiting on you. Repent and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ today, for today might be the last day you have the chance. 

Today's message is by mp3: The Great Coflict

How to Witness to Jehovah's Witnesses

By Justin Edwards

They knock on your door every so often. They knocked on mine last Saturday morning, but unfortunately I was in the backyard and didn't know they were there until they left. They are the "Jehovah's" Witnesses and they need Jesus. So many Christians are afraid to engage in a conversation with them or simply choose to ignore them. But because they need Jesus, they need us to share the truth with them in love, not avoid them.

The following 2-part video from The Way of the Master will help you gain better understanding of this cult and equip you to witness to these false witnesses. These lost people are diligent in sharing their religion with others and have hijacked a name that every Christian should own. We are the true witnesses of Jehovah. Be bold in your faith and equip yourself to share the love of Jesus Christ with anyone who knocks on your door, especially "Jehovah's" Witnesses."

Christian or Christ-follower?

From Lighthouse Trails Research

Christian or Christ-follower. It’s a distinction that is being made more and more today, and often the latter term, Christ follower, is replacing the former term, Christian. Even many Christian leaders are making the switch. But just what does it mean? Emerging church leader, Erwin McManus says his “goal is to destroy Christianity as a world religion and be a recatalyst for the movement of Jesus Christ.” In McManus’ book, The Barbarian Way, he talks about being “awakened” to a “primal longing that … waits to be unleashed within everyone who is a follower of Jesus Christ.” McManus says that the “greatest enemy to the movement of Jesus Christ is Christianity [i.e., Christians].” A video series on YouTube.com called “Christian No More” (by Christian Community Church) exemplifies this view by portraying those who call themselves Christians as shallow church-goers who wear suits and ties, have Christian bumper stickers on their cars and prefer the King James Version. This belittling video is evidence that it is increasingly more popular to call oneself a Christ follower rather than a Christian.

Interestingly, most of the leaders who seem to be downplaying the name Christian and promoting the appropriation of the term “Christ follower” are contemplative spirituality proponents. One contemplative advocate, Rick Warren, had the term throughout his former pastors.com website. Lee Strobel refers to it in his book Case for Christ (Student Edition), and Wesleyan pastor David Drury has a Christ-Follower Pop Quiz on his web site to help determine if you are really a “Christ Follower.”

This theme of anti-”Christian” sentiment is not going to disappear any time soon. In emerging church leader and labyrinth promoter Dan Kimball’s book called, “They Like Jesus, But Not the Church,” the idea is that you can go for Jesus, but you don’t have to identify yourself as a Christian or part of the Christian church. This concept spills over into some missionary societies too, where they teach people from other religions that they can keep their religion, just add Jesus to the equation. They don’t have to embrace the term “Christian” (see The New Missiology).

So what’s the problem? So what if you want to be a Christ follower instead of a Christian. Well, the problem, when identified, will show you why the Spiritual Formation movement (which is promoted by Purpose Driven, Willow Creek, the emerging church, etc) is so dangerous and misleading.

Let us explain. If you have researched the teachings of contemplative authors, you may have noticed a common message. That message says: If you want to be like Christ, then practice these certain disciplines and you can be like Him. Chuck Swindoll bought into this when he wrote his book, So You Want to Be Like Christ: Eight Essential Disciplines to Get You There. But Swindoll exalts one particular discipline – the silence. In fact, he goes so far as to say you can’t become a deep, meaningful Christian without it. Beth Moore, in the pro-contemplative film, Be Still, says: “[I]f we are not still before Him [God], we will never truly know to the depths of the marrow of our bones that He is God. There’s got to be a stillness.” And this is what contemplatives teach. The one common thread woven throughout spiritual formation teachings is that the silence and being a Christ follower are practically synonymous. You can’t have one without the other. And of course, this silence is induced through meditative practices such as centering prayer, lectio divina, etc.

So what we are witnessing is countless teachers, authors and leaders telling people they can become like Richard Foster teaches that anyone, not just believers, can practice contemplative prayer and become like Christ. Christ through a method that can be learned.

Now here lies the difference between a Christian and a Christ-follower. A person who is truly born-again has Jesus Christ indwelling him. Jesus lives inside that person. And it is His life in him or her that gives the power to become progressively more like Him (sanctification), as Paul said in his address to Corinthian Christians: “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (II Corinthians 3:18). The believer draws his strength and power from Jesus Christ (who indwells him), and he realizes his salvation and any good thing in him is from Christ; as the Scripture says: “Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:9).

But being born again or having the indwelling of Jesus Christ is not a prerequisite for the Christendom of today. Spiritual formation can be practiced by anyone. Jesus becomes a model or an example who can be followed and mimicked. For example, Ken Blanchard, says Jesus is a perfect model to follow. That’s why he talks so much about leading like Jesus would lead. But Blanchard has shown time and again that he believes meditation is a key factor in becoming like Jesus.

While Jesus was and is a model, that wasn’t His primary mission. And when people refer to Him as a model, it is often because they see Him as a model for higher consciousness rather than the unique Son of God, Emmanuel (God with us) who came to die for us and be our Savior. And that’s what you find across the board in contemplative writings. Contemplative icons Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen saw Jesus in this manner. This is why Nouwen said it disturbed him when he heard people say Jesus was the only way. He said it was his mission to help people find his or her own way to God (see Sabbatical Journey). That’s also why he saw India as a source for many spiritual “treasures” for the Christian. 1 In an eastern religion like Buddhism, Buddha was a model where his followers were imitators of him. But in Christianity the Spirit of Christ indwells us through faith. So Jesus becomes more than a model; He is a living presence in us. “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

This is actually the heart of the whole spiritual formation movement. It supposedly teaches you how to be like Christ, but the power to do this doesn’t come from Jesus Christ living in you (in fact that isn’t a requirement, according to Richard Foster) – but the power to change has to come from somewhere. Where? It comes from meditation! So anyone at all, from any walk of life, from any religion, can be a “Christ follower.” But this does not mean they have Jesus Christ in them. The contemplative prayer movement is misguiding millions into believing that if they practice certain disciplines they can be like Christ, thus securing their spiritual well being. They may come to believe that they have a christ consciousness and are Christ like, yet they do not have the actual power of Christ within. That power can only come from the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name (John 1:12).

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek (Romans 1:16).

For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God (I Corinthians 1:18).

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come … Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof” (II Timothy 3:1,5).

The man who virtually wrote the book on the subject (Centering Prayer), Basil Pennington, made the point of what we are trying to say when he penned these words:
 

It is my sense, from having meditated with persons from many different [non-Christian] traditions, that in the silence we experience a deep unity. When we go beyond the portals of the rational mind into the experience, there is only one God to be experienced.

Another major contemplative promoter stated:

The new ecumenism involved here is not between Christian and Christian, but between Christians and the grace of other intuitively deep religious traditions.–Tilden Edwards

These two men have both been leaders of the contemplative prayer movement for decades. And it is important to note that evangelical leader Richard Foster endorsed Edwards’ book, Spiritual Friend, from which this last quote came (see back, Celebration of Discipline). Both Pennington and Edwards would call themselves Christ followers, following in the same spiritual path as Jesus Christ followed. But as you can see, both Pennington and Edwards do not accept the view that believing the gospel is a vital prerequisite for having a relationship with the living God. Otherwise they would not have said the above. With this mindset, the message of the cross is rendered useless. And so the question that we must ask ourselves is this: Will we, who have Jesus Christ living in us, call ourselves Christians? Let those of us who name the name of Christ, stand and say, yes, we will be called Christians.

For a complete analysis and documentation of contemplative spirituality and its infiltration into Christendom, we encourage you to read A Time of Departing.

Spiritual Gifts

By Mike Ratliff

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. (Ephesians 4:11-14 ESV)

There is little doubt that there are some in leadership positions in the visible church that are there because of their natural abilities rather than the fact that God has gifted them to lead His people. If the latter were the case, they would not be leading their followers into apostasy as the passage I placed at the top of this post clearly states. Those gifted by God to be true leaders in His Church have the role and responsibility to do what? They are to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Why?

It is so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, et cetera. Meditate on that my brethren then compare it with the apostate teaching such as Spiritual Formation, which is just another term for transcendental meditation, which is not Christian, but Eastern Mysticism. Along with that, there are all forms of universalism and Christian liberalism being taught right now being called Christianity and it is from these very things that the true called and gifted Christian leader is to equip those under his care to learn to turn from and not be deceived by their lies.

The Apostle Paul wrote about Spiritual Gifts in three of his Epistles. One I placed at the top of this post. The others are Romans and 1 Corinthians.

Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. (Romans 12:6-8 ESV)

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:7-10 ESV)

And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:28 ESV)

In the passage I placed at the top of this post, Ephesians 4:11-14, we see that God gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers. We also see why He gave them. Compare this with these three passages. Of course, the context is different in each passage because Paul was explaining something unique, but if we look at all four of these passages together we get a clear picture that it is God who gifts His people to be His leaders. He gives the leaders the gifts they need to obey Him whatever role He assigns them. These gifts differ according to the grace given to each recipient which is actually the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. God has appointed in the Church what is needed. If we see shipwreck all over the visible church then what must we deduce from this? Are people misusing their gifts? Are God’s gifts not enough?

No, God’s Church is quite healthy. The visible church is not. This is the combination of the counterfeit church and the real Church. The reason apostasy appears to be so rampant is that the counterfeit part has grown so much larger and more visible. There are still God’s people who have not bowed the knee to Baal nor sacrificed their children to Molech.

Those of us truly in Christ must continually turn from evil as we continually turn to our Lord and serve Him in all we do. In this, God will use us and our gift(s) as He sees fit. I was in a discussion the other day with some friends and we became amused because it became apparent that we were all pretty much a bunch of what the visible church would classify as nobodies. However, we were the ones whom it appears God is using to shine His light of truth into the darkness because those well-known Christian leaders who should be leading the way are not doing it. Even if God does us me and my friends this way, I know that I am still a nobody in the Kingdom of God and my Saviour is Lord of All and all the glory goes to Him.

Soli Deo Gloria!

(HT: Possessing the Treasure)

Ed Young Jr. and Twilight Sermon Series?

From The Museum of Idolatry

In an attempt to stop the bleeding (sagging attendance figures), Ed Young, Jr. has decided to see if he can surf the Twilight pop-culture wave. Who knew that Twilight and Biblical Christianity had sooooo much in common?

Here are the details regarding the sermon series from the the Fellowship "Church" website:

As life unfolds along the path before us, we often find ourselves seeking connection, hope, love. But it’s more than a desire to find the right feeling. Our deepest desire is to know…and to be known. Ultimately, we want to discover the potential, the presence and the power of romance.

In this series, Ed Young takes a unique look at romance throughout Scripture. And he shows us the reality that true romance from God’s perspective is about much more than a fleeting feeling of infatuation. It’s the very thing that can help us experience love, meaning and direction every day.

We're sure this will be a blockbuster "sermon" series.

Watch the video promo here: Twilight the Sermon Series?

National Conference on Christian Apologetics 2010

By Justin Edwards

This year's National Conference on Christian Apologetics is October 15-16 in Charlotte, NC. The theme of the conference will be Defending Faith and Family that will include a variety of important issues with special emphasis on practical ways in which individuals and families may effectively impact today's culture. From the website:

Defending Faith and Family

"The Family and Church are God's fundamental building blocks for society. Without solid families and strong Christian underpinnings the breakdown in culture will be rapid and devastating. Christians may be tempted to be discouraged as we look at the societal chaos produced by the collapse of the family. Without right thinking on faith and family, society will be riddled with problems. What is the answer? Families are built on one's view of God and truth. One's view of God will inform every area of life including the family.

Are your views of God and family true or just your opinion? That is, do your ideas of Faith and Family correspond to reality?

Join us at this conference as we examine the roots of good thinking about God and family. Is Christianity a feeling or is it fact supported by science, psychology, theology, ethics, metaphysics, and more? Examine the evidence for the truth of Christianity. Learn about the false ideas that are undermining the family and how to correct them. World class teachers, including the faculty of Southern Evangelical Seminary, will teach you how to explain and defend biblical views on abortion, same-sex marriage, concepts of human nature, and more that Christians face in today's fast moving world. Gain confidence in the foundational thinking behind a clear and consistent biblical worldview.

Christianity is inseparable from good thinking, good thinking results from good teaching, and good teaching starts in the family.

Come to NCCA 2010 East Coast and hear the best Christian thinkers of our day inspire and teach you how to strengthen your faith as you explore apologetics and its impact on the family.

We strongly believe that apologetics integrated into Christian thinking (theology) is essential not only in your personal relationship with Jesus, but also in your family. We should not expect a great move of God to happen in this age without the strengthening of the family. This will affect church discipleship, evangelism, societal stability, and revival.

Therefore, it is necessary that families repent of intellectual laziness and begin to embrace the mind God has given us and promote the apologetics enterprise from within their homes. This conference is about just that--the integration of apologetics and the family.

Attendees will hear top scholars address a variety of important issues, including the Christian worldview, moral relativism, homosexuality/gay marriage, responding to belief systems that oppose Christianity, moral purity/sexual abstinence, ethical issues, stem cell research, the sanctity of human life, and more.

Also, sessions will be offered to equip Christians to share their faith confidently and effectively, facts about the trustworthiness and authenticity of the Bible, the resurrection, and ancient evidence for the life of Christ, absolute truth, and why it matters, Creation vs. evolution, overcoming spiritual doubts, how to reach skeptics with the Gospel, a Christian response to Islam, answering atheism/agnosticism, a Christian response to cults (such as Jehovah’s Witnesses), a Christian response to the occult (such as wicca or witchcraft), responding to popular media themes related to the Christian faith [such as popular books like The God Delusion and Misquoting Jesus], and more."

Speakers will include:

Josh McDowell

Dinesh D'Souza

William Dembski

Erwin Lutzer

Gary Habermas

Chuck Colson

Marvin Olasky

Alex McFarland

Hugh Ross

Sean McDowell

John Stonestreet

Ryan Dobson

Mike Licona

Warren Cole Smith

Frank Turek

William Federer

Richard Howe

Janet Mefferd

Anthony Bradley

Doug Beaumont

J. T. Bridges

Nora Hale

Jason Reed

Closing the session will be a debate on "Do Jews Need to Believe in Jesus" between Dr. Michael Brown and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach.

This conference will sell out quickly so purchase your tickets as soon as possible.

For additional information on topics, speakers, schedule, location, and registration, please see: National Apologetics Conference 2010

Anne Rice and True Christianity

By pastorboy

Today I quit being a Christian. I’m out. I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being “Christian” or to being part of Christianity. It’s simply impossible for me to “belong” to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten …years, I’ve tried. I’ve failed. I’m an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else.

I quit being a Christian. I’m out. In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. In the name of …Christ, I quit Christianity and being Christian. Amen.

This announcement by Anne Rice shocked me in two ways. Number one, I never knew that she was a Christian. I am not so shocked that she claims to be one, for many people claim to be Christian, and many of those simply are not if we were to judge in truth (John 6:24). My judgment would be simply based on the content of the writing she is famous for, like Interview with the Vampire, which is vampirism at best, satanism at worst, and writing that Christians should avoid reading. Why? Light simply can not fellowship with darkness.

15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

Belial is another name for Satan, but also is translated wickedness. Vampirism is on the rise in our society due to the popularity of the twilight series. Anne Rice is the Grandmother of the movement, however. We can see the impact this type of literature has had on teen culture, even those who claim to be Christian as Anne Rice claimed.

If you read between the lines, Anne Rice seems like she is saying that she is opposed to a false picture of Christianity painted by those who observe what passes for true Christianity today. I have a few objections to her statements about what Christianity is.

1. Catholicism is not Christianity Anne Rice was raised Catholic, and I do not know if this is what she refers to as Christianity. Catholic doctrine and dogma is not Christian. It has some Christianity mixed in, but at its roots is pagan. The evidence is in the perverse behavior of a growing number of priests. Not only that, all you need do is look at the history of the institution to see that it has a form of godliness, but denies the power. I know some Catholics who are Christian, but that is a very small minority.
2. Being a Christian requires conversion: Jesus said “you must be born again”. This is not an act you can decide to do, it is an act by which God regenerates a spiritually dead person by His grace (Ephesians 2:1-10). In this conversion, a person becomes a new creature in Christ (1 Corinthians 5:17) and begins to walk according to the spirit, and not according to the flesh. (Galatians 5). They have been crucified with Christ, and they no longer live, but Christ lives in them (Galatians 2:20) This is evidenced by their bearing fruit in keeping with repentance (Galatians 5:22, John 15)
3. Conversion means change: A true Christian goes from death to life, from darkness to light. They no longer participate in the fruitless deeds of darkness.
4. Christians are not anti-gay: Christians love homosexuals and will warn them because the Bible warns them that they will not inherit the kingdom of God if they remain in sin (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) but gives them and all other sinners hope that they can be converted (1 Corinthians 6:11)
5. Christians are not anti-feminist: Christians have done more for the rights of women than any other group. We believe in appropriate, God-ordained roles for women, but that does not make a woman anything less than a man. They are just different, and have been created to fulfill different roles than men. Women are to be honored, in fact, while wives are called to submit to and respect their husbands, husbands are called to DIE for their wives, thus demonstrating love.
6. Christians are not anti-artificial birth control (see # 1 above) We are against the murder of an unborn child through birth control pills with an abortive element in them. Using other non-harmful forms of birth control is not specifically condemned in the Bible.
7. Christians are not anti-democrat: However, many democrats are pro-abortion. Many Christians vote their conscience, and cannot see how a person can be pro-murder (abortion) and be a Christian (see 1 Cor 6:9-10 again)
8. Christians are against secular humanism God hates a prideful heart; humanism by its very nature worships humans, and this is the first and worst sin! Secular humanism transgresses the 1st and 2nd commandment. Christians are those who realize that they cannot save themselves, that they need a Savior from sin.
9. Christians are not anti-science: (see #1 above again) This is a falsehood, because God is the author of science. Christians are all about science, in fact,  the Bible is full of science. We are against false science that is founded on presuppositions that there is no God.

Anne, you are not quitting Christianity, because if this is how you view Christianity, REAL Christianity, I would say that you have been following a false Christianity for quite some time.  I am glad to hear that you desire to follow Christ. Just make sure that it is the Christ as presented in the Bible, not some Christ that you create in your imagination. I recommend reading the Gospel of John, where you will find the true Jesus.  Then, Paul’s Epistle to the Romans is a great place to find our need and the provision in Jesus Christ for that need. Then, Anne, obey what you read. I think you will find that the modern version of Christianity is what you want to abandon, and not the true faith in the Bible.

(HT: CRN)