Christless, Secular "Worship" Music at North Point

By Justin Edwards

A popular trend in [post]modern evangelicalism is secularizing the worship service to be more palatable to the itching ears in attendance at churches entertainment venues across America.  Whether it's Elevation Church covering Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls on Parade", or NewSpring Church covering AC/DC's "Highway to Hell", the music in many churches today is aimed at appealing to the carnal nature instead of aiming to glorify and worship the Lord Jesus Christ with pure and holy hearts.

Two Scriptures I'd like to mention before leading into the video below are from John 4:23-24:

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

and Philippians 4:8

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

With these in mind, the following video comes from Andy Stanley's North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, GA.  These talented men put together a medley of songs from musicians ranging from the last few decades, many of whom have at least one thing in common:  worldliness.  About 25 musicians were covered in the medley, including The Beatles, Elton John (twice), Beyonce, Aerosmith, Destiny's Child, Maroon 5, Jason Mraz, Bob Marley, Poison, and Whitney Houston.  Not only did these "worship" leaders sing music that had absolutely nothing to do with Christ (not that all music must, but this is church after all), but the musicians they covered very much love this world and the things of the world, whether they be homosexuals, lovers of themselves, fornicators, lovers of money, or idolaters - of whom Scripture tells us will not inherit the Kingdom of God:

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10

There is no need to go outside of Scripture to preach a message on love, especially no need to bring the world into the church to suit itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3-4).  The message preached and the music for worship must be Christ-centered, intended to build up the saints, not to stunt Gospel-centered spiritual growth. Church is to be the Christian's refuge for God-exalting worship, not a place where worldliness is accepted and praised.  While we are to go out into the world to share the Gospel with sinners such as those listed in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, church is not intended to conform to the world to make it more entertaining to sinners.  As one facebook commenter said yesterday,

What you draw them with is what you have to keep them with.

Indeed, which is to say these churches collectively show by their fruit that they love the world and the things of the world (1 John 2:15-17).  If you find yourself in one of these seeker-sensitive, postmodern, man-centered, flesh-appealing, Gospel-less, idol-worshiping, life-enhancement "churches", then you must come out from among them (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). 

We have been separated as a holy people to serve the One True Holy God, who has saved us from our sin, who has caused us to crucify our flesh with its passions and desires, and who has decreed that all believers purify themselves from the things of the world, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God (1 John 3:3; 2 Corinthians 7:1). We are to worship God in the spirit of holiness rooted in the truth of Holy Scripture, and we are to meditate on "whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, [and]...anything worthy of praise."

Let us live and worship like it, becoming holy as He is holy:

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” - 1 Peter 1:14-16

False Teacher Glenn Beck Continues to Push Pluralism and Universalism

From Worldview Weekend with Brannon Howse

We told you we would not re-visit the Glenn Beck topic unless there was a good reason to do so. Well, many of you e-mailed Brannon over the weekend and wanted to know what he thought of Glenn's September 17th TV program. So, today Brannon plays clips from the Beck program and comments. Glenn continues to push pluralism and universalism.

Topic One: Glenn's program was on the four "men" that led revolutions; Jesus, Gandhi, Moses and Martin Luther King Jr.

Topic Two: Beck says "let's talk about Him [Jesus] as a man" and then says "if He indeed is the Messiah". So Beck is not only lowering Jesus to the status of a man instead of what He was, God incarnate, but Beck also left in question whether Jesus was really the Messiah. Beck goes on to say that he has made a deep connection to all four individuals and that "their truth is so universal." Did you catch that? Beck said "their truth". This is total postmodernism and universalism. All religions cannot all be true.

Topic Three: Gandhi's grandson proclaims that at the bottom all religions are the same and even Alveda King, who claims to be a Christian, did not express any disagreement with this pluralistic propaganda. Gandhi's grandson went on to proclaim that all humanity is one. This is the belief of monism and pantheism as promoted in the Hindu religion of Gandhi.

Topic Four: Morehouse College President Dr. Robert Franklin proclaims that Martin Luther King Jr. married his beliefs of Jesus with the beliefs of Gandhi. Franklin says "Jesus provides the theory in a sense Gandhi provides practice" and Beck says "this is starting to sound almost like the Black Robe Regiment." Beck's Black Robe Regiment that consists of 240 pastors, priests, imams, and Rabbis attended the 8-28 rally and literally locked arms with each other. Are the "evangelical" pastors and leaders now ready to admit they were willing pawns for Beck's pluralistic push and promotion of universalism? What will it take before even one pastor or Christian leader separates himself from Beck's unbiblical campaign and agenda?

Topic Five: Evangelical leaders and LDS leaders have had numerous hush, hush, meetings to bridge an agreement together.

Topic Six: The merging of religions is so popular that Christianity Today magazine ran an article on how one could be a "Messianic Muslim". That is a Muslim that "accepts" Jesus but still follows Muhammad. Can you see the one-world religion coming together?(original air date, September 20, 2010 at 1pm CT)

Download mp3

Mindless Mantras are an Abomination to God

By Justin Edwards

The following article from Paul Proctor can be read in full here: Dangerous Prayers. The context of the article is in reference to a recent exchange between The View's liberal co-host, Joy Behar and conservative co-host, Elizabeth Hasselbeck. The flame war likely only served to further muddy the interfaith swamp water, but emphasizes moral relativity infiltrating main-stream churches, and more specifically, the dangerous mystical practices of contemplative spirituality (e.g. contemplative prayer). Paul Proctor on the dangers of CSM (contemplative spirituality and mysticism):

When it was all said and done, the result was a dialectic disconnect that didn’t glorify God or scripturally edify anyone, but only engaged and enraged participants while leaving listeners to digest a lot of interfaith concepts and spiritual disinformation that muddied the waters of truth via groupthink.

“Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them... And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” – Ephesians 5:6-7,11

It may surprise those who were offended by Behar’s comments to learn that, although Hasselbeck was correct in her indignant response, Behar was not all wrong in saying prayer is “dangerous” when it “takes the place of logical thinking.”

You see, there are those in the Church today who practice what is called “Contemplative Prayer” – a New Age style mantra that is all about emptying one’s mind to allegedly “find God within” by repeating certain words or phrases over and over until the mind is disengaged and no longer thinking – achieving an altered state of consciousness or (alpha state) known as “The Silence” which is indeed “dangerous” considering it opens one up to what the Bible calls “familiar spirits” (demonic influences). It’s rooted in Eastern Mysticism where it is more commonly referred to as “Transcendental Meditation.”

Though Contemplative Prayer is widely practiced in the Emerging Church, it has unfortunately found its way into more traditional churches of late, especially among young people, thanks in part to a host of “Christian” authors who promote it as “Contemplative Spirituality” or “Spiritual Formation.” There is also “Centering Prayer,” “Breath Prayers” and “Lectio Divina” – all of which attempt to achieve the same trance-like state.


Lighthouse Trails Research, an excellent source of information on the topic, defines the occult practice and movement this way:

“Contemplative Spirituality: A belief system that uses ancient mystical practices to induce altered states of consciousness (the silence) and is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often wrapped in Christian terminology. The premise of contemplative spirituality is pantheistic (God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all). Common terms used for this movement are "spiritual formation," "the silence," "the stillness," "ancient-wisdom," "spiritual disciplines," and many others.

Spiritual Formation: A movement that has provided a platform and a channel through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the spiritual formation movement.”

Now, considering Joy Behar’s other absurd views on faith, this probably wasn’t what she had in mind, but the show does illustrate a new spirituality at work, where nefarious notions and New Age nonsense are advanced or accepted wittingly or unwittingly by both sides of the political and ideological spectrum through pride-filled and emotionally charged confrontations that do little more than stir controversy and draw crowds with empty religious rhetoric that in the end always diverts attention away from God’s Word and our dire need of repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

"But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." - Matthew 6:7

Emergence Christianity - Denial of Hell

By Justin Edwards

Before we delve deeper into the intricacies of the Emergent Church, which has now morphed into Emergence Christianity, I want to share a glimpse of their destructive, heretical doctrines - the rejection of hell as a literal, physical place. While this topic will be dealt with in more detail in the weeks to come, Doug Pagitt explicitly denies hell, and heaven for that matter, as physical places. Moreover, you will find yourself beating your head against a wall sharing frustration with Todd Friel as you hear Doug use the evasive tactics so popular with these apostates. The interview is in 2 parts, and you can also find the whole transcript in the link below.

And this is just scratching the surface...

Todd: Yea, do you think, do you think there's an eternal damnation for people who are not Christians?

Doug: Yeah, well, I think that there's.. I think there's all kinds of … I mean that, that, damnation would sort of be that.. that there's parts of the uh, life in Creation that seem to be counter to what God is doing and those are the things that are eliminated and removed and done away with. And so I think that's what damnation is, and so there's people who want to live out that kind of uhm, wanna have that good judgment – the judgment of God in their life. I mean you know Judge… Judgment in a biblical fashion meaning that God remakes… that God remakes the world.

Todd: OK, Doug, hold on Doug… Doug hold on a second. I have no idea what you just said. Here's what I think Hell is: eternal damnation, God sends lawbreakers to a place where there's weeping, there's gnashing of teeth, a lake of sulpher, the worm never dies, eternal conscious torment. Agree or disagree?

Doug: Disagree.

For the whole transcript go here:

Transcript of Todd Friel and Doug Pagitt on Way of the Master Radio

By Justin Edwards

In the past couple of days we have seen a general overview of the Emergent Church and its adherence to post-modern philosophy. The EC teaches that there is no known universal truth, the church must conform to the culture, there is no clarity in the Word of God, sin is tolerated, morality is relative, and all people will essentially be reconciled to God (universalism).

The following document from Apologetics Index   explains the Distinctive Teachings and Goals of the Emergent Church. It should begin to come clear that this movement is yet another tool being used by Satan to blur the lines and keep people from coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Emerging Church – Distinctive Teachings and Goals

• The world is radically changing and the church must radically change with it
  Emergents believe postmodernity represents a dramatic break with the past and that only an extreme transformation in the church can keep the church relevant and effective in this environment. What is needed, they say, is not just a change in methodology. We need a new kind of Christian.
• Since the Church has been culture bound for so long we must reexamine and question every belief and practice in the Church, finding new ways to define and express these
  Visiting emergent blogs, one will find that absolutely any doctrine or moral standard can be questioned. It seems at times that emergents are engaging in a complete reinvention of Christianity accompanied by a radical redefinition of Christian terms.
• We have no foundation for any beliefs, therefore we cannot know absolute truth
  Critics of the Emerging Church movement insist that emergents misrepresent epistemological foundationalism (the belief that we do possess some knowledge that serves as a basis for further knowledge) as requiring “bombproof certainty,” something contemporary foundationalists insist they do not hold to. What contemporary foundationalists do believe is that we can possess real knowledge that is so certain it requires extraordinary evidence to refute it. [13] D. A. Carson points out that emergent postfoundationalism is based upon yet another of their false antitheses, saying “In effect the antithesis demands that we be God, with all of God’s omniscience, or else forever be condemned to knowing nothing objective for sure.” [14] Additionally, emergents fail to consider the scriptural teaching of faith as something God-given which does possess supernaturally certain knowledge (Mt 21:21, Eph. 2:8, Heb 11:1). Emergents do not seem to realize that critiquing secular foundationalism is not the same as critiquing Evangelical foundationalism. In A New Kind of Christian McLaren’s fictional altar ego, Neo, says even Scripture is neither authoritative (in a “modern” sense) [15] nor a foundation for faith. [16]
• Since we cannot know absolute truth, we can only experience what is “true” for our communities
  Postmodern philosophers and theologians insist that truth is only known and validated within communities (“There are no Metanarratives only local narratives”). While this implies that truth is culturally relative and that true cross-cultural communication is impossible (those outside a community must first join a community before they can understand the community’s ideas), postmodern authors communicate to people of various communities simultaneously, apparently expecting them to all equally understand their intent.
• Since we cannot know absolute truth we cannot be dogmatic about doctrine
  Emergents see orthodoxy as “generous,” [17] that is, inclusive of many beliefs Christians have historically thought of as aberrant or heretical. Many leading emergents echo McLaren’s refusal to assert Christianity’s superiority to other world religions.
• Since we cannot know absolute truth we cannot be dogmatic about moral standards
  Absolute stands on issues such as homosexuality are viewed as obsolete. Activities such as drinking, clubbing, watching sexually explicit movies, and using profanities are seen by some emergents as opportunities to show those who are not part of the Christian community that postmodern Christians do not think they are better than them through any false sense of moral superiority. [18]
• Since we cannot know absolute truth, dogmatic preaching must give way to a dialogue between people of all beliefs
  Emerging Christians do not posture themselves before the world as though they were the light and the world were in darkness. Instead of “preaching” to the “lost” they join in “conversation,” with people of various beliefs. Conservative Evangelicals seem not to be truly welcome to contribute their distinctive content to this conversation since they represent the old, rotting corpse of “modernism.”
• Since propositional truth is uncertain, spiritual feeling and social action make up the only reliable substance of Christianity
  Emergents consider propositional truth a “modern” (and thus outmoded) fascination. Postmoderns think and communicate in narratives. [19] Since the pursuit of truth is portrayed as a never ending journey with no solid starting point, they consider the only legitimate measuring rods of Christianity to be experience and good works. Without a solid footing in revealed truth, however, emergents have no firm foundation for knowing which experiences are valid and which works are good (something they do not seem to notice).
• To capture a sacred feeling we should reconnect with ancient worship forms
  Trappings such as burning candles and events such as silent retreats are popular in the movement. Embracing these premodern forms further breaks their connection with “modern” Christianity.
• Since sublime feeling is experienced through outward forms, we should utilize art forms in our worship
  Many participants in the movement see appreciating art for art’s sake as a spiritual experience.
• Through conversation with them, “outsiders” will become part of our community, and then be able to understand and believe what we teach
  The postmodern approach is not to try to persuade people to believe, it is to try to befriend people into joining. This is commonly expressed as Robert Webber does when he says “People in a postmodern world are not persuaded to faith by reason as much as they are moved to faith by participation in God’s earthly community.” [20] There is a false antithesis in such statements, however. We do not have to choose between a purely cerebral attempt to talk others into believing correctly on the one hand and offering an open, unqualified invitation to our group on the other. The Bible teaches us to proclaim the gospel message with reliance upon the Holy Spirit to empower, illuminate, and convict (1 Co 2, 1 Thess 1:9). When such proclamation is absent, as it is in the Emerging Church movement, there is no prophetic voice coming from the church calling sinners to repent and believe the Gospel (Ac 2:38, 16:30-32).
• All are welcome to join the “conversation” as long as they behave in a kind and open-minded manner.
  Emerging believers reject any posture which hints at exclusivism. Dogmatic Evangelicals, however, are not treated as kindly in the conversation as others are (something many emergents admit).
• The ultimate goal is to make the world a better place
  The Emerging Church movement envisions a utopia in which the oppressed of the world are free, the poor are no longer impoverished and the environment is clean. This paradise is achieved through social activism. Many emergent leaders think it is selfish folly to live for the return of Christ.

The accomplishing of all of the above is seen by those in the movement as evidence that the Church is emerging to reach the culture, adapting to it. Critics of the movement see these things as signs that the Church is submerging into the culture, being absorbed by it.

What's So Dangerous About the Emerging Church?

By Justin Edwards

As we continue defining the Emerging Church (EC), the following interview between John MacArthur and Phil Johnson helps explain how destructive this movement is. MacArthur begins by explaining that the Emergent Church is an amorphous, loose-knit association of churches that have decided there is value and virtue in uncertainty of Scripture. He further says the Emergent Church believes we are not even suppose to understand what the Bible says, and that it is an attack on the clarity of Scripture.

As MacArthur explains in the interview, this movement is another form of liberalism. Where at one time human reason reigned supreme during the era of modernism, mystery reigns supreme in this era of post-modernism, and both philosophies are an outright assault on the Word of God. The EC sanctifies modern culture and seeks to become like them. They want to conform to the world which is a blatant contradiction to what the Bible tells us in Romans 12:2 and 1 John 2:15-17. They claim that the culture should define Christianity and remain relevant to the current trends - basically that means it should adapt to society and accept sin.

The interview gives great insight on the three philosophical periods of pre-modernism, modernism, and post- modernism. Essentially pre-modernism is the time from the beginning of humankind until the Enlightenment where man understood that truth came from a supernatural source. Modernism came along and sought to remove God or supernatural force, and claimed that truth could be found through human reason. Science became god and the world deteriorated to its worse condition. Fascism and communism rose out of modernism, and of course this led to the millions and millions of lives massacred. When the Berlin wall fell, we essentially entered into the era of post-modernism. This philosophy states that there might be truth, but we cannot know it. Some might even say there is no absolute truth, but at the minimum they will say that no universal truth can be known. Ambiguity is considered a good thing, and mystery is embraced with open arms. Moral relativism becomes god, and you are free to invent your own religion. The Emergent Church LOVES post-modernism.

Post-modern thought allows you to sin without guilt. It operates outside the realm of Scripture like all man-made philosophies do. And the Emergent Church capitalizes on this relevant culture and it deconstructs the only Gospel that saves, thus leading people away from the cross of Jesus Christ.

The following link will take you to an hour interview between MacArthur and Johnson. It is well worth your time to listen and it really helps explain this cultish movement in layman's terms. The second link provides you with the transcript from the interview if you are unable to listen to the podcast. I encourage you to listen or read this material and arm yourself for the defense against the most dangerous movement in the church today.

Audio - What's Do Dangerous About the Emerging Church?

Transcript - What's So Dangerous About the Emerging Church?

What is the Emerging Church?

By Justin Edwards

Because this blog is dedicated to defending the faith, it is essential to define the greatest threat to biblical Christianity today: the Emerging Church Movement. The leaders of this not-so-New Age-movement seek to destroy the essential doctrines of Christianity, which are core fundamentals of the faith even unto salvation. Such doctrines include the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the reality of a physical hell, original sin, and even that Jesus is the only way to eternal life.

The energy that binds these heretical teachings is contemplative spirituality and mysticism. Contemplative prayer (also known as centering prayer)  is nothing short of transcendental meditation (TM), and its religious system is mysticism, which provides a bridge for all religions leading to universalism.

The following article from Got Questions provides a general overview of the Emerging Church, and in the days and weeks to come I will provide key resources explaining this movement in more detail including the occult religious practices it offers. I will indeed be naming names.

If you are part of an emerging church or are seeking more information about the dangers of this movement, I encourage you to stay tuned.

Question: "What is the emerging / emergent church movement?"

Answer: The emerging, or emergent, church movement takes its name from the idea that as culture changes, a new church should emerge in response. In this case, it is a response by various church leaders to the current era of post-modernism. Although post-modernism began in the 1950s, the church didn't really seek to conform to its tenets until the 1990s. Post-modernism can be thought of as a dissolution of "cold, hard fact" in favor of "warm, fuzzy subjectivity." The emerging / emergent church movement can be thought of the same way.

The emerging / emergent church movement falls into line with basic post-modernist thinking—it is about experience over reason, subjectivity over objectivity, spirituality over religion, images over words, outward over inward, feelings over truth. These are reactions to modernism and are thought to be necessary in order to actively engage contemporary culture. This movement is still fairly new, though, so there is not yet a standard method of "doing" church amongst the groups choosing to take a post-modern mindset. In fact, the emerging church rejects any standard methodology for doing anything. Therefore, there is a huge range of how far groups take a post-modernist approach to Christianity. Some groups go only a little way in order to impact their community for Christ, and remain biblically sound. Most groups, however, embrace post-modernist thinking, which eventually leads to a very liberal, loose translation of the Bible. This, in turn, lends to liberal doctrine and theology.

For example, because experience is valued more highly than reason, truth becomes relative. Relativism opens up all kinds of problems, as it destroys the standard that the Bible contains absolute truth, negating the belief that biblical truth can be absolute. If the Bible is not our source for absolute truth, and personal experience is allowed to define and interpret what truth actually is, a saving faith in Jesus Christ is rendered meaningless.

Another area where the emerging / emergent church movement has become anti-biblical is its focus on ecumenism. Unity among people coming from different religious and ethnic backgrounds and diversity in the expression of corporate worship are a strong focus of the emergent church movement. Being ecumenical means that compromise is taking place, and this results in a watering down of Scripture in favor of not offending an apostate. This is in direct opposition to passages such as Revelation 2:14-17, Jesus' letter to the church of Pergamum, in which the Church is warned against tolerating those who teach false doctrine.

False doctrine seems to abound within the emerging / emergent church movement, though, as stated previously, not within every group espousing emerging / emergent church beliefs. Because of this, care must be taken when deciding whether or not to become involved with an emergent church group. We all need to take heed of Matthew 7:15-20, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them."

While seeking new ways to witness to a changing culture is admirable, utilizing ways which compromise the Truth of the Gospel in any way is nothing more than promoting false doctrine and leading others away from Christ instead of to Him.

Recommended Resource: The Truth War: Fighting for Certainty in an Age of Deception by John MacArthur

The Apostasy of Mother Teresa, Shane Claiborne, Tony Campola, and the Emerging Church

By Justin Edwards

The following article by Ken Silva is an excellent summation of where the road of contemplative spirituality and mysticism can lead an individual - universalism. Ken provides examples from Mother Teresa, Shane Claiborne, and Tony Campola (with mention of Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and Brian McLaren) illustrating their ultimate belief that all roads lead to heaven and that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is moot and non-essential (even useless).

If you are a born again Christian attending an Emergent Church or realize your church is heading into that direction, then I implore you to flee this apostasy and return to sound teaching from the Word of God. The teachings from these men and the Catholic church do not lead people to the cross of Jesus Christ, they lead them away to an eternal hell.

If you read nothing else in this article, please read the words of Mother Teresa (highlighted in red). It becomes clear that she did not uphold the Gospel of Christ, and if she took this belief to her grave, she is eternally separated from the love of God. It goes to show that good works cannot save you; it is only by the grace of God alone through faith alone in the biblical Jesus Christ alone that you may be saved.

It is a tragedy if she died with this belief; it is a greater tragedy that millions are following in her footsteps.

MYSTICISM’S GOSPEL OF GOODNESS AND SHANE CLAIBORNE

By Ken Silva pastor-teacher

“I did not send these prophets, But they ran. I did not speak to them, But they prophesied. But if they had stood in My council, Then they would have announced My words to My people, And would have turned them back from their evil way, And from the evil of their deeds.” (Jeremiah 23:21-22, NASB)

 Sincere; But Sincerely Wrong

Anyone familiar with Emerging Church icon Shane Claiborne knows that he was quite taken with the late apostate Mother Teresa, who actually took her name out of her respect for so-called “Christian” mystic Teresa of Avila. Below are the words of Mother Teresa from my personal copy of her book Life in the Spirit: Reflections, Meditations and Prayers.

And therein you will be able to see the resulting deception gleaned from her years of practicing Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism (CSM); a gospel of goodness with its resulting denial of the exclusive claims of the genuine Gospel of Jesus Christ:

We never try to convert those who receive [aid from her organization] to Christianity but in our work we bear witness to the love of God’s presence and if Catholics, Protestants, Buddhists, or agnostics become for this better men — simply better — we will be satisfied. Growing up in love they will be nearer to God and find him in his goodness. Every human being comes from the hand of God and we all know what is the love of God for us. My religion is everything to me but for every individual, according to the grace God had given that soul. God has his own ways and means to work in the hearts of men and we do not know how close they are to him but by their actions we will always know whether they are at his disposal or not.

Whether you are a Hindu, a Moslem or a Christian, how you live your life is the proof that you are fully his or not. We must not condemn or judge or pass words that will hurt people. Maybe a person has never heard of Christianity. We do not know what way God is appearing to that soul and what way God is drawing that soul, and therefore who are we to condemn anybody? It matters to the individual what church he belongs to. If that individual thinks and believes that this is the only way to God for her or him, this is the way God comes into their life — his life. If he does not know any other way and if he has no doubt so that he does not need to search then this is his way to salvation. This is the way God comes into his life. (81, 82, emphasis mine)

Now as loving as this might appear on the surface, it’s very definitely not the Gospel that was preached by Christ and His Apostles. No need to be born again; no making disciples of Christ, and no teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. However, the above fantasy is completely consistent with the delusion received by those who practice the Contemplative/Centering Prayer (CCP) of the spurious CSM aka Spiritual Formation espoused by ordained Southern Baptist minister Dallas Willard and his spiritual twin Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster.

With this backdrop Apprising Ministries now shows you that this past Tuesday The Simple Way tweeted:

Update: On Evangelicals and Interfaith Cooperation http://goo.gl/fb/NYde (Online source)

If you don’t know, The Simple Way (TSW) is “a community of faith” to which Claiborne himself belongs. It’s also quite telling that under Recommended Books “On Ecclesiology (theology of Church)” are A Generous Orthodoxy and A New Kind of Christian by the heretical Brian McLaren, who’s now also a Living Spiritual Teacher alongside such as Deepak Chopra, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Eckhart Tolle, and Marianne Williamson; as well as a leading guru in the the neo-liberal cult of the sinfully ecumenical Emerging Church aka Emergent Church—that’s now morphed into Emergence Christianity.

Shane Claiborne is also one of the Red Letter Christians alongside the likes of his mentor Tony Campolo, Roman Catholic mystic Richard Rohr, and Brian McLaren. Now the above tweet takes us to On Evangelicals and Interfaith Cooperation at the TSW website where they tell us: “A few years ago, Shane interviewed Tony Campolo for an article in Cross Currents Magazine. We think it’s still relevant.” Since I discussed that 2005 interview in Emergent Evangelical Prophet Tony Campolo, back in February of 2006, this immediately caught my attention because it means Claiborne’s view is unchanged.

So because TSW and Claiborne have just brought the subject back up by linking it at their faith community website, and in light of their recommendation of the warped and toxic theology of EC guru Brian McLaren, I am once again going to highlight a couple of things from that Claiborne’s interview with Campolo. In Brian McLaren Invites You On His Quest To Destroy Christianity I pointed out that with his new book A New Kind of Christianity (ANKoC) McLaren has laid out his reimagined i.e. new form of Progessive Christianity aka liberal theology, which so many in the EC actually adhere to as well.

Like Mystics Ala Mother Teresa, Like Shane Claiborne And Tony Campolo

It’s also an incontestable fact that the following view of the false religion of Islam that Shane Claiborne and his mentor Tony Campolo portray below—completely consistent with Teresa—is the result of their own practice of CCP. First here’s Campolo from his book Speaking My Mind:

a theology of mysticism provides some hope for common ground between Christianity and Islam. Both religions have within their histories examples of ecstatic union with God, which seem at odds with their own spiritual traditions but have much in common with each other. I do not know what to make of the Muslim mystics, especially those who have come to be known as the Sufis. What do they experience in their mystical experience? Could they have encountered the same God we do in our Christian mysticism? (149,150, emphasis mine)

Actually Tony yes, they do encounter the mystic mush god with you; but it most definitely is not the God of the Bible. The following section below comes from the interview mentioned above, which TSW has just linked now at their own website. The section contains a very interesting exchange between Claiborne and Campolo about a third of the way down the page:

SC: Both Muslims and Christians are very evangelical in the sense of desiring others to come to faith in their God. When we talk about inter-religious cooperation, does that mean that we need to stop trying to convert each other?

TC: We don’t have to give up trying to convert each other. What we have to do is show respect to one another. And to speak to each other with a sense that even if people don’t convert, they are God’s people, God loves them, and we do not make the judgment of who is going to heaven and who is going to hell.

I think that what we all have to do is leave judgment up to God. The Muslim community is very evangelistic, however what Muslims will not do is condemn Jews and Christians to Hell if in fact they do not accept Islam.

SC: That seems like a healthy distinction—between converting and condemning. One of the barriers seems to be the assumption that we have the truth and folks who experience things differently will all go to Hell. How do we unashamedly maintain a healthy desire for others to experience the love of God as we have experienced it without condemning others who experience God differently… (Online source, bold mine)

Resisting the urge here to wrestle with the serpent I’ll just say that, as far as it concerns Islam and hell, Campolo is quite mistaken so I simply refer you to the Quran itself:

And, by thy Lord, verily We shall assemble them and the devils, then We shall bring them, crouching, around hell. Then We shall pluck out from every sect whichever of them was most stubborn in rebellion to the Beneficent. And surely We are Best Aware of those most worthy to be burned therein. (Surah 19:68-70, emphasis mine)

Of course what Campolo and his disciple Claiborne are talking about is not the genuine Gospel of Jesus Christ; but it is a primary online source giving you a glimpse at the gospel of goodness that these men personally believe. And this false teaching is completely consistent with the universalism one sees as they study mysticism as I have for years now. However, even if Campolo did happen to be correct when he dreams “even if people don’t convert, they are God’s people,” then this question comes emerging: Then why should they ever need to convert in the first place?

Why should we even waste our time and money, not to mention risking our lives in Islamic controlled countries, to try and convert “God’s people”…ah, into…um, “God’s people” I guess? McLaren’s  already on record saying hell is false advertising for God, and we also know that the other two thirds of the Emergent trinity heretical EC pastor Doug Pagitt and his equally heretical “theologian in residence” Tony Jones, both deny the doctrine of original sin along with guru McLaren so in their bankrupt Emergence theology there’s nothing to be save from anyway.

In other words, conversion has now been redefined to mean joining them in their social gospel of goodness, which they usually express something along the lines of living the way of God in Jesus and being co-creators with Him in order to make God’s dreams for the world come to pass. But it’s well past time now to finally awaken from your slumber and realize that if this reimagined Emergence Christianity, where all of mankind is already the family of God, is true then there really is no Gospel left to preach. And so I wonder; just who might have come up with that little idea?

No, this is more than enough reason for me to tell people to stay away from this “missional” Emerging/ent/ence Church. And remember, Emerging Church spokesman Dan Kimball has revealed to us that  Emergent Wolves Enter Your Sheep Pens Through Youth Groups. The truth is that the time has arrived when we must reject these Emergent dreamers and their quasi-Christian universalism with its warped and toxic neo-liberal repainted social gospel ala Walter Rauschenbusch. And when all said and done, in the end, Claiborne is really just a Rob Bell with dreadlocks.

See also:

MEET MENTORS AND METHODOLOGY OF BRIAN MCLAREN
FOR BRIAN MCLAREN AND MARCUS BORG BEING “BORN AGAIN” IS REACHING “ENLIGHTENMENT”?
TONY JONES, THE EMERGING CHURCH AND PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY
DOUG PAGITT AND ARROGANCE OF LIBERAL/PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANS
EMERGING CHURCH AND PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY
THE EMERGING CHURCH AND EMERGENT LIBERALISM 2.0
KEN SILVA ON MISSION AMERICA WITH LINDA HARVEY DISCUSSING “EMERGENT” APOSTASY