I read, recently, of a Church where the pastor and probably all of the 30 or 40 Staff Members have no Bible College or Seminary training. Where the leadership is learning as they go and where The Bible is viewed more as theory than settled truth.
Individuals are challenged to figure out for themselves what it means. Their worship is not focused on the sovereign, holy majesty of the ineffable God Who rules over the affairs of men, but rather the needs, attitudes and interests of those who attend.
It's man-centered and contemporary.
It's laid-back and "real."
It's populated by seekers, observers and hangers-on.
And the conservative messages presented are not propositional. They do not propose a response from the hearer. Rather they are offered as information, personal testimony and suggestions for serious thought. Folks are left to decide for themselves what these words mean "To Them."
The music is loud and emotionally intense. The environment more like a Night Club or Concert Hall than a Cathedral. And no one cares how anyone dresses or what they might believe.
Oh, and they have 5000 people gathering every Sunday to experience this form of church.
It's a sham and a hoax. But it satisfies the human heart's desire for worship. It's just not the Bible idea of Church. It's an expression of will-worship. And at least one person who attends regularly has said that should the pastor leave, the whole thing would collapse.
Of course, this is not the story of all churches. There are still groups of Christians who gather in the name of Jesus to humble themselves before God and worship in spirit [with their spirit, not with sensual expressions] and in truth [the way God prescribes, rather than their own ideas].
What of them? They are generally smaller, and getting even smaller, and they're membership is aging. The Youth-Culture is not interested in Bible Doctrine nor in submission to God. Maybe because their heart is far from Him.
I say that, not judgmentally, but because these free-wheeling, contemporary mega-churches are not known for preaching The Gospel of Repentance from sin and Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And because the human heart, in it's natural condition, cannot understand spiritual things [I Cor. 2:14], nor are they interested [Rom. 3:11-12]
Friday, May 29, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
It's Starting To Make Sense
I learned a new word this week: panentheism. I may have seen it before and just thought it was misspelled. You see pantheism is the philosophy/ belief that God is all (or everything). Native religions tend to be pantheistic.
But panentheism is the belief that God is IN everything. The importance of this word is found in the Battle for Truth. You see, this pagan concept may be in your Church. It may also be that you espouse it, in your spiritual walk.
It is NOT a Bible idea. But it certainly explains why certain changes and doctrines are not only popular, but fiercely defended.
Panentheism says that nothing is so secular (absent of God) that it cannot be made sacred. Why? Because God is IN everything. He is in ungodly musical forms if we just add God-words. He is in unholy behaviors or environments if we simply sanctify them by our own motivations.
And He is in the worldly, secular, human worship forms, sanctified by he word "church" or "worship."
The list is not endless, for true believers. We have limits. But for others, it is.
Occultist and prophetess, Alice Bailey, writes: "The Christian Church in its many branches can serve as a St. John the Baptist, as a voice crying in the wilderness, and as a nucleus through which world illumination may be accomplished."
The blending of occultic ideas and methods with Chritianity (which has been part of mainstream church for 40 years) will provide the vehicle for spreading and instilling New Age consciousness.
Churches will still have Christian trappings, use the same vocabulary, but asked specific questions about traditional Christian doctrine, New Age answers would be given.
The Word-Faith Movement, Seeker-Sensitive Movement, Contemporary Worship Movement and the Emerging / Emergent Church Movements are the major players. But Christendom, at large, has been captured by this philosophy.
It satisfies the human heart that wants God, but on it's own terms.
But panentheism is the belief that God is IN everything. The importance of this word is found in the Battle for Truth. You see, this pagan concept may be in your Church. It may also be that you espouse it, in your spiritual walk.
It is NOT a Bible idea. But it certainly explains why certain changes and doctrines are not only popular, but fiercely defended.
Panentheism says that nothing is so secular (absent of God) that it cannot be made sacred. Why? Because God is IN everything. He is in ungodly musical forms if we just add God-words. He is in unholy behaviors or environments if we simply sanctify them by our own motivations.
And He is in the worldly, secular, human worship forms, sanctified by he word "church" or "worship."
The list is not endless, for true believers. We have limits. But for others, it is.
Occultist and prophetess, Alice Bailey, writes: "The Christian Church in its many branches can serve as a St. John the Baptist, as a voice crying in the wilderness, and as a nucleus through which world illumination may be accomplished."
The blending of occultic ideas and methods with Chritianity (which has been part of mainstream church for 40 years) will provide the vehicle for spreading and instilling New Age consciousness.
Churches will still have Christian trappings, use the same vocabulary, but asked specific questions about traditional Christian doctrine, New Age answers would be given.
The Word-Faith Movement, Seeker-Sensitive Movement, Contemporary Worship Movement and the Emerging / Emergent Church Movements are the major players. But Christendom, at large, has been captured by this philosophy.
It satisfies the human heart that wants God, but on it's own terms.
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