Cults: What is not covered here…
September 23, 2003
Posted by Dan Edelen in : Apologetics Feedback : add a comment
In the midst of this examination of the major branches of practice within the American Church, a word must be said about cults.
Ask any two cult experts what defines a "cult" and you will find a variety of answers. For me, the two most common beliefs of pseudo-Christian cults are:
1. Non-Trinitarian
2. "Jesus and…"
Denying the orthodox truth of the Trinitarian nature of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is a surefire way to get a cult label. This test alone weeds out your major pseudo-Christian cults: Jehovah's Witnesses, the Mormons (Latter Day Saints), The Unity School of Christianity, and others.
"Jesus and…" is a more critical test. Adding to the finished work of Christ is an enormous mistake. Many supposedly Christian churches fall down here, insisting that salvation only comes when something else (i.e. - a ritual, practice, a human leader, or additional extra-biblical theology) is added to Christ's propitiary work.
The "Jesus and…" test traps the major cults above, too. Sadly, this test also culls the Roman Catholic Church (for more on what the RCC adds, click here.)
For this reason, pseudo-Christian cults will not factor into anything we discuss here.
Our basis will always be that the Trinity reflects the true nature of God and that salvation comes from Jesus's finished work alone operating in the life of the believer.
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Fortresses and Compromise
September 20, 2003
Posted by Dan Edelen in : Church Issues Feedback : add a comment
What does the Orthodox Church have in common with liberal mainline Protestant churches?
Actually… nothing when you think about it. Their commonality is in their complete antithesis. The Orthodox Church is a fortress that probably has not changed one iota since its founding. Mainstream liberal Protestant churches, on the other hand, have given it all away in an effort to be socially relevant. The former is one of the true bastions of historic Christianity, while the latter is letting it all hang out.
Something is to be said for a sense of history and the Orthodox faith understands this well. Church fathers spoke long ago, but still speak today. Orthodoxy remembers.
And yet, there are not many around to do the remembering. People are born into the church, but in all the years I have lived, I have never once had anyone of Orthodox faith ever approach me about Jesus. I don't know anyone of Orthodox faith. In short, where is the church's presence in the world?
That's the problem with fortresses. They keep the world out, but they keep themselves in, as well.
Mainline Protestantism, on the other hand, can't keep the world out, and has done a good job of losing their brightest and best to the ranks of evangelicalism, charismatic churches, and splinter groups. Between the Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Church of Christ, they've probably spawned a hundred splinter denominations, each one seeking to correct the errors of the parent church.
The Jesus of a large bulk of mainline Protestantism is unrecognizable to more conservative Christians. In kind, the Bible is of questionable origin, too patriarchal, and phobic of just about every people group known to Man that fails to go by the acronym, "W.A.S.P." Christianity is pretty much what you make of it. Absolute Truth? Who needs it!
Despite the soul-numbing "neo-fusion-syncretism" of the mainline churches, they do have one thing going for them: they understand the needs of the neediest. These churches built many of the hospitals, orphanages, senior homes, and community centers found in this country. That contribution is hard to ignore. And despite the fact that many of those accomplishments are in the past, these churches still manage to be on the cutting edge of helping others.
The Christianity that makes the world stand up and take notice is one that blends the best of both. It looks outside, seeing the need and meeting it, bringing the Gospel into the darkness. It also keeps the darkness outside the camp, protecting that which must be guarded and doing it relentlessly. History cannot be forgotten, either, since we must learn from the past and cherish it as part of our link to the Lord Jesus Himself.
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Fundamental Flaw
September 16, 2003
Posted by Dan Edelen in : Christianity in North America, Church Issues, Uncategorized Feedback : add a comment
As many Christian churches employ more and more syncretistic tendencies, absorbing popular culture faster than a Kalihari-based sponge absorbs H2O, fundamentalism remains a holdout. For this they should be thanked.
If only it were that simple. "Simple" being the key word.
The Gospel is simple. "Yes" and "No" are simple. "Black" and "White" are simple. However, basic math does not mean that the Gospel is simply "Yes" and "No", "Black" and "White." That system was tried and found to be unable to save; it was called the Law.
Still, that is what much of fundamentalism offers: a "Christianized" Law. It is a religion based on what one does, not who one knows intimately. In many ways it is centered on Man, not God.
I've sat in the seats of some large fundamentalist churches. The characteristic that primarily comes across is the pride of being other. "Everyone else is succumbing to the world, but not us" seems to be the mantra. Even the hymns often reflect a peculiar arrogance of not being like everyone else. Strangely, very little talk of God can exist. I sat through a "message" at one of the largest churches of this type in the country that at no time discussed the Gospel. The pastor merely told how one church after another was becoming worldly, but not their church. Am I the only that finds it odd that the one Person missing from that message, Jesus Christ, is the whole reason for having a church in the first place?
The problem with all this is that while it is easy to say that "only we are doing it right," self-aggrandizement does not make that statement true. Jesus' opponents, the scribes and Pharisees, shared that perception - and we know how they turned out.
The Spirit of Christ was given in order to move us beyond the Law. The full gospel tells us that we cannot save ourselves; apart from the Holy Spirit, we are not in Christ. We can memorize every verse in the Bible and expound on it for decades and the emptiness in our own hearts still betrays us. Hell is filled with theologians. Nor does repetition of a set of spiritualized activities constitute a living, vital relationship with an infinite God. In the end, what alone is eternal life? Knowing Christ.
We are like sheep, and most people have a faulty desire to be told what to do, to have life condensed into an easy to follow list that can be checked off. However, God gives His Spirit in order that we no longer need an external set of rules in order to live - it is far harder to live according to the Spirit than by a checklist, yet that is what God asks of us. If we succumb to a Christianity that merely says "Don't!" then we fall into the trap described in Colossians 2:13-23:
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.
Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules:"Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.
If we make Christianity nothing more than a set of rules, we have stripped God of His sovereignty in our lives: this is idolatry - a god of our own making.
And there are more problems that go beyond simple legalism. Fundamentalists love to quote Galatians 1:8-9. It's a proof text used whenever fundamentalist preachers disagree with a theology being espoused by another Christian group:
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
There's only one problem with this. By the very standards they hold, they are preaching another Gospel. Why? Because most fundamentalist churches are cessationist, believing that the gifts of the Holy Spirit typically claimed by charismatics (see 1 Cor. 12) are no longer for today, having stopped when the canon of Scripture was completed. Any casual perusal of the New Testament shows the gospel being associated with the blind receiving their sight, the deaf their hearing, the lame walking, the dead being raised and such. The Book of Acts records these power encounters in detail with the gospel (chapter 3 being especially apt.) Paul wraps these miraculous gifts up in everything he preached as gospel truth.
Paul warns that in the last days people would come who called themselves Christians, acted like it, too, but denied the power of God (2 Tim. 3:5). The Strong's Concordance leaves no hedging on the word for "power", stating that this power is not mere power, but the very miracle working power of God. I contend that this power is no different than the power of God behind the gifts in 1 Cor. 12. Therefore, to claim that that power is no longer for today is to deny it altogether.
If fundamentalist churches are not preaching healing the blind by the gift of healing, if they do not tell the people in the pews that the miraculous power of God can work through them via the gifts of the Holy Spirit, aren't they preaching another gospel, one devoid of power? They appear to be guilty of the very failure they claim for other theologies.
The Christian Church at the beginning of the new millennium needs more than legalism and cessationism. Life everlasting requires that we live by the Spirit or perish. And as much as the fundamental churches have championed adherence to the Scriptures, that is only one part of our life of faith and not its entirety.
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Charismatic Churches and the Cult of the New
September 8, 2003
Posted by Dan Edelen in : Best of Cerulean Sanctum, Bible, Charismatic, Church Issues, Discernment, Holiness, Maturity, Spiritual Warfare, Supernaturalism, The Holy Spirit Feedback : 10 comments
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland.
—Isaiah 43:19 (NIV)
I have, since 1984, been a part of the charismatic movement (hereafter “CM”). In those years I’ve seen the blind given their sight, the lame healed, the demon-possessed freed of their anguish, and have given words of knowledge and wisdom to those who need them—all directed by God and for His glory alone. We are to do the works of Christ this side of heaven using all the power that He affords us as his chosen vessels.
That said, what is happening in charismatic circles today must be viewed as nothing less than the utter abandonment of all good sense, decorum, and biblical correctness.
Isaiah 43:19 has taken on a life of its own in the CM, unfortunately. We’ve become the Cult of the New Thing. The CM is no longer a new thing itself, and because of this the movement is in search of the next new frontier. I believe this to be highly dangerous given the movement’s willingness to quickly jump on bandwagons that later hurtle off cliffs, hurting many along the way. We in the CM have become addicted to new experiences, be they biblical or not.
An astonishing lack of biblical discernment dogs the 21st Century CM. We accept any and all “moves of God” simply because something “new” is happening. Yet too many times those moves attempt to add something to the finished work of Jesus, and that should disturb all of us who consider ourselves charismatics.
With discernment urged from Scripture, the startling lack of books written by avowed charismatic leaders on the topic of discernment should trouble us. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, a British, Reformed pastor now many years deceased, wrote perhaps the best books on the subject decades ago—a sad statement concerning a topic so essential to keeping the “fire in the fireplace.”
With this in mind, I offer the authority of Scripture and six others tests charismatics often overlook. Any time we encounter a teaching, practice, or supposed moved of the Holy Spirit, we should instinctively start counting red flags. Fulfilling any one flag should not immediately disqualify a genuine work of the Spirit (with Flag #1 being a very strong exception), but any two are reason to be cautious and perhaps reject that practice or teaching:
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Flag #1 - Cannot be squared with Scripture or is based on a single verse of Scripture (usually taken out of context.)
Any charismatic teaching or practice that contradicts the Bible provides an immediate grounds for squelching it. God’s revealed word, the Bible, will not contradict Him, nor the other way around. We MUST always test against Scripture, not only in the moment, but later. Truth is truth and time doesn’t diminish it.We must also be wary of theologies built around a lone passage of Scripture. The Bible is a coherent whole and the completeness of it means that doctrines contained in it possess multiple reference points. Attempting to create a theology from a single passage usually leads into error. This is especially true when we exegete passages apart from their context (eisegesis).
Bible, Bible, Bible—there can be no practice or theology apart from it. It’s by far the foremost flag
Flag #2 - Is pronounced by direct revelation through a single individual or a small group of people.
Any of us who have been around the Christian life for any length of time know that truth is not typically spoken by a lone voice. Even when Elijah thought that he was the only prophet of God left alive, God had preserved a remnant. Anyone claiming to have a unique revelation of God should automatically force us to tread lightly. We should always remember how easy it is to follow someone claiming special revelation right into hell—think Jim Jones and David Kouresh. Small groups of people making revelatory claims are also suspect. Again, proceed with caution and consider other flags.
Flag #3 - Is considered relevant for today, yet has no historic precedent in the Church.
Too many charismatics disdain historical Christianity, but the Church has existed for a couple millennia has seen just about everything. Even in Old Testament days, the writer of Ecclesiastes noted that there was nothing new under the sun. If a teaching, practice, or manifestation of the Spirit occurs nowhere in the writings of those Christians who preceded us in the faith, then a very good possibility of aberrance exists in the new “move.”
To our shame, we in the CM have completely misinterpreted Isaiah 43:19. God Himself is remarkably consistent. The “new thing” isn’t some new teaching, practice, or kind of manifestation. New moves of the Holy Spirit are more geared to individuals or local churches and not to the Church as a whole. For a perfect example we find Acts 13:2, which says, “While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’” This is not a new teaching. In fact there are NO new teachings since the closed canon of Scripture contains all doctrinally-sound teachings. In this case, the Spirit’s call is a new thing in that He is giving a command to move to a particular area. The practice—in this case, preaching the Gospel—has already been previously spoken of by the Lord as biblically sound.
Flag #4 - Attempts to make a New Testament practice/theology of an Old Testament practice/theology rendered moot by the finished work of Christ.
All Old Testament practices/theologies were fulfilled in Christ. No longer were God’s people to do blood sacrifices for the perfect sacrifice had come. The rule of the Law had given way to the freedom of the Spirit of Christ. We are no longer under the old, but the new. Christ did it all.
Flag # 5 - Involves “Restoring” or the “Restoration” of a practice or theology.
Similar to the preceding flag, but deals more with semantics. Many aberrant charismatic practices seem bent on restoring something. When a charismatic teacher claims that his new teaching concerns “restoring the Melchezidek Priesthood” or “the restoration of New Testament worship styles,” the word restoring or restoration should automatically raise a flag.
This also pertains to ministry practices, especially healing ministries, yet in a different way. Restoring, restoration, and restore are buzzwords commonly used by those of dubious healing ministries and are quickly swallowed by the undiscerning. If you hear these words spoken by anyone claiming to move in the power of the Spirit, caution should follow.
Flag #6 - Is a “redeemed” version of a secular/occult concept or practice (usually which has been abandoned or discredited by secular/occult practitioners.)
Charismatics have been as bad, if not worse, than evangelicals in attempting to Christianize secular practices. But as with all things secular, the Kingdom of Christ and the Kingdom of this World are utterly incompatible.
Speaking to this, though, Francis Schaeffer claimed that whatever you see happening in the world, you will see happening in the Church seven years later. As I’ve watched the Church in the last thirty years, I’ve found those prophetic words eerily true. In most cases, the world discredited or abandoned the defective practice, yet foolish Christians struggle to incorporate it into the Church by wrapping Jesus talk around it. This flag is, unfortunately, exceptionally common.
Still worse, though, is the sickening attempt to modify occult practices to fit Christian usage. The use of spirit guides is an all too common example of this. Most often this takes the form in charismatic circles of supposed angelic communications from angels that, in truth, are not what they appear to be. (We must test all spirits.)
Flag #7 - May produce immediate results, but does not move the Church or individual into a deeper, biblically-based relationship with Christ in the long run.
Charismatic groups (and evangelicals, for that matter) are overwhelmed with quick-fix, syncretistic ideologies and teachings that are Band-Aids for deeper problems. These “revelations” typically wander so far from the truth their very “uniqueness” stirs up the crowds clamoring for something new–at least for a little while.
Sadly, I’ve seen many groups get short-term results from teachings or practices that over time fade away or even cause damage. ANYTHING that is God’s truth brings lasting, verifiable results.
If applied consistently, I believe these seven flags can help charismatics discern truth from error.
As I am so concerned for the people of God and their avoiding error, I wish to illuminate three movements within the CM: Harp & Bowl, Theophostic Prayer, and manifestations of gold glitter and gold fillings in teeth during meetings of believers.
Harp & Bowl (AKA “House of Prayer” or “IHOP”) promotes 24/7/365 continual worship (via music) and prayer meetings. Clearly, continual prayer and worship isn’t inherently suspect. I believe this to be a noble ideal.
But as one delves deeper into Harp & Bowl, cracks begin to appear. The idea behind the genesis of Harp & Bowl is to recreate the OT model of David’s Tabernacle as illustrated in Amos 9:8-15 and Acts 15:16-17 (in context.) Two flags immediately come into play—Flag #1 and #4. In the case of #1, Harp & Bowl’s philosophy misinterprets and misapplies both passages. The initial coming of Christ fulfilled and completed the Amos passage. The Acts passage, in context, is a promise to the Gentiles, again already fulfilled by Christ coming and opening the preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles. In the case of Flag #4, we find the classic trap of trying to create a New Testament practice from an Old Testament practice. Why should the Church attempt to restore David’s Tabernacle when Christ already did it? In addition, Harp & Bowl’s call for “restoration” invokes flag #5. Also, while concerts of prayer and worship have been part of the historic Church, none have rested on a basis such as Harp & Bowl. Therefore, Flag #3 may also come into play. And lastly, the sketchy history of the origin of Harp & Bowl (from what I was able to find online) claims it began as a revelation to a small group of people, so Flag #2 may apply.
So in the case of Harp & Bowl, the underpinnings of the movement rest on grounds that certainly fail three flags (and possibly a fourth and fifth). We must also consider that worship consists of more than simply music and singing. While music may enhance worship, all worship isn’t based on it. Misapplying the texts leads to this mistake. In the end, while a noble cause, Harp & Bowl rests on faulty exegesis and suspect revelation. This could lead to more egregious error down the road.
Theophostic Counseling/Prayer is another “new” practice increasingly seen in the CM. An updated version of Agnes Sanford’s “healing light” theories, Theophostic attempts to help people who have become enmeshed in lies rooted in past brokenness and painful memories. By bringing the light of Jesus to these areas of hurt, healing occurs.
Again, on the surface this seems harmless enough, but Theophostic garners many flags when explored more thoroughly. Ed Smith, the formulator of the practice claims to have received Theophostic from God after he found his own counseling practices inadequate—Flag #2 . A quick overview of the methods used to heal people via Theophostic shows no previous historical practice of it in the Church—Flag #3, a source of pride for Smith. Truth is, Theophostic owes its existence to the psychological practice of recovering and healing memories, now abandoned by secular practitioners because of abuses of the technique and the recovering of illusory memories—the now classic False Memory Syndrome. This brings up Flag #6.
No record in the Bible shows the apostles or the early Church using such an approach, and the practice of Theophostic violates the Bible’s own words concerning wholeness in Jesus. (An excellent PDF on the errors of Theophostic’s concepts and methodology with regards to sound biblical doctrine can be found here.) Add Flag #1. Since Theophostic is a relatively new practice, its long-term results are difficult to follow, too. Given the damage perpetrated by professional psychology practitioners spawning False Memory Syndrome in patients, will Theophostic’s laymen practitioners cause even more trauma? Only time will tell, but a quick search of the Web shows horror stories starting to surface. Consider Flag #7 a possibility.
Theophostic, therefore, rates five flags—a serious indicator of problems that should lead us to abandon its practice.
Lastly, a number of charismatic churches report showers of gold glitter appearing spontaneously during worship, and even ordinary amalgam fillings in teeth turning to gold. We know from Job 31:24-28 that believers should never put their confidence in gold.Therefore, we must question the use of gold as a way of proving God is at work. A complete lack of this sort of “work” being evidenced in Scripture or in historical church documents forces a Flag #1 and #3. And while Church history is silent on manifestations of gold, spiritualism/spiritism’s history is replete with it. In fact, manifesting gold is an old medium’s trick—Flag #6, strongly. The lasting value of this kind of manifestation is highly debatable, too, so Flag #7 must be considered. Oddly enough, follow-up on many of these gold filling manifestations finds the supposed gold coloration of the filling to have itself faded away. Do we need to go any further with this? Charismatic, run away!
The Bible says God’s people perish for lack of knowledge, and so the CM is bankrupting before our very eyes because of a lack of godly knowledge and discernment. We in the CM must work hard to expose the fraudulent—and even demonic—manifestations and practices sweeping charismatic churches, lest the real work of the Holy Spirit be disgraced.
Tags: Best of Cerulean Sanctum, Bible, Charismatic, Charismatic/Gifts of the Spirit, Church Issues, Discernment, Holiness, Maturity, Spiritual Warfare, Supernaturalism, The Holy Spirit
The Oprah-ization of American Evangelicalism
September 7, 2003
Posted by Dan Edelen in : Charismatic, Christianity in North America, Counterculture, Simplicity Feedback : add a comment
A little more than ten years ago I sat in the plush seats of Willow Creek Community Church, the Sunday pageantry unfolding before my eyes as I took copious notes for a college class: slick, professional music; non-threatening setting lacking any controversial religious symbolism; an (unknown to me) Christian "celebrity" telling how she saved her faltering marriage; a dramatic presentation on why men and women just can't get along; and a message from founding pastor Bill Hybels talking about the unmet psychological and physical needs of marriage partners. There was something for everyone and the crowds seemed to leave happy. Little did I know that I was watching would become the norm of evangelical church programming in years to come.
Later, as I tried to analyze the information I had compiled after almost eight months of charting Willow Creek's programming style, I was left wondering. Where was the cross of Christ (not the one that hangs in the sanctuary, but the one that asks all men to die to self)? Why was everything so calculatingly planned out? Why the lack of Bible exposition during the message and the overt reliance on psychology to explain our condition? But most disturbing of all, given the emphasis on reaching "seekers", what were people being saved from and just whom were they being saved by?
A few years later, I talked with the pastor of the rapidly growing Midwest church I had attended for several years. My wife and I were moving to Silicon Valley and wanted to have a nice transition. In that time, I said to him, "Please, don't let this church become just another Willow Creek."
California didn't pan out in the long run, so we eventually returned to find that my almost prophetic warning had gone unheeded. Not only that, but the church was firmly under the auspices of The Willow Creek Association, a rather nebulous organization that continues to draw evangelical churches into its fold. Along the way, the same ministry mentality had permeated many aspects of my old church. Cultural relevancy was the mantra and the message was less about the person of Jesus and more about how He can meet my felt needs. The messages were more structured along the lines of three points and a conclusion. Much of the charismatic emphasis that had brought me to the church in the first place had been toned down, perhaps to keep from scaring away seekers.
Having settled more than an hour from that church, we started looking around our area only to find ourselves startled by the sameness of different denominational churches that all were trying to be a clone of the church we were thinking about leaving, itself more of a clone of Willow Creek. In a bit more than a decade, what started in Barrington, IL had successfully permeated throughout a variety of different Christian traditions.
I've never really understood the fascination with Oprah's TV show. And yet, I find evangelical churches today to be transitioning into something that increasingly resembles the Oprah cult. Truth is subject to feeling. Empathy reigns - how deeply someone feels about someone else's pain is the principle measure of their spiritual depth. The Bible is just one source of wisdom. Anything that attempts to help us grow in religious knowledge is unquestionably assimilated. Reliance on psychological methods of dealing with reality is a given. Like John Lennon sang, "Whatever gets you through the night, it's alright…."
Francis Schaeffer warned that the evangelical church's fascination with philosophies outside of the ring of God's truth would eventually drive it into error. He particularly cites the wholesale incorporation of psychological theory as one of the harbingers of disaster. We are living that warning every Sunday across America.
So even as pastors claim that their teaching is getting better and better - and 90% rate themselves as Good/Excellent in this regard according to pollster George Barna - biblical knowledge among those in the pews is reaching all-time lows. It is a curious thing that the unction of the Holy Spirit seems to be yielding a flock of "three points and a conclusion" messages that are falling on largely deaf ears. Perhaps we are entering a second fulfillment of Amos 8:11 - "The days are coming," declares the Sovereign LORD , "when I will send a famine through the land- not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD ." Our sanctuaries are filled with costly, state-of-the-art sound systems, but there appears to be nothing worth hearing coming out of the speakers.
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