The Promises of God Defined by His Mercy

Isaiah 55:11 is a verse which is well-known among orthodox Protestants: "So shall My word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it." And there is good reason for it to be well-known, because it powerfully teaches that the Bible is infallible and trustworthy. Where we are weak, the Scriptures are invincible!

However, there is another aspect to that verse that many such Protestants pass over: the Scriptures don't achieve what we plan, but what God plans. This is where orthodoxy stands against the so-called Prosperity Gospel - which is really no gospel at all - which claims that spouting some claim from anyone on the basis of his personal desire and interpretation guarantees that God is obligated to give it.

Where this is especially important is in evangelism. Paul tells us that "faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17). That is, the preaching of the Word is God's usual means of converting unbelievers (see the Westminster Confession of Faith Chapter X). Some people claim that means that we are just to proclaim the Word, and then every person has an equal ability to respond, based on his choice to believe or not. Yet, we know that not all believe, even when presented with the Gospel through the Scriptures. Doesn't this "choice" doctrine then imply that the promise of Isaiah 55:11 is false? or, at least, unreliable? God forbid such a blasphemous assertion!

Rather, such people ignore the third and fourth lines of the verse: "It shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it." The promise of God never fails! The mere idea is impossible! Rather, it is effectual when He intends it, not us. As Paul also says: "So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy" (Romans 9:16; see also John 1:12-13).

More importantly, we have the assertion of Jesus: "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will but the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day" (John 6:37-39). His promise here parallels the one in Isaiah, but is more explicit. To whom does the promise apply? To those who choose? No, it says no such thing. Rather, Jesus specifies that it applies to those whom the Father has given Him. Does He know who those people are? Of course. Can we know? Of course not. That is a part of the creator/creature distinction. Therefore, we are to proclaim the Word to whomever will hear us, knowing that those redeemed by Jesus will respond in faith, and the others will reject it (II Corinthians 2:16). What we must remember is that the promise of Isaiah is effectual, and that promise should stimulate us in our evangelism (Acts 18:10), knowing that God will apply that word to the conversion of all whom He intends (Acts 13:48).

Contending for the Faith Against False Teachers

I have regular apologetic and evangelistic interactions with pseudo-Christian cults, mainly Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Oneness Pentecostals. In each case, someone always says something like this: "Why do you judge us? Why can't you just go practice your beliefs, and leave us to practice ours?" It's a form of guilt manipulation, trying to make it seem as if I am just a big meanie.

Yet, their repeated "why's" have an answer: the commandment of Scripture.

First, we have the warning against false teachers: "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you'" (Jeremiah 23:16-17). The danger of false teachers is that they leave their followers under the wrath of God, while blithely imagining their safety. That is why false teachers are so popular. "While people are saying, 'There is peace and security,' then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape" (I Thessalonians 5:3). And it isn't just the cults which are the danger here. The popular TV preachers, such as Joel Osteen, are equally dangerous. They promise peace and prosperity, but never mention sin or the wrath of God. So their followers march, grinning and satisfied, into the waiting maw of Hell. 

In the face of such deceivers, the Scriptures give me a stark warning: "If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand" (Ezekiel 3:18). If I see the false teacher and those deceived by him, and I make no effort to warn them of God's judgment, then God holds me guilty of their death! 

That's why the New Testament also gives every true Christian this commandment: "I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 1:3). I do not face accounting to cultists or other false teachers for challenging their errors; I face the wrath of God if I fail to do so.

Human Pride versus the God-Centeredness of God

"He is unchangeable, and who can turn Him back? What He desires, that He does." 
- Job 23:13

Among American evangelicals, there is an unstated belief that God is a giant Santa Claus in the sky, who exists to take care of us, to make us happy, and to satisfy our whims. We see this most plainly in the Prosperity Gospel teachers, who suggest that anyone who is poor or has a physical ailment is, somehow, unfaithful. God has been turned into an indulgent but toothless grandfather, no longer the Creator and Lord. 

The problem with that is that it bears no similarity to the God of the Bible. It is a violation of both the First and Second Commandments. That God, the true living God, is pursuing, not our glory, but His own; not our desires, but His own; not our gratification, but His own. We see it in the verse at the top of this article. 

I think that atheism is preferable. The atheist honestly admits that He hates God, and, therefore, rejects Him. In contrast, the average evangelical will gush about how much he loves God, but with that one unstated proviso: I will love God as long as He makes me happy. Such a Christian is proud that he keeps God on perpetual probation.

What is God's answer? "For My own sake, for My own sake, do I act, for how should My name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another" (Isaiah 48:11). God always acts to promote His own glory. If He were to do otherwise, at any time for any mere creature, then He would be transferring His glory to that person, and that is something that He will never do.

And that attitude drives the professing, but false, believer absolutely crazy. Try telling it to people, and watch the moral umbrage come steaming out of their nostrils and flashing from their eyes. "Who does God think He is? GOD or something?" And the answer, of course, is yes, He does think that. 

Is the Church Teaching the Lie of Satan?

We often talk about Europe as a "post-Christian culture." Then the conversation often moves to America, which is already "post-modern," and moving in the same direction as Europe. The so-called "nones," those who say they have no religion, are increasing as a proportion of the American population. The church has less and less influence in social issues.

Why is that?

In Europe, we see portions that have never known the biblical Gospel, because they were controlled by the Catholic Church. As that organization, not truly a church, lost political power, people were freed from its power, but had no spiritual reality to take its place. In the areas that had known the Gospel because of the Reformation, its influence had been undermined by the influence of higher criticism, and the failure of the

churches to exercise discipline in the face of  bald unbelief. As state churches, they were expected to include the entire population in their membership, and depended on state subsidies for their finances. They simply surrendered to the spirit of unbelief.

Here in America, evangelicalism has always been stronger than in Europe. The separation from the state and a voluntary membership has enabled the churches to exercise discipline - when they chose. While some church organizations have given in to the same higher criticism that conquered Europe, others have maintained their faithfulness to the Gospel and our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

However, now that evangelical remnant is decaying from the inside out. Prominent place has been given to mysticism, mainly through the Pentecostal movement, so that faith has become subjective rather than a faith in objective historical truths and events. A pietistic mentality has taken over, in which one's private spiritual experience takes precedence over the objective facts of the historic Christian faith. And a growing Prosperity movement has come to equate faith with personal success.

In other words, we witness with our eyes the professing evangelical movement's giving itself over to the very promise with which Satan brought down Adam and Eve: "God knows that when you eat of it [i. e., the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil] your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). The deception of Satan was his promise to Adam and Even that betraying the God who made them would make them autonomous, with the authority to decide good and evil for themselves, rather than receiving their definitions from God.

And this is what has deprived the American evangelical movement of influence and effect. If personal prosperity and sovereignty are valid, then the truth of God is just an optional alternative. There can be no grounds for calling to account either individuals or officials who stand for wickedness. Wickedness and righteousness become equally valid. The salt has lost its savor: "You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet" (Matthew 5:13).

My message of warning is less to the apostates in American society than it is to the remnants of the church: "I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent" (Revelation 3:15-19).

The Prosperity Gospel: A Baptized Get-Rich-Quick Scheme

The Proverbs say a lot about how a man is to support himself and his family and advance in the material aspects of his life. However, I am often left wondering if Christians have read that book. Maybe it has languished as part of the dispensationalist dismissal of the Old Testament (except the portions that they can use for their wild-eyed eschatological theories).

I am especially troubled by the Prosperity Gospel movement, not just here in America, but, increasingly, spreading in the mission field, especially Nigeria and the Philippines. These ministers, mostly of a Pentecostal origin, who claim that the Christian life consists in the accumulation of shiny objects, such as fancy cars, big houses, expensive suits, or big hairdos. The favor of God, they claim, is evidenced by flashy stuff, especially for their ministers, such as Creflo Dollar's private jet.

This is not God's way. While He calls Himself the one who teaches us to acquire wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18), He also says, "Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist" (Proverbs 23:4).

Where is the balance here? Wealth is clearly not sinful, since He promotes it. However, in the getting of wealth, there is much more that He has to say.

Proverbs 28:6: "Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity, than a rich man who is crooked in his ways." Let's start with priorities. Wealth is not worth the selling of our souls, as Dollar has. If faced with the choice, then the man of God sticks to his integrity. It cannot be for sale.

Proverbs 28:19: "Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty."  Godly wealth comes from legitimate, honest work. The example here is agriculture. This isn't a way to get rich quick. Rather, it is the day-in, day-out work of honest labor. Dishonest, instant gains will just as instantly disappear, leaving a man with "plenty of poverty." 

The next verse, Proverbs 28:20, is even stronger: "A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished." The drive to get rich quick will have the opposite effect, as God will give that man the consequence of poverty. Notice the contrast between faithfulness and the drive for easy wealth. They cannot coexist (Matthew 6:24). 

And lastly, Proverbs 28:22: "A stingy man hastens after wealth, and does not know that poverty will come upon him." This verse addresses the opposite extreme, the stingy or miserly man. This is not about thrift, something which is otherwise commended in Scripture. Rather, this is about the man who turns a blind eye to the needs of his neighbor, though he has the means to help him (Proverbs 14:21, 21:10).

I keep thinking of these principles, as I watch people shelling out money for lottery tickets. Where does that money come from? We know that poor people are more likely to buy lottery tickets. They are spending their mortgages, or their kids' college funds, or even money that would have gone to putting food on their tables. God will not honor such foolishness.

The Unchristian Doctrine of the Prosperity Preachers

Part of what makes the Prosperity Gospel so evil is that its purveyors teach people that Jesus doesn't allow us to suffer. They claim that the Christian should never know hardship or poverty, or the loss of a loved one. When that teaching fails, as all falsehood must, it isn't the prosperity preachers who are held to account. Rather, the Christian in misery is made to feel that his suffering is the result of his own failure of faith. That can only lead to guilt, anger, and even cursing against God.

That certainly wasn't the teaching of Jesus. Luke, the Gentile Physician, records the account of His healing of the daughter of Jairus, an elder in the Jewish synagogue (Luke 8:40-42, 49-56). Jairus pleads with Jesus on behalf of his dying daughter. Surely anyone can empathize with a father's fear and desperation under such circumstances. Yet, Jesus turns away from Jairus to heal the woman with a twelve-year hemorrhage (verses 43-48). That delay proves fatal for Jairus's daughter, as a messenger arrives to inform him of his daughter's death.

Notice how contrary this story is to Prosperity teaching. Here is a man who believes in Jesus and comes to Him for help. Yet, Jesus attends to other things for a time too long for the little girl to hang on. What suffering this must have brought to this father's heart! What we see, though, is that his suffering is not the last word in the story, because Jesus does, indeed, meet his desperate need.

Why the wait? Well, we know that part of Jesus's timing is so that He could address the need of the woman with the hemorrhage. Also, we (and His Palestinian audience) see His power, not just over illness, but over even death itself!

The Apostle Paul also lived with deprivation, even as he was doing the greatest ministerial work that history has known. "I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:11-13). He testifies that he has had high points and low points, and known both plenty and hunger. Surely this Apostle should have known perpetual prosperity if anyone should. Right? Well, no, not right. The problem with someone who knows no hardship is seen in the last sentence of these words from Paul: "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." How could Paul have learned that dependence on God if he had never experienced need? And that is where the Prosperity Gospel fails. It teaches, not dependence on God, but rather dependence on belief. Belief in belief. And there can be no assurance when ones faith is in the wrong object.

Jairus Pleads With Jesus

Self-Esteem in Hell: An Open Letter to Joel Osteen

I am sure that we are familiar with the perfectly-coiffed image of the TV evangelist, with his pearly-white toothsome grin. And no, sin is never mentioned. No hint of why Jesus suffered on the cross. Only positive, uplifting praise. You are worthy. You are great. God can't help but be your best pal!

Is that a biblical message? I certainly don't think so. Rather, this is what I call the "Osteenification" of the church. And I deny that it is the Gospel.

In Acts chapter 2, starting at verse14, we have the record of a sermon by the Apostle Peter to a crowd of unbelieving Jews. I won't quote it; you can read it yourself.

However, it is the reaction of the audience that I want to emphasize (Acts 2:37): "Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart." Notice the contrast here. While our toothsome televangelists seek to create warm feelings of self-esteem in their audiences, this biblical sermon is brought to a different conclusion: they "were cut to the heart." These people are brought to the point of shame, sorrow, and repentance. They aren't made to feel good about themselves, but rather to understand their wickedness. They aren't told about how much God loves them and wants to give them nice cars. Rather, they are brought to an awareness that they are under the righteous judgment of God. They don't feel good about themselves, but bad!

That is the appalling sin of the feelgood preachers. By refusing to give people the bad news of sin and judgment, they can have no good news to give of redemption, forgiveness, and new life in Jesus Christ. Until a man understands the bad news, he is not ready to hear and understand the good news.

Joel Osteen, God has a message for you (Ezekiel 33:8): "If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand." All of your followers, whether in that false church of yours or the TV audience, are on their way to Hell, because you have refused to give them warning. Yet, that consideration doesn't seem to move you. Maybe this warning in Ezekiel will: if you continue to refuse to repent of your false gospel, your perfectly-coiffed toothsome smile will go into Hell with all of those other people, no matter how much self-esteem you have given them.

Sovereignty of God From the Mouth of a Compromiser: Balaam

Near the beginning of the Conquest, Balak, the king of Moab, hired Balaam, an Israelite prophet of shady

character, to curse Israel, in the hope that their advance into Canaan would be undermined by occult forces. Balaam is a bizarre biblical character, because, though his faith was syncretistic, and he was content to sell his gift to anyone with some gold, yet God truly spoke to him, and gave him true messages.

The story is told by Moses in Numbers, chapters 22 through 24.

However, it is on Numbers 24:1 that I want to focus: "When Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go, as at other times, to look for omens, but set his face toward the wilderness."

This is an amazing thing to see in the story of a wicked, greedy, spiritually-compromised. fallen, man of God. While he had been perfectly content to sell out his own nation, when Balaam saw that Jehovah, the God of Israel, would not cooperate, he stopped. Where he had been accustomed to using magical charms in an

effort to coerce God to his purposes, this time he forbore, accepted the judgment of God, and abandoned his heathen benefactors.

The reason I bring this up is the contrasting attitude I see too often today. the Prosperity Gospel peddlers have taught most American evangelicals that God is a heavenly Santa Claus (it is Christmas Eve as I type this), who must grant whatever materialistic demand we present to Him. Yet, this admitted half-heathen traitor to his own people has more sense: when God refuses to give him his wish, he puts aside his incantations and charms and walks away. If only the Prosperity heretics showed as much sense as they do their baptized heathenry!

In Balaam's own words (Num. 24:13): "If Balak should give me his house full of silver and gold, I would not be able to go beyond the word of the Lord, to do either good or bad of my own will. What the Lord speaks, that will I speak." No doubt that is the one thing that kept Jehovah speaking to him.

Perseverance by the Hand of the Lord Alone

As a Christian, I can testify of my own weakness. I know, without a doubt, that I would fall in a micro-second if my perseverance depended on me. However, I am thankful beyond words, that Jesus has undertaken, not just to redeem me, but to redeem me forever. In this case, it is the buyer who insists that "all sales are final -no refunds."

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
     when he delights in His way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, 
     for the Lord upholds his hand."
- Psalm 37: 23-24

In these four lines of poetry, we learn so much about God's promise of faithfulness to His people. There is no cheap grace, no "once saved, always saved" nonsense here. For the promise isn't, "If you raise your hand, you will be set for life, no matter what you do." Rather, it is a promise that the Christian will be sustained in his walk, that is, in His life as a Christian. Furthermore, there is no prosperity-gospel promise of "now I am happy all the day. On the contrary, it explicitly states that a part of the Christian walk is to stumble, as David did, in his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah (II Samuel, chapters 11 and 12). However, there is a promise here that such a stumble, though it may be severe or for a long time, yet it will not be permanent. Why? Because we are so spiritually-resilient that we will bounce back on our own? No, but rather because it is His hand, not our own strength, that upholds us (compare John 10:27-30). 

I don't understand that opposition of Arminians to the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. Well, actually I do. They misrepresent it, and then reject it, what logicians call a "strawman argument." However, I find it of such comfort that I could not live without knowing it. My hope is in the hand of Christ, not my own strength.

The Osteenification of American Evangelicalism: The Smiling Face of Apostasy

American evangelicalism has been taken over by what I call Osteenism, a gospel of self-esteem, with a Jesus as the great psychotherapist and Santa Claus in the sky. We aren't to talk about sin and God's holiness; God is to be presented only and always as a God of syrupy love, never of wrath. This has resulted in professing Christians with an ignorance of doctrine, of the Bible, of truth, and who are utterly incapable of dealing with adversity or addressing our humanistic culture. Since there is nothing wrong with people, according to this teaching, then there is no transformation, either of individuals or of churches, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This not the faith of the Bible.

We see Jacob, the grandson of Adam and founder of the nation of Israel, saying of himself (Genesis 32:10): "I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that You have shown to Your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps." He was blessed by God, enriched in fact, and acknowledges that fact. However, he also recognizes his unworthiness. These gifts have come from the hand of God, not because of Jacob's merits, but in spite of his demerits!

We see the same attitude in II Samuel 7:18: "Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and said, 'Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that You have brought me thus far?'" King David, one of the most-prominent figures in the Old Testament, had experienced many blessings and protections from God. Was it because he avoided recognizing any failures on his own part? Not at all! Rather, he professes those very inadequacies (compare Psalm 51), and praises God for giving him the exact opposite of what he deserved (II Sam. 7:21): "Because of Your promise, and according to Your own heart, You have brought about all this greatness, to make Your servant know it." In giving His blessings, God never intends for David, or for us, to congratulate ourselves for our magnificence. Rather, it is to cause us to recognize our unworthiness and His magnificence.

In following the prophets of Osteenism, a professing Christian may develop an astounding self-esteem. However, he will never learn proper esteem for God, his mercy, and His gifts.

Was Jesus Born Again? The Heresy of the Word of Faith Movement

Jesus taught us that it is necessary for a man to be born again to enter eternal life (John 3:3). That's because we are all fallen in Adam (Romans 5:12), dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1). To be born again is to have God change our hearts, to become able to believe and obey Him (Ezekiel 36:26-27). Jesus, however, didn't include Himself, because He had no sin (II Corinthians 5:21 and Hebrews 4:15). If He was never a sinner, then He had no need for a new heart.

In contrast, the ministers associated with the prosperity gospel, or Word of Faith, movement, teach that Jesus went to Hell after His crucifixion, and was born again there, so that He could then be resurrected. Can there be any better indication that this movement is actually an anti-Christian, even anti-Christ, cult?

Thankful for Prosperity, Yes, but Not That Kind!

This topic seems apropos for Thanksgiving Day:

The Bible says that God enables His people to gather wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18). In fact, that is part of the dominion given to Adam in the Garden (Gen. 1:26-27).  The teachers of the Prosperity Gospel have taken these truths and perverted them into promises of big houses and big cars and big jewelry, even personal jets - at least for them. But I consider that a serious perversion of the teachings of Scripture.

In Proverbs 8:19, we read, "My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver." The speaker here is a personification of Wisdom. Notice the treasure that she promises: something better than gold or silver. Thus, not material wealth. Not to say that material wealth is excluded, of course. But certainly something apart from material wealth. But the next two verses give clarity: the fruit of righteousness and justice, which then leads to "granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries." Notice that she refers to "those who love me," that is, love wisdom. Look at Proverbs 1:7 and 9:10, and especially Psalm 111:10: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!" All three verses share one theme: it is in the fear of the Lord that one attains wisdom. 

The Prosperity teachers mislead their audiences. It isn't material wealth that leads to godliness. It is godliness that leads to fruit, which may or may not include material wealth. It is as if these preachers have suffered temporary blindness every time they pass over the words of the Apostle Paul: "I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need" (Philippians 4:11-12). Would anyone say that Paul was spiritually deficient? Yet, he suffered, at times, from hunger and need, but was always content. How different that is from the teachings of the Prosperity Gospel, because it is not gospel at all (Galatians 1:8).

Here is a simple test: if any person, lay or clergy, judges your spiritual health by the wealth that you have, then his agenda is a false gospel, and he is under the judgment of God. And if you follow such a man, especially after having been warned (as I have done here), then you share in his judgment (Jeremiah 23:16-17, and Revelation 18:4).

Pentecostals and the Pope: Reversing the Reformation

At a convention sponsored by the Kenneth Copeland Ministries, delegates were treated to a video from Pope Francis, in which he expressed his yearning, "Let’s give each other a spiritual embrace and let God complete the work that He has begun." The video can be watched on Youtube.

In the video, the Pope claims that the Catholic Church and Pentecostals share the blame for the separation between them. "It’s sin that has separated us, all our sins, the misunderstandings throughout history. It has been a long road of sins that we all shared in. Who is to blame? We all share the blame," he said. "We have all sinned. There is only one blameless, the Lord."

In response, Kenneth Copeland told the audience, "Come on, the man asked us to pray for him... Oh Father…we answer his request," Copeland prayed. "And since we know not how to pray for him as we ought other than to agree with him in his quest and his heart for the unity of the body of Christ… we come together in the unity of our faith, Halleluiah!"

Do you notice anything missing from the lovefest? I see no mention of the controversy between Rome and Protestants over such things as justification b y faith alone, the sufficiency of the scriptures alone, or the exclusive headship of Christ over His church. That is, neither Francis nor Copeland makes any mention of the reasons that Calvin, Luther, Cranmer, etc., were compelled by Scripture and their consciences to oppose the Papacy as a corruption of the Christian Faith.

That is hardly surprising. Afterall, Copeland and his ilk teach the same semi-Pelagian heresy that has always been taught by Rome. While Francis mumbles about sin on both sides, he sees no need to repent of his view of the Gospel, because these Pentecostals ( and others) aren't requiring him to move toward a biblical Gospel. Rather, they have been moving toward a papist Gospel of human ability, tradition over Scripture, subjectivism, and the blending of works with faith.

The Reformers labelled the Papacy as the Anti-Christ, and the Church of Rome as the great Whore of the Revelation. And in the five hundred years since, Rome hasn't changed anything but the window-dressing. Yet, she has managed to convince some self-described Protestants to de-Protestantize themselves, and return to her blasphemous bosom.

I for one say good riddance!

By no means should my comments here be taken to suggest that all Pentecostals share in the apostasy of these associates of Kenneth Copeland. However, I have yet to see their condemnation of these apostates.

God says, "Come out of her, My people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues" (Revelation 18:4).

When a Mega-Church Pastor Baptizes Pop Psychology, Does It Have to Be by Immersion?

I live in the area where Pastor Steven Furtick has his ministry, called Elevation Church. In fact, I live just down the road from one of their branch "campuses." Though it is never mentioned in their promotions, Elevation is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. As their neighbor, when I joined Blogging for Books, I chose one of his books as the first one that I review for that program. Make note of that disclosure: I received a free copy of the book in return for posting a review here on my blog. A positive review was not required.

Crash the Chatterbox is available from Amazon. It is published by Multnomah, so I would expect that it would also be available from any bookstore.

The book has two separate sections, though I suspect that the division was unintentional. The first two-thirds, up to page 133 out of 210, can only be described as baptized pop psychology. While Furtick does include bible references, they are only to illustrate his point, not as the source of his

applications. But I'll come back to that.

This is no theological tome. Rather, it is filled with juvenile humor, and pop cultural references, such as to "The Voice" on pages 21-22. It seems to be more a matter of how clever the author is, rather than how wonderful the Author is. Furtick defines the chatterbox as "the lies we believe that keep us from accurately and actively hearing God's voice." Which leads to my view of "chatterbox": a minister who subsumes the Word of God to frivolity. If he reads this, I hope that my use of words above junior-high reading level doesn't throw him off.

In contrast to the chatterbox, God wants, according to Furtick, "to communicate with you in tones, pitches, and frequencies that this world is not wired for, to fulfill you with affirmation that your soul has been thirsting for" (p. 11). Really? Even ignoring the mixed metaphors, is that what the Bible says? I read in Isaiah 64:6 that "all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment." And in Romans 3:12, "All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one." So, when the chatterbox is telling me that I am worthless, no good, it is telling the truth!

What is Furtick's solution? P. 15, "We become liberated from lies as we actively embrace the ways God wants to re-imagine and re-create our hearts." That is a load of mystical, new-age hogwash! P. 29, "The more adept you become at talking smack back to the chatterbox, the more ingrained the reality of who you are will become." I wish that he had included the reference for that, because I couldn't find "talking smack" in my Bible concordance. Maybe I can find it in some book about "the power of positive thinking," or in the sermons of some preacher of "positive confession." Another reference I would have liked to see was for "our inestimable worth in His [i. e., God's] eyes" (p. 65).

I especially found objectionable the use he makes use of questionable psychological methods. On page 128, he refers to a seminar by a Christian psychologist: "Toward the end of his last session, he started explaining something called 'learned helplessness' and the three p's of negative thinking. I was captivated because so much of what he was sharing coalesced with what I've been learning about the chatterbox." And on page 132, he quotes new-age psychologist Carl Jung. I can't understand how Furtick is not conscious of his inspiration, non- or even anti-Christian psychology, not the Bible.

Furtick almost fixes the problem when he finally reaches the final third of his book. He opens that section, beginning on page 133, by quoting Galatians 2:20, and talking about what Christ has done. On page 139, he quotes Romans 8:3-4, and adds, "What I could never do, God already did! As a believer, I no longer live under the tyranny of condemnation, because God, the righteous Judge, condemned my sin in Christ. All. All of it!" And that is right on the money! I only wish that Furtick had started his book at that point.

However, Furtick doesn't finish there. Instead, he returns to the garbage that he had spouted in the first two-thirds of the book. For example, on p. 196, he writes, "Your words will give weight to the very dread and discontent that the Enemy intends to use to discourage you." That is the same prosperity-gospel and pop-psychology nonsense that fills so much of the book.

Here is my solution to the "chatterbox": when Satan (or one's conscience) keeps throwing up the accusation that one is unworthy of God's love, then agree with him, because it's true. But don't stop there. I am unworthy, but Jesus is worthy! Revelation 5:12 says, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!" And, by grace through faith alone, I am clothed in His worthiness! Revelation 3:18 encourages us "to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen..." See also Zechariah 3:3-5.

So, to "crash the chatterbox," avoid this book, avoid clever TV preachers, and avoid cheesy psychology. Rather, let the truth of your sinfulness and the glory of redemption in Christ drown out the accuser. For the just shall live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4)!

Romans 4:1-8, the New American Gospel of Legalism

"What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? 'Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.' Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: 'Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.'"

Part of the background of my church is the Associate Presbytery of Scotland, usually called by their nickname of "Seceders." I have studied them extensively, both because of that historical connection and because of the spiritual issues involved in their secession from the established Church of Scotland. I especially concentrate on the issues of that division which we see arising again in our modern time.

I won't go into the complex of issues that led to the secession. Rather, I want to address the one issue of neonomianism. Neonomianism is the teaching, not usually explicitly stated, that the Gospel is a form of Law ("neo" new+ "nomos" law), such that a person is not saved by acts of the Mosaic law, but rather through a new form of merit through repentance and works of new obedience.

The dominant party in the Church of Scotland General Assembly held that the recipient of the Gospel had to go through several steps of preparation, through sorrow and repentance of sin and moral reformation. In opposition to these forms of merit, the Seceders, centered around a book called The Marrow of Modern Divinity, held to a Gospel of free grace. They insisted that all of the merit in the Gospel is in Christ alone, by grace alone, received by faith alone. In other words, they were defending the same solas that led to the Protestant Reformation two hundred years earlier.

The reason that I refer to this as the "New American Gospel of Legalism" is that the same errors that destroyed the Church of Scotland have become the doctrine of mainstream American Evangelicals. Even in the psychobabble that has become part of our daily conversation, "Just have faith," arises from this error. "Faith" has become the new works-righteousness. We supposedly merit salvation by having enough faith. This is even made explicit by the prosperity preachers. But isn't it what most people expect? "If I just believe hard enough, God has to give me what I want and take me to heaven."

However, notice what Paul says above about Abraham: "Abraham believed God." He doesn't say, "Abraham believed in God." Everyone believes in God, even if he doesn't admit it (Romans 1:18-21). James 2:19 says that even the demons believe in God! That puts the spiritual commitment of most Americans on par with that of demons!

But Abraham didn't just believe in God. He believed God, that is, he believed the promises of God. Go to Romans 4:20-25, "No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what He had promised. That is why his faith was 'counted to him as righteousness.' But the words 'it was counted to him' were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in Him Who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, Who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification."

That is to say, our faith doesn't earn us salvation (or blessings). Our repentance doesn't earn us salvation. Our reformation of our lives doesn't earn us salvation. The only thing that earns our salvation is the finished work of Christ in His crucifixion and resurrection. That sole merit is then applied to us by means of faith.

The biblical order is Christ, then justification, then faith, then repentance, and with all resulting in sanctification. Any other order requires the hearer to act upon a person and work that he doesn't yet believe in. Logic alone should convince us that is impossible!

Election Means The REAL God Ain't You!

As I have noted before, I don't believe that the religion of modern America is Christianity, but rather Deism, i. e., the belief that there is a God, but He doesn't take an active role in the world. Americans love our religiosity, as long as it doesn't interfere with our own sovereignty over our lives! Just enough religion to be comfortable, but not enough actually to affect how we live.

The problem is this: the God of the Bible doesn't allow Himself to be boxed in that way. He has a discomfiting habit of insisting that He is God and we aren't.

Consider Psalm 115:3, "Our God is in the heavens; he does all that He pleases." Short but straightforward. As is Psalm 103:19, "The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all." And again in Psalm 135:6, "The LORD does whatever pleases Him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths." The sovereignty of God was a favorite theme of the psalmists.

The Prophet Isaiah chimes in on the theme. Isaiah 14:24 and 27, "The Lord of hosts has sworn: 'As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand... For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?'" For, as the prophet also says in Isaiah 42:8, "I am the LORD; that is my name; My glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols."

And the Prophet Amos gives us God's words in Amos 3:6, "Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?" He declares that God is even sovereign in bringing disaster. Job reinforces this point in Job 2:10. "'Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?' In all this Job did not sin with his lips." The inspired text even reinforces his point by telling us that Job's comment wasn't sinful!

American evangelicalism is sinfully man-centered, especially that portion known as the "Prosperity Gospel." In contrast, the Bible is radically God-centered. I suspect that this is the reason that the bulk of American evangelicalism is losing membership and growing increasingly impotent. God has given the professing Christians what they wanted: their own spiritual sovereignty. And it has destroyed our nation's spiritual heritage.

Ezekiel 9:3-7, The Godly Must Speak Out!

"Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house. And He called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his waist. And the Lord said to him, 'Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.' And to the others He said in my hearing, 'Pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. Kill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but touch no one on whom is the mark. And begin at My sanctuary.' So they began with the elders who were before the house. Then He said to them, 'Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain. Go out.' So they went out and struck in the city."

This is a tough passage! It speaks of a time of latitudinarian spirituality. Anything goes. Everything is okay. Don't be judgmental. There are times of such ease throughout the Old Testament, See, for example, Deuteronomy 12:8, Judges 17:6, Judges 21:25, and Proverbs 21:2. And again in Ezekiel's time. But this time the Lord pours out His wrath against the lackadaisical church-member. He commands a man to go through Jerusalem and place a mark on all those who weep over the apostasy of their society. Then He sends others out to slay everyone without that mark.

Doesn't this describe our own time? The leadership of many churches deny the fundamentals of the faith. One prominent "evangelical" has now declared that there is no Hell. There have been ministers for decades who deny the divine inspiration of the Bible. And now we have loony theology flying all over the place, such as the Prosperity Gospel. But we mustn't criticize. Mustn't act superior. Mustn't judge. But John 7:24 tells us to judge, but to do it "with right judgment." And doesn't this passage from Ezekiel indicate that we face severe judgment ourselves if we disobey this instruction? Doesn't God reveal that He hates loose and impotent Christianity?

However, we must understand that we face not only God's wrath if we fail to judge error and sin, but also that we face the government's wrath if we do. In 1954, then-Senator Lyndon Johnson inserted a clause into the federal tax code to revoke the tax-exempt status of churches, if their pastors used the pulpit to criticize government. The Alliance Defense Fund is attempting to stir up pastors to resist this shackle on their work.

Acts 5:29 tells us that we must obey God rather than men. Since it is the duty of pastors especially, but also all Christians generally, to speak against the evils of our time, surely the tax code should be an inferior authority in our concerns. Let the Pastor, and each Christian, exercise his spiritual responsibility and constitutional rights. And what consequences the government brings on us, let us be honored to suffer for doing right (I Peter 3:17)!

Amos 3:6, Is It the Responsibility of a Sovereign God to Make Us Happy?

"Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?"

Portions like this one are why ignorance of the Old Testament is almost a sign of superiority amongst American Evangelicals. Consider that popular song: "At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away, it was there by faith I received my sight, and now I am happy all the day!" Charismatics, especially the Prosperity Gospel peddlars, are well-known for claiming that illnesses are "lies from Satan!" But is it biblical to expect to be "happy all the day" or free from illness, simply because one knows Jesus?

Consider another verse, Isaiah 45:7, "I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things." Speaking of Himself, God certainly makes no claims of being the bringer of only sweetness and light.

Or what of the testimony of Job? In 2:10, he says, "But he said to her, 'You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?' In all this Job did not sin with his lips." And the text even makes explicit that it was no sin for him to say this!

God does indeed bring suffering into the lives of even the strongest Christians. the reasons are many. It may be to expose hidden sin or overblown pride (consider Paul's thorn in the flesh, II Corinthians 12:7-10). Suffering also helps us to loosen our grasp on material things in this life and to focus on the life to come. But the issue is his sovereignty: He does, because He can. It is our place to receive His purposes in our lives. To put it simply: we must learn more and more that He is God and we are not!

The reason American evangelicals avoid passages such as these is that evangelism and worship in most churches have changed God from our sovereign king to Santa Claus, lifestyle guru, or the candyman. Do you remember the Candyman in "Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang"? He was a wicked man who enslaved children with promises of sweets from a pretty wagon. However, when the children responded to his charms, the candy wagon was suddenly revealed as a cage, as the children were carted away to enslavement. I think that provides an excellent analogy for Satan in the deceptions of American popular evangelicalism!

Signs and Wonders and Heretics, Oh My!

"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world." - I John 4:1

The Apostle John here is applying a warning from the Law of Moses. In Deuteronomy 13:1-3, God through Moses gives a stern warning: "If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, 'Let us go after other gods,' which you have not known, 'and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul." So, our God will sometimes allow a false teacher to prophesy or perform miracles, not as an endorsement, but rather as a test of the obedience of His people.

The same apostle himself prophesies of a marvelous wonder performed by the sea beast of the Revelation. In Rev. 13:1, he tells us, "One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast." And again in 17:8, "The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come." John obviously doesn't believe that miracle-working is proof of divine sanction!

Yet, the astonishing thing is that, in spite of these warnings, every crackpot tent evangelist who can stage a few healings soon has crowds eating out of his (or often her) hands and sending their life savings by return mail. This though they are often Pelagians, Arians, or simply charlatans! Everyone knows that Jim Bakker went to prison for his activities, but others, notably Benny Hinn, are still on the road. Surely thousands are failing the test of faith spoken of in Deuteronomy.

Godly Wealth

"You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers, as it is this day." - Deuteronomy 8:18

I have written before (here and here) about the corruption of godly desire for wealth by the prosperity gospel teachers, but I have been struck again by the simplicity of scripture on the matter.

Moses here plainly repeats God's own self-description as the one who enables His people to gain wealth. Does it involve hocus-pocus or writing a check to a fat-cat TV preacher? No!

I was struck again by the earthy (pun intended) wisdom of Proverbs tonight. Prov. 12:11 reads, "Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense." It is the diligent day-to-day labor that a person should do which God blesses in creating wealth. It isn't writing a check to the Mercedes-driving, hair-mousse-addicted TV preacher. Nor is it some get-rich-quick scheme suggested by an infomercial or chat-line psychic. It is simple diligent labor. What a radical concept!

The first half of the next verse is equally telling: "Whoever is wicked covets the spoil of evildoers..." I would suggest that this is an indictment of the one who ignores God's way to covet the lifestyle of the TV preacher. Just read the Proverbs. There are other verses that give good direction on a responsible wealth-building lifestyle. Try chapter 6, verses 6-11 as a start.