Week 4 – Matt Chandler Update
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Filed under: Videos Tagged: cancer, chandler, matt, surgery, tumor 
DISSENTION GROWING AROUND THE EMERGING CHURCH
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Apprising Ministries is glad to see there are those who are beginning to look harder through the postmodern fog of the sinfully ecumenical Emerging Church aka Emergent Church—that morphed into Emergence Christianity—(EC). As a result we’re beginning to see some public dissention surfacing, even among the loving and tolerant “Christ-followers”; particularly it seems concerning EC guru Brian McLaren, heretical EC pastor Doug Pagitt, and his heretical “theologian in residence” Tony Jones.
You may know that this EC cult of a reimagined [read: post] form of so-called progressive aka liberal Christianity, which is a de-formation of the historic orthodox Christian faith, billed itself as “the conversation.” However, those of us laboring in the developing field of online apologetics and discernment ministries along the Internet front recognized early on that the EC has always been merely a monologue of the like-minded.
It would now appear that this is becoming clearer to some who’ve been in this ongoing EC indoctrination, such as Jeremy Bouma, who penned a post yesterday where he said Goodbye Emergent: Why I’m Taking The Theology of the Emerging Church To Task. Therein Bouma, writing ”as one who has been on the inside of and involved with this conversation for half a decade,” gave the reasons he’s leaving the EC. He also tells us that he’s:
waded through the theology of this conversation for 5 years, the last 2 of which has coincided with a serious academic pursuit of biblical and historical theological training. In that experience I have found major problems with EC theological reflection on sin, human nature, atonement (or lack thereof), salvation, judgment, and eschatology. These are not from blog posts. These are from books. Not from speeches at conferences or ephemeral conversations, but ideas encapsulated in published works. (Online source)
While responding to a commenter Bouma also shared some more important eyewitness testimony concerning McLaren’s rejection of the cardinal Christian doctrine of the penal substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ. Bouma, who even used to attend McLaren’s church, said he believes that McLaren’s:
revaluation of Christianity is disconnected from historic Christianity, yet connected to versions of it that have existed before. Actually, in a conversation I had with him (this was a public convo during his book review that was open to the public, so I dont think I’m breaking confidence here), I asked him what atonement narratives he embraced if he is so against penal substitutionary atonement. His answer: NONE! He rejects ALL the narratives. (Online source, bold his)
On the heels of the above today, as McLaren’s new book A New Kind Of Christianity (NKoC) drops, comes Brian Wants to Frame the Reviews: ‘If you disagree with me, you are probably a Fundie!’ by Bill Kinnon. It’s interesting to note that yesterday Kinnon, a name easily recognized around the blogosphere, and who’s worked as a consultant “to a number of churches and Christian organizations in the US, Canada and the UK,” informed us in the combox of Bouma’s post:
BMcL’s A New Kind of Christian was a very important book for Imbi (my wife) and I when we read it 10 years ago. We became evangelists for Brian’s books for a time – but are no longer. Our paths have diverged significantly from the one Brian has taken (in my humble estimation.)
I’ve read most of A New Kind of Christianity (which arrived on Thursday) as I’ve had time and am disturbed by the cross-less Christianity that Brian describes. There are also some things I do like in the book but by and large, Brian appears more Unitarian Universalist in his understanding of the faith – in spite of how mean, nasty and unloving I am for saying that. The easiest form of debate is to suggest that anyone that dares question you is arguing ad hominem. (I will unpack the reasons for my stated opinion above in a blog post I hope to put up in the next 24 hours.) (Online source)
In his aforementioned post today Kinnon tells us he received McLaren’s NCoK ”last Thursday” and then he “grabbed fleeting moments over the weekend to quickly read it.” Kinnon notes:
From the dust cover of the book,
We are in the midst of a paradigm shift in the church. Not since the Reformation five centuries ago have so many Christians come together to ask whether the church is in sync with their deepest beliefs and commitments. These believers range from evangelicals to mainline Protestants to Catholics, and the person who best represents them is author and pastor Brian McLaren. [emphasis added]
Brian’s book tells us immediately that Brian best represents those of us who question the institutional church. (Online source, bold his)
Kinnon’s post demonstrates that McLaren, whether he was directly responsible for it or not, is essentially set up as “God’s answer to the present state of the church.” And then Kinnon calls our attention to EC theologian:
Scot McKnight [who] pointed to the binary “Quiz” Brian ran on his blog:
“If A you probably are a Fundamentalist…“
“If B you are curious…” (Online source, bold his)
Why, what a very un-postmodern thing for McLaren to do. That aside, Kinnon then gets to the heart of the matter:
There is a level of cognitive dissonance in a writer who offers his book as the answer to all that ails Christianity and then also wants to frame how we engage with that book. And the dissonance is deeper in that said writer chooses to label those who disagree with him as close-minded Fundamentalists. (Online source)
You see, as I’ve said a few times before, the loving and tolerant “Christ-followers” aren’t really so loving and tolerant at all concernning those who dare disagree with them. What’s also important to note here is this: Neither Bouma or Kinnon would even remotely consider themselves an ally of mine in that they appear to see me, quite mistakenly, as some kind of wild-eyed hyper-fundamentalist. Now don’t tell anyone, because it would just ruin my rep as the “bad boy of the internet” such as I was called last year, but I’m actually being kind to them in pointing this out.
Seriously though both Bouma and Kinnon, once sympathetic to Brian McLaren, Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones, are absolutely indicative of a growing dissention with progressive/liberal theology around the Emerging Church. As I close this out for now I leave you with a couple of critical points upon which to meditate: 1) This Liberalism 2.0 has been there all along, but the open embrace of the EC by mainstream evangelicalism has simply emboldened apostates (at best) like Brian McLaren; and 2) sadly, this theological poison has been fed, virtually uncut, to your youth for years now.
See also:
EMERGENT PAIN AND DISCORD IN THE EMERGING CHURCH
THROWN UNDER THE EMERGING CHURCH BUS
EMERGING WITH A CHRISTIANITY DOUG PAGITT LIKES
THE EMERGING CHURCH AGENDA AND DOUG PAGITT
TONY JONES: STOP PERFORMING (LEGAL) MARRIAGES!
BRIAN MCLAREN COMMENDS FRIEND TONY JONES
Brian McLaren Theology
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Filed under: Humor Tagged: absolutes, Brian, Humor, McLaren, Theology 
J. GRESHAM MACHEN: LIBERALISM A FORM OF LEGALISM
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According to modern liberalism, faith is essentially the same as “making Christ Master” in one’s life; at least it is by making Christ Master in the life that the welfare of men is sought. But that simply means that salvation is thought to be obtained by our own obedience to the commands of Christ. Such teaching is just a sublimated form of legalism. Not the sacrifice of Christ, on this view, but our own obedience to God’s law, is the ground of hope.
In this way the whole achievement of the Reformation has been given up, and there has been a return to the religion of the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, God raised up 8 man who began to read the Epistle to the Galatians with his own eyes. The result was the rediscovery of the doctrine of justification by faith. Upon that rediscovery has been based the whole of our evangelical freedom. As expounded by Luther and Calvin the Epistle to the Galatians became the “Magna Charta of Christian liberty.” But modern liberalism has returned to the old interpretation of Galatians which was urged against the Reformers.
Thus Professor [Earnest DeWitt] Burton’s elaborate commentary on the Epistle, despite all its extremely valuable modern scholarship, is in one respect a medieval book; it has returned to an anti-Reformation exegesis, by which Paul is thought to be attacking in the Epistle only the piecemeal morality of the Pharisees. In reality, of course, the object of Paul’s attack is the thought that in any way man can earn his acceptance with God. What Paul is primarily interested in is not spiritual religion over against ceremonialism, but the free grace of God over against human merit.
The grace of God is rejected by modern liberalism. And the result is slavery–the slavery of the law, the wretched bondage by which man undertakes the impossible task of establishing his own righteousness as a ground of acceptance with God. It may seem strange at first sight that “liberalism,” of which the very name means freedom, should in reality be wretched slavery. But the phenomenon is not really so strange. Emancipation from the blessed will of God always involves bondage tosome worse taskmaster.
Thus it may be said of the modern liberal Church, as of the Jerusalem of Paul’s day, that “she is in bondage with her children.” God grant that she may turn again to the liberty of the gospel of Christ! (Christianity & Liberalism, 143, 144)
J. Gresham Machen
See also:
IS DALLAS WILLARD A CHRISTIAN?
AN INSIDER LEAVES THE EMERGING CHURCH
PHIL JOHNSON ON THEOLOGICAL LIBERALISM
TONY JONES, THE EMERGING CHURCH AND PROGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY
IN THE EMERGING CHURCH OOZE CONVERSION IS OUT
APPRISING MINISTRIES WITH A PEEK AT THE COMING SOTERIOLOGY OF EMERGENCE CHRISTIANITY
JOHN MACARTHUR: SEEKER-FRIENDLY MOVEMENT IS THE NEW LIBERALISM
*UPDATED* ED YOUNG JR SAYS HE’S SETTING THINGS STRAIGHT
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As a follow-up to SBC Pastor Ed Young Jr In Luxury Cover-Up? here at Apprising Ministries I point you to Ed Young Jr’s blog where he tells us he’s Setting Things Straight and Moving On.
In introducing his video of the same title at his blog today Young, Jr says:
I took the opportunity to thank the church and address some recent news coverage. And now, we will continue to move forward and follow God in the work He is doing here. (Online source)
As I watched the video a couple of things came emerging in my view; 1) it seems the board members protesteth too much, and 2) The first to plead his case seems right, Until another comes and examines him (Proverbs 18:17, NASB). So stay tuned; indeed, likely we ain’t seen nothing yet.
*UPDATE* Christian apologist Chris Rosebrough, host of the Fighting for the Faith (FftF) program on Pirate Christian Radio (PCR), has been examining this issue further and shares his findings in Ed Young’s Admissions Are More Damning Than The Original News Story.
In addition tonight Rosebrough tweeted:
I’m gonna put @EdYoung ’s admissions in proper perspective on tomorrow’s program. His admissions are VERY damaging. (Online source)
Rosebrough’s FftF program airs on PCR weekdays at 6pm EST
See also:
BUT SOUTHERN BAPTISTS SAY OK TO “BISHOP” T.D.JAKES
SOUTHERN BAPTIST PASTOR ED YOUNG, JR.: CHURCH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE IS NOT ABOUT THEOLOGY
WORD FAITH MOGUL “BISHOP” T.D. JAKES – A SOUTHERN BAPTIST PREACHER?
KEEPING YOU APPRISED OF: T.D. JAKES ON THE TRINITY
LUXURY AND ED YOUNG JR
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Southern Baptist pastor Ed Young, Jr is the very popular Purpose Driven/Seeker Driven pastor of a megachurch known as Fellowship Church (FC) in Grapevine, TX. Young’s bio at FC tells us:
Ed Young is a pastor, author and conference speaker noted for his creative communication style. He has a passion for making the complex, simple as he speaks truth to people in ways they can understand and apply to their everyday lives. He has written 13 books, including The Marriage Mirror, Outrageous, Contagious Joy, Beauty Full, and Kid CEO.
Ed is a frequent conference speaker, and he provides resources for church leaders through CreativePastors.com and the Creative Church Conferences (C3)… Ed Young Ministries broadcasts a weekly television program throughout the world. Ed Young Television can be viewed nationally and internationally on TBN, Daystar and God TV. (Online source)
Apprising Ministries told you yesterday in Ed Young Jr Says He’s Setting Things Straight that Young has now responded to allegations of living an overly luxurious lfestyle by NBC affiliate WFFA News 8 in Dallas/Fort Worth. We also pointed out that Christian apologist Chris Rosebrough, host of the Fighting for the Faith (FftF) program on Pirate Christian Radio (PCR), has been examining this issue further.
Rosebrough shares some of his findings in Ed Young’s Admissions Are More Damning Than The Original News Story at his A Little Leaven (ALL) website. In addition last night Rosebrough revealed via a tweet:
I’m gonna put @EdYoung ’s admissions in proper perspective on tomorrow’s program. His admissions are VERY damaging. (Online source)
Then today ALL takes us Inside Young’s “Parsonage” via a post where we can view a couple of videos:
We’re not sure if this is his previous home or his current “crib” (it really doesn’t matter). Do you think Young is living the life of luxury or the life of a humble shepherd of Christ’s flock?… Here’s Ed making espresso in his current kitchen.
How many thousands of dollars do you think that commercial quality Italian La Marzocco espresso machine cost? Answer: $12,000 – $15,000 We wonder what a $15,000 shot of espresso tastes like. As Ed Young says in the video below, “if you want great espresso then you’ve got to pay the price”. (Online source)
It’s important to keep in mind here there are many pastors who would struggle personally to make that in an entire year. And one wonders, for example, with the current situation going on in Haiti why someone like Jonathan Falwell would be so quick to attempt to justify this kind of obviously ostentatious lifestyle:
Praying for @EdYoung this morning. The world doesn’t like it when we are effective for Christ so they attack. Glad Ed built on THE ROCK! (Online source)
A reminder that the apparently “worldly” Chris Rosebrough will be putting even more perspective to this troubling tale on his FftF program today, which airs at 6pm EST.
See also:
BUT SOUTHERN BAPTISTS SAY OK TO “BISHOP” T.D.JAKES
SOUTHERN BAPTIST PASTOR ED YOUNG, JR.: CHURCH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE IS NOT ABOUT THEOLOGY
WORD FAITH MOGUL “BISHOP” T.D. JAKES – A SOUTHERN BAPTIST PREACHER?
KEEPING YOU APPRISED OF: T.D. JAKES ON THE TRINITY
No Complaints?
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Does God hear when we grumble about the weather?
“The Lord hears your murmurings which you murmur against Him!” Exodus 16:8
This is startling! Does God really hear every discontented word we speak?
Does God hear when we grumble about the weather, about the hard winter, about the late spring, about the dry summer, about the wet harvest, about the high winds, about the storms?
Does God hear when we complain about our circumstances, about the hardness of our lot, about our losses and disappointments?
If we could get into our hearts and keep there continually, the consciousness that every word we speak is heard in heaven, and falls upon God’s ears before it falls upon any other ear–would we murmur as we now do?
“The Lord hears your murmurings which you murmur against Him!” Exodus 16:8
“And I tell you this, that you must give an account on judgment day of every idle word you speak!” Matthew 12:36
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No Complaints?
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Does God hear when we grumble about the weather?
“The Lord hears your murmurings which you murmur against Him!” Exodus 16:8
This is startling! Does God really hear every discontented word we speak?
Does God hear when we grumble about the weather, about the hard winter, about the late spring, about the dry summer, about the wet harvest, about the high winds, about the storms?
Does God hear when we complain about our circumstances, about the hardness of our lot, about our losses and disappointments?
If we could get into our hearts and keep there continually, the consciousness that every word we speak is heard in heaven, and falls upon God’s ears before it falls upon any other ear–would we murmur as we now do?
“The Lord hears your murmurings which you murmur against Him!” Exodus 16:8
“And I tell you this, that you must give an account on judgment day of every idle word you speak!” Matthew 12:36
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Steve Lawson: Personal Purity
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This was preached at Resolved.org 2009
Filed under: Videos Tagged: Christ, heart, holiness, idolatry, Lawson, Lordship, peace, poor, pure, purity, Regeneration, Salvation, self, Sin, spirit, Steve 
