Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 11 - Rob Bell

I'm going to be continuing in exposing a lot of the emergent deception over the coming days. I thought I would post the video that started all the furore. It is my biblical critique of Rob Bell's man centred theology as explained in his Nooma video Dust. I've had a lot of critical comments about it. See what you think!



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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 10 - Religion and Politics

Gianna Jessen is a true hero and revealer of truth concerning the horrendous things that happen to babies that "survive" abortion procedures. Barack Obama can try and play technicalities all he wants - the fact is that he is the pro murder candidate.

I often hear Ronald Reagan's name maligned by intellectuals but unlike Obama he showed that the issue of life was not “above his pay grade”. When asked when does life begin Reagan (like Obama) said he did not know, but in contrast to Obama he said that that uncertainty was reason enough never to allow abortion. It would seem that, if elected, Obama should get minimum wage.

Again I want to stress that I am not overly interested in the political realm but I take keen interest in engaging a Christian worldview where our morality is biblically aligned and our political allegience lies with truth. And in light of this it is important to shed light on candidates who attempt to lure the Christian vote with a deceptive agenda and Obama continually attempts to position himself to the voting public as a Christian voice even though he denies so much of basic Christian truth including the exclusivity of Jesus. My concern lies not with people voting for Barack Obama, my concern lies with the undiscerning church goer who votes for the pro murder candidate because he thinks he's voting for a Christian.

Don't think for one minute that this is an endorsement of John McCain. Christian brothers and sisters, we should not kid ourselves about what can be achieved through politics. Civil law only serves the purpose of restraining a wicked and perverse generation enough for the Gospel to be preached. As I often say the heart of he human problem is the problem of the human heart and preaching is the God ordained means of bringing this about. For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe (I Corinthians 1:21).

The emergents, liberals, and "red letter" crowd have railed long and hard against the "religious right" for being too political and campaigning for the wrong issues. In fact guys like Tony Campolo (standing on the Democratic party platform), Jim Wallis (who chastened the religious right for their failure to be civil whilst saying "George W. Bush was, and is, clueless about how to be the president of the United States") and Brian McLaren (who is doing and funding TV commercials or Barack Obama) continually claim to be above partisan politics.

The truth is that the "religious right" gets it wrong. But their failure has not been the issues they have fought or political opportunism. They have fought the right issues but have shifted the emphasis in evangelicalism from mission to activism. It is good to fight moral issues but fantasy to think that morality can be legislated. I often say that the heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart and God's ordained method for changing the human heart has been faithful preaching; "For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe" (I Corinthians 1:21). No amount of legislation can do what can only be done by God's Holy Spirit - regenerating the human heart.

The left on the other hand takes getting it wrong to a whole new level. They have been the actual political opportunists who have politicised moral issues, abandoned the authority of Scripture, and redefined the Gospel.

Christians need to remember that civil laws, ultimately, only serve to restrain a wicked and perverse generation enough for the Gospel to be preached. We are strangers in a strange land that is temporal and perishing. We serve a King who is eternal and has left this strange land to go and prepare a place for us. In the meantime Christ has called us to preach His Gospel in only two situations - in season and out of season. Remember that when you vote.



A lot of negative things are being said (often by emergents, liberals and "red letters") concerning being a single issue voter. True - saving lives of the unborn is not the only issue. But we need to remember that a single issue can disqualify someone from being president and some issues are so BIG that they can outweigh all the others in one single swoop. If you are a preacher or a church and you don't get the Gospel right then everything else is a waste of time.

By Joe Belz from World Magazine

It's become an increasingly frequent reminder to us evangelical Christians not to let our cultural identity be framed by "single issues."

It was a reminder implicitly included in the "Evangelical Manifesto," a document whose basic content we at WORLD have applauded but whose political direction I questioned in our last issue. Why are the Manifesto's backers so ready to join the cultural left in suggesting a guilt trip for those evangelicals who have been preoccupied with the evils of abortion and same-sex marriage?

And if some argue that the rising generation of younger evangelicals is a bit embarrassed by what they think is an out-of-balance focus by their elders, and thinks it's time to get equally exercised over issues like racism, economic justice, and the environment—well, if that's the case with our twentysomethings and our teenagers, then maybe we need to go to work and do a better job of explaining to them why we've put the emphasis where we have for the last generation and why we believe that it's time not to lower our voices.

Evangelicals shouldn't be embarrassed to say boldly and clearly: Abortion and same-sex marriage are uniquely heinous sins. They rattle the foundations of a civilized society. They take a culture in a dreadful direction. We haven't been wrong to say so. We aren't fanatics.

And I'm not referring here so much to the young women caught in the anguish of an unexpected pregnancy or folks bewildered by their sexual identity. I'm talking mostly about a society that goes all out to tell such people that what they're doing is just fine. There's forgiveness for individual sinners. There's judgment for societies that lead them astray.

It's true that we evangelicals sometimes haven't been as zealous as we ought in fighting racism, abuse of the environment, and poverty. But on all those fronts and more, we're at least facing the right direction. We're sometimes slow.

But here's the difference: What evangelical do you know who says insensitivity to the poor should be promoted? What evangelical leader is calling for more racism? Who advocates the uncontrolled plundering of the environment?

That is exactly the kind of cheerleading that is going on for abortion and same-sex marriage. Whole movements and organizations devote themselves to telling us how good abortion and same-sex marriage are for society. It now is expected that Barack Obama feature on his speaking schedule, as he did on June 26, a New York fundraising dinner for the Democratic Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council—where the news account reports casually that Obama helped the homosexual lobby raise $1 million in just one evening.

But here's the core of the matter. To be robustly and consistently anti-abortion is at the very same time to cast your vote for environmental sensitivity, against racism, and for economic justice. These are not independent, isolated packages.

It's hard to see how anyone can claim to be a protector of the environment and not put a high priority on the preservation of human babies. To defend a focus on the future of polar bears and whales, while asking evangelicals to get less noisy about infant humans, is an embarrassing contradiction.

Similarly, keep in mind that abortion is one of the most racist of all social causes in history. Minorities don't just happen incidentally to be targeted by the practice of abortion. The history of Planned Parenthood and similar organizations is racist to the core—as is their current practice.

And no economist can look at the loss of 50 million American babies over the last 45 years and not wince at the impact of such a drain on the economic vitality of our society. Today's poor Americans are poorer than they would have been if we'd taken care to preserve enough consumers—and workers—to fill a state one-and-a-half times as big as California. Tomorrow's elderly will worry about Social Security more than they would have with 50 million more contributors to the system.

So stop apologizing for having focused on a single issue. Don't let the "Evangelical Manifesto" or anyone else shame you into an overly narrow self-image. It's the folks promoting causes like abortion and same-sex marriage who are the real "single issue" fanatics, falsely teaching that you can mess with just one or two aspects of life without upsetting the balance God so wondrously installed in His creation order. We need to expose that lie for the tragic falsehood that it is—and to teach the next generation what a very bad bargain they have been asked to accept.

http://www.worldmag.com/articles/14153

Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 9 - Religion and Politics

Last saturday I wrapped up my posts on Rick Warren discussing his invitation of rabid pro abortionist Barack Obama to speak at his AIDS conference held annually at Saddleback church. This event serves as a great snapshot of the lies, deceit, and hypocrisy going on by the false teachers otherwise known as "emergents", "red letter Christians", and "progressive Christians".

I have stayed silent about this for a long time. I have listened patiently to the "voices of reason" lecturing me on how the "religious right" is too political, that there are more issues than abortion and same-sex marriage, and that we, as Christians, should lean neither to the right or left.

As an aside I am well aware of the shortcomings of the "religious right" but they were not those identified by these naysayers. The "religious right" were right about the issues they fought for and probably saw many unborn lives saved in the process as well as significantly delaying the homosexual agenda. Their problem was that they failed to understand that you cannot legislate morality and the political sphere is not how to grow God's Kingdom. His Kingdom is not of this world nor is it grown by Christian government. God's chosen method has always been preaching. The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart and unless a person is born again they will not change where it matters. No amount of political clout can regenerate a human being. I think it is fair to say, generally speaking, that the preaching and purity of the Gospel took a back seat during the heyday of the religious right. And now, it seems, we are paying a price for it.

Well I can no longer remain silent because the current farce by so called Christians who have been pontificating their political neutrality and slamming the religious right for years are now revealing their true colors and true agenda that they had all along. I'm really mad about this and a lot of people are practicing little or no discernment.

Outwardly the emergent movement disdains the seeker sensitive approach, but in reality they have a lot to thank them for. If it was the church growth/seeker sensitive proponents that played a large role in dumbing down biblical literacy of congregations around America, they also paved the way for church goers to be deceived by false teaching that never would have gained acceptance 30 years ago.

Some people will question why I am becoming politically involved. The truth is this has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with theology and exercising a biblical worldview because that should affect everything we do. Take Mitt Romney for example when he was in the running. I would not interfere with someone voting for Mitt because they believe he is the best candidate. Where I would have taken issue is if someone was to vote for Mitt because they thought he was a Christian. In that case I would be compelled to point out that Mitt Romney is a mormon and mormons are not even remotely Christian. I am not opposed to Barack Obama because he is a democrat. I vehemently oppose his support of murdering the unborn and the truth should be told about that. My concern is for the Christian voters ability to exercise a biblical worldview and use it when making decisions. That is why I will attempt to shed some light on the political deception going on among these "politically neutral" left leaning "Christian voices".

Go On To Part 10
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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 8 - Rick Warren Wrap Up

There is much more that could be discussed about Rick Warren and may well be at a later date. There is the issue of Purpose Driven mission trips where copies of Purpose Driven Life are handed out instead of Bibles. There is the issue of Rick Warren training Jewish leaders how to grow their Synagogues. There is the issue of Rick Warren prasing the Syrian Islamic regime for their treatment of Christians, then denying that it ever happened, then having to delete a youtube video that confirmed it did happen. There is also Pastor Warren's proud claim of being Rupert Murdoch's pastor - Murdoch being the worlds largest peddler of pornography (paging church discipline . . paging church discipline).

And there is also the issue of Rick Warren inviting homosexuals and strong abortion advocates to speak at his global AIDS summit. This included Barack Obama who supports the hideous murderous practice of "late term abortion". Rick Warren was roundly criticised for inviting these people and rightly so. His mantra to these criticisms is generally "I don't have to agree with 100 percent of what another person does in order to work with them on the 20 percent that we do agree on." Well here's my question following this philosophy - what if the leader of the Ku Klux Klan has some really positive contibutions to the AIDS summit? Would you invite him? Could you find 20% of common ground and put aside that "side" issue of racism? I would love to hear Rick Warren's response to those questions. And I would strongly contend that murder of the unborn is even more hideous than the blight of racism.

This issue of Barack Obama has left a stench on the landscape of "modern Christanity". I've followed the smell and it leads to some very ugly goings on within the "emergent" and "red letter" camps. These people who include Jim Wallis, Tony Campolo, Brian McLaren, and Donald Miller are hypocrites of the highest order. I have "held back" on this blog for a long time but I can no longer remain silent. I have patiently listened to (and taken on board) their continual criticism of the "religious right" for many years now but now they are starting to show their true colours and I will be speaking openly about their seductive deceptions over the coming days - so stay tuned.

The bottom line, though, with Rick Warren is the "gospel" he preaches and it is not the biblical Gospel as has been clearly exposed in the previous posts. The main purpose behind these posts has been in response to the continual attempts by Purpose Driven Cybercensors to delete any criticism or renounce it as people having personal issues with Rick Warren. There may be people out there who do have personal issues with Rick Warren and I have no interest in their grievances. It is also true that much of what Rick Warren teaches in his Purpose Driven books is helpful and beneficial within the daily life - even a broken clock gets it right twice a day. But these truths can serve as a smokescreen for the greater eternal picture and many of Rick Warren's critics are people who hold these issues dear to their hearts and labor tirelessly in them. They should not be silenced, they should be heard - especially by Rick Warren. Because if you get the Gospel wrong then the rest, ultimately, is a waste of time.

Go On To Episode 9
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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 7 - The Gospel According to Rick Warren

Rick Warren is the pastor of Saddleback Church in California, one of the largest and possibly most influential in the world. Not only is it a large church with tens of thousands of people but Pastor Warren has countless pastors around the world downloading and hanging on every word he says. Rick Warrens Purpose Driven books are New York Times bestsellers. But do the "results" validate the message? Or has he simply made the "narrow gate" much wider . . .



This is not to suggest that it is a book without merit. There are many helpful things outlined within it's pages. But it is the kind of help that you can find on a secular pop psychology self help programme such as Doctor Phil. Improving our present quality of life is a temporary gain and can actually serve to distract from the infinitely weightier matters of eternity. The glaring downfall of "Purpose Driven Life" is that it fails to ram home the point that an unregenerate man is incapable of changing in a genuine, lasting, God honoring way unless he is born again.

1Co 2:14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.

Eph 4:17-20 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!--

Joh 3:3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

Eze 36:25-27 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

The issue is whether people are born again or not. If you are not born again no amount of self improvement will make lasting change of our wicked hearts. To impact people in this way the Gospel of Jesus Christ must be faithfully presented. Rick Warren's books not only fall short, they preach another gospel altogether as John Macarthur sharply pointed out.

This issue lies at the heart of Rick Warren's critics. He and his army of spin doctors would do well to listen to them instead of silence them.

There are those who would rather I remain silent on this issue. But the problem is that I have been silent for too long and I've got more noise to make - stay tuned!

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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 6 - Hell, The Great Pulpit Disappearing Act

The subject of Hell or eternal punishment is a bit of a sacred cow in the "modern pulpit". Sacred in the sense of never being mentioned. I've often heard it said that hell isn't spoken about because people don't like to hear about it (I still can't find that verse in the Bible). HELLO - isn't that the point? Jesus obviously didn't heed the advice of smarter more modern preachers when He said "But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him" (Luke 12:5).

Preachers who minimise or ignore hell betray their congregations. It has disastrous repercussions in evangelism and missionary endeavor as John Piper rightly points out . . .



So preacher, do you love your flock enough to tell them about the unquenchable fire that awaits unrepentant souls?

Go On To Episode 7
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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 5 - Todd Bentley Post Mortem

Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that I posted a 2 part series exposing Todd Bentley's false teaching at the height of his popularity.
Click Here for Part 1
Click Here for Part 2

Well this sacred cow is now a rotting carcass. Here is a video posted recently quoting a key leader within the Apostolic movement repenting and giving his post mortem of the "Lakeland Revival" and the dire future for the Charismatic movement if they don't start practicing biblical discernment.



There are several things worth pondering in the aftermath of all this.
1. We should be grieved and deeply saddened by the public reproach this brings to the name of our flawless Savior.
2. We should be grieved and praying for the many people deceived by this false revival.
3. We should be grieved for Todd Bentley's marital situation and personal integrity and that he would come to a place of sincere repentance.
4. This once again highlights the need for leaders to have a willingness to speak out when they are in the know for the sake of Christ's Name and the wellbeing of the wider body of Christ.
5. Not just those in charismatic circles, but also in the wider evangelical community need to really go through a deep process of self examination and biblical study so as to be able to biblically critique and examine the claims of every "new thing" that keeps appearing on the horizon.
6. The fact that there were no documented verifiable organic miracles that took place in Lakeland is ultimately irrelevant. Our first port of call must always be the purity of the gospel they preach. Because in the last days the Bible warns us that many will be deceived by miraculous signs and wonders as we see in Mark 13:22 which says "For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect."
7. Self appointed people portraying themselves as an authoritative voice for God should always cause alarm in our spirit and instruct us to proceed with extreme biblical caution.

Here is an article written by John Piper about the "Lakeland revival" and the need for biblical discernment:

Lee Grady, the editor of Charisma, one of the main charismatic magazines, has written a lament and critique of the Lakeland “revival” which is now in a tailspin over the leader's announced separation from his wife. Grady’s summons to pray for the church and our nation is right, and among his commendable questions and observations are these:

"Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study. Yet we are faced today with the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It’s way past time for us to grow up."

"True revival will be accompanied by brokenness, humility, reverence and repentance—not the arrogance, showmanship and empty hype that often was on display in Lakeland."

"A prominent Pentecostal evangelist called me this week after Bentley’s news hit the fan. He said to me: “I’m now convinced that a large segment of the charismatic church will follow the anti-Christ when he shows up because they have no discernment.” Ouch. Hopefully we’ll learn our lesson this time and apply the necessary caution when an imposter shows up."
Charismatics will not be the only ones who follow the Antichrist when he rises. So will the mass of those who today in thousands of evangelical churches belittle the truth of biblical doctrine as God’s agent to set us free (John 8:32).

Discernment is not created in God’s people by brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance. It is created by biblical truth and the application of truth by the power of the Holy Spirit to our hearts and minds. When that happens, then the brokenness, humility, reverence, and repentance will have the strong fiber of the full counsel of God in them. They will be profoundly Christian and not merely religious and emotional and psychological.

The common denominator of those who follow the Antichrist will not be “charismatic.” It will be, as Paul says, “they refused to love the truth.”

The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)

Our test for every Lakeland that comes along should first be doctrinal and expositional. Is this awakening carried along by a “love for the truth” and a passion to hear the whole counsel of God proclaimed?
(quoted from http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1348_test_revival_with_doctrine/ )

Go On To Episode 6
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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 4 - Where the Feminists Get it Wrong

Following on from last saturday's article on gender roles I thought I would post part of an article by Dr John MacArthur which critiques feminist thought and how it has badly influenced intepretation of Scripture and in turn the exercise of a Christian worldview when it comes to understanding what it means to be a biblical man and a biblical woman.

WHERE THE FEMINISTS GO WRONG! (Article by Dr John MacArthur)

If more Christians understood the methods of feminist thinking and what kind of biblical interpretation they must do in order to arrive at their conclusions, they would likely be more hesitant to accept the feminist position. To understand the feminist interpretation process, we begin by examining their view of Galatians 3:28 and how their interpretation of that verse affects their interpretation of the rest of the New Testament.

FEMINIST VIEW OF GALATIANS 3:28 - The foundation for all feminist interpretation of the New Testament is Galatians 3:28--"Their is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Feminists interpret this verse to refer to an equality which is both theological, regarding men and women’s standing before God, and also social, regarding all of their relationships in day-to-day living. If men and women are equal before God, feminists say, then there can be no differences within their roles and responsibilities in society. Feminists therefore use this verse as the basis for the elimination of all role distinctions between men and women in Christianity. They then interpret all other New Testament verses on women in light of the feminist understanding of Galatians 3:28, thus demanding that no other verse be allowed to teach role distinctions for men and women.

PROBLEM WITH FEMINIST VIEW OF GALATIANS 3:28 - Feminists fail to interpret Galatians 3:28 in its proper context. The verse concerns the subject of justification and the believer's relationship to the Abrahamic covenant. Paul was not seeking to establish social equality in the relationships he mentioned. Rather, he was showing that all, regardless of their standing in society, may participate by faith in the inheritance of Abraham to be sons of God. He was teaching the fundamental equality of both men and women in their standing before God. Even the feminists emphasize that this is a theological passage rather than one dealing with practical matters.

Equality of being before God does not require the elimination of all role distinctions in society. Equality of being does not rule out authority and submission in relationships. We could point to many examples of relationships in which there is equality and yet a difference in roles involving authority and submission--the Trinity, the President and U. S. citizens, parents and children, employers and employees, Elders and church members.

The theology of Galatians 3:28 will result in certain social implications, but they will be the ones given in the Bible. Where authority and submission are discussed in relationships in the New Testament, instructions are given for how those relationships may be regulated so that they function in Christian love and harmony and not with abuse. The Bible does not eliminate authority but cautions that authority should be exercised in a way that honors Christ. Those in authority (husbands, Elders, parents, employers) are instructed to use their authority in a godly way. And also, those who are to submit to these authorities (wives, church members, children, employees) are instructed to submit to authority in a godly way.

Because feminists want to rule out the submission of wives to husbands and of women to male leadership in the church on the basis of Galatians 3:28, they face a serious problem in biblical interpretation when they come to the Pauline passages which explicitly teach the submission of wives to husbands and women to the male leadership in the church. Beginning with their interpretation of Galatians 3:28 that all role distinctions must be abolished in the name of equality, they seek to interpret these other Pauline passages (Eph. 5:22; Col. 3:18; I Pet. 3:1; Ti. 2:5; I Tim 2:11-15; I Cor. 11:1-16; I Cor. 14:34-35) in light of that questionable interpretation of Galatians 3:28. Feminists of various persuasions have come up with four different ways of handling this biblical material in order to reach conclusions favorable to the feminist viewpoint:

FEMINIST VIEW #1 - The New Testament passages which teach the submission of women were not really written by Paul but were added by scribes, and thus are not part of the inspired Word of God.

PROBLEM WITH VIEW #1 - This position reveals a low view of the inspiration of Scripture. According to this view, some of the Bible was inspired by God and some was not. Therefore, the Christian, rather than submitting to Scripture, must function as the judge of Scripture--always making decisions about what is inspired and what is not inspired. Both II Timothy 3:16 and II Peter 1:20-21 indicate that God inspired all Scripture, that he was overseeing the process of the writing of Scripture in such a way that the end product is His Word, not the product of human authors. Thus, the Christian views all of the Bible as God's inspired Word and does not set himself as judge of the Bible.

FEMINIST VIEW #2 - The New Testament passages which teach the submission of women were written by Paul, but he was wrong. Those who hold this view believe Paul was too much influenced by his rabbinical background and that in his writing of Scripture he had not reached a full understanding of how the gospel related to relationships between men and women. Thus, he was mistaken in some of the passages he wrote.

PROBLEM WITH VIEW #2 - This position is also based on a low view of the inspiration of Scripture. In this view, too, the Christian must become the judge of Scripture to determine for himself what is correct and what is incorrect. This view assumes that twentieth century man has a better understanding of God's truth than did the Apostle Paul writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Again, II Timothy 3:16 and II Peter 1:20-21 indicate that God worked in and through the writers of Scripture in such a way that the end product was God's perfect Word and not a conglomeration of truth and error put together by human authors.

FEMINIST VIEW #3 - The New Testament teaches the submission of women, but the teachings are no longer applicable in the twentieth century. According to this view, Paul was teaching the world view of his own culture in the first century, but our twentieth century culture is more enlightened about the equality of men and women, so the teaching no longer applies. Or sometimes it is said that writers of the New Testament knew that the ideal was to abolish all gender-based roles but feared to hinder the gospel if they broke so radically with their own culture. Thus, these Pauline passages are relegated to temporary cultural truth rather than universal truth for all cultures and all times.

PROBLEM WITH VIEW #3 - The foundation for Paul's teaching on the role or responsibilities of women is never the culture of his own day but rather the purpose of woman's creation and the woman's failure in the fall as Paul points out in I Corinthians 11:1-9 and I Timothy 2:8-15. Adam was created first, and Eve was later created as a helper for him rather than their being created simultaneously and independent of each other. Eve was deceived and led her husband into sin rather than submitting to his leadership. If the reason for the woman's submission is related to the creation and the fall, than it is not something which can change from year to year and culture to culture. Rather, it is a universal principle.

Some feminists say that there was no submission for the woman in creation but only as a result of the fall, that Genesis 3:16 was the beginning of authority and submission. But Genesis 2:18-25 teaches a submissive role for Eve in relationship to Adam, and Paul interprets it that way in the New Testament. Thus, the cross does not rid us of authority and submission, but it brings harmony to authority and submission relationships.

FEMINIST VIEW #4 - The New Testament, if rightly understood, has never taught the submission of women. If the literary context, the historical context and the theological context were carefully studied, Paul would be clearly seen to be egalitarian, and thus the New Testament teaches that women may fulfill any responsibilities in the marriage and the church that men may fulfill. Thus, “headship" means only "source" and never "leader" or "authority." "Be subject" means only "relate yourselves to" or "respond to" or "adjust yourselves to" and never "submit to."

PROBLEM WITH VIEW #4 - In these last two views the confusion among the various feminist representives comes to the surface. Both groups read these same passages, and some say they teach submission and others say they do not.

Greek lexicons include "authority" as one of the meanings for "head" and "submit" as one of the meanings for "be subject" so that only prejudicial interpretation could limit these words to pro-feminist definitions. This last view is so unconvincing that other feminists even reject it.

If one wants to arrive at pro-feminist conclusions, there are a limited number of ways to interpret the biblical context in order to reach such a position. These four are the alternatives which feminists have devised thus far.

Each alternative has serious flaws which cause the Christian, in the process of feminist interpretation, to sacrifice either a high view of inspiration of Scripture or else to use a false hermeneutic, or principle for interpreting Scripture. Either is too high a price to pay. All of these exegetical gymnastics become necessary just to force the Pauline passages to harmonize with the feminist interpretation of Galatians 3:28. If Galatians 3:28 were interpreted correctly in context to refer to the fundamental standing of men and women before God, and if the feminists did not totally reject any concept of authority and submission, harmony of all the biblical material on the subject would be rather simple.

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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 3 - Gender Roles

As a Christian it is critically important to exercise a sound biblical worldview. That means we can understand the world by what Scripture has to say about it. When the Bible tells me that Jesus Christ is the only way to receive salvation from God's coming judgment I can confidently discriminate against all other religious paths as false.

But sometimes worldly ideas infiltrate our church culture actually causing professing Christians to interpret Scripture via prevalent worldly thinking. One of the biggies in this area would have to be the influence of feminism on many pulpits. I mentioned in an earlier post how a preacher at a wedding I attended read a text from Ephesians chapter five and deliberately circumnavigated the verses that told wives to submit to their husbands.

Does the modern church need to keep putting a new spin on Scripture that doesn't conform to society? The Apostle Paul tells us in his letter to the church in Rome not to be conformed to this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. What should our mind be renewed to? Well Paul answers this in his letter to the church at Philippi;

Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:3-8)

So Christ (the Bridegroom) painted a picture of His love for His Church (His bride) by humbling Himself as a servant and ultimately laying down His life for her. Scripture is clear that godly marriage should reflect this. Husbands should love their wives as Christ loved the Church, and wives should submit to their husbands as unto Christ (and yes, the context is already there in the verses). This is not about importance or value but about a human shadow of something heavenly.

If you have an axe to grind over this then maybe you need to examine yourself and see if you need to die more to self. If it is no longer I that live, but Christ that liveth in me then why are we spending time debating these issues of equality. Women should not be treated equally with men - they should be treated better by an adoring husband. Husbands should not be usurped and overruled by their wives - they should be submitted to by a wife who understands that her husband is her covering and the one who is answerable to God for the wellbeing of his family. And ultimately (and I have to confess that my own marriage is a work in progress) a marriage is an opportuntity for two people who have crucified their own flesh to glorify God by displaying Christ's love for His Church and the Church's devotion to Christ.

None of us hit the mark but it is a worthy goal to pursue. Just ask Voddie Baucham . . .



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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 2 - Spanking Part 2

Continued from last Saturday where we heard from John Piper on the issue of disciplining and spanking children and why he is willing to go to jail over this issue.

One of the great priveledges in my life has been to meet Kirk Cameron who is well known for the lead role in the "Left Behind" trilogy and playing Mike Seaver in the hit late 80's/early 90's sitcom "Growing Pains". But I was excited to meet Kirk because I have learnt so much from him about witnessing and preaching the Gospel through the "Way of the Master" TV series and the radio show. There is nothing nominal about Kirk's Christianity - he's the real deal. I think of him as a preacher who can act.

Another thing about Kirk and his wife is that they are outstanding godly parents to their six children. Why can't one of these trashy Hollywood magazines do a story about how someone has held down a marriage for 17 years and is raising 6 children in the fear of the Lord? Kirk is dedicated to learning and growing in Christ and in turn discipling his children. So many people spoke so positively about Kirk that I became concerned (pondering Jesus' warning about beware when men speak well of you) but then the atheists took care of that with all their hate mail after Kirk and Ray Comfort's televised debate with the atheists (see my first post on this blog).

So when Kirk recommended a resource for raising children in a way that honors God and is faithful to Scripture I was all ears. And there is nothing Kirk recommends stronger than Tedd Tripps book and teaching series "Shepherding a Child's Heart".



One of the outstanding things about Tedd Tripp is that he does such a great job of expounding biblically on the taboo subject of spanking children. Here is an interview with Tedd on Way of the Master Radio where he discusses the issue of biblical spanking/discipline with host Todd Friel. The interview starts about 20 minutes into the program. Click here to download it.

I think this sacred cow has now been totally carved up!

Pro 13:24 Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

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Sacred Cow Saturday - Episode 1 - Spanking Part 1

Pro 13:24 Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

Many people in eastern religions have sacred cows that they refuse to touch. But many in the west are no different. Subjects that are avoided in the name of "unity", diplomacy, political correctness, and ultimately the fear of man.

Here at The Bottom Line we love sacred cows and even think that they taste great on a barbecue. So much so that we plan to grill something every Saturday. In europe, among many churchgoers, the subject of spanking children is a very sacred cow. Due to many governments making it illegal, coupled with being heavily influenced by the secular humanist worldview, spanking is an "Area 51" as far as discussions go. Though Scripture speaks explicitly on the subject it is taboo in the pulpit and generally hushed up in private conversations - BUT NOT TODAY

It's high time this cow got carved up and served with a side of open dialogue. Who better to communicate truth profoundly, fervently and passionately than John Piper. John says that he's willing to go to jail over the issue - click HERE to hear

Pro 22:15 Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him.

Continued next saturday - Spanking Part 2 with Tedd Tripp

Go On To Episode 2