'Earnestly contending for the faith,' (Jude 3 ) as well as sharing encouragement and hope through Scripture (Romans 15:4), and through the poems and posts that I write. One of many voices on the Internet warning Christians of the importance of testing the teachings of men (and women) against the unchanging truth of God's Word. (Acts 17:11) I 'warn you with tears' through much of what I write, to 'be on guard against the savage wolves that will come in among us who will distort the Word of God' as God's Word warns us about in Acts 20:26-31
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What was it that Jesus Christ, God in human flesh, did when He was upon the cross that fully satisfied God the Father’s wrath and His just demands to pay for all of our sins and to provide for our salvation? Was it enough that Jesus shed His blood and died in our place after taking upon Himself the full wrath of God that we deserved because of all of our sins, (as well as bore our griefs and our sorrows) as it says in Isaiah 53? Or did Jesus Christ also have to die spiritually as some professing Christian pastors and teachers tell us today? Regarding 2 Corinthians 5:21, did Jesus actually become sin as many pastors and teachers also teach and as many of us hear stated in some songs that are presented to us to sing at our churches (which I refuse to do) during worship time? (Chris Tomlin’s, ‘Jesus Messiah,’ Kristyn Getty’s ‘Power of the Cross,’ etc. ) These are very important issues! Teaching and believing that Jesus died spiritually has an extremely damaging impact upon the Biblical gospel as presented to us in God’s Word because the focus is taken off of what God demanded as payment for sin and what Jesus truly accomplished by His shed blood and physical death that completely satisfied God, His Father. I hope that you will take time out of your busy schedule to read this post and to check out the very important information that I have linked to for you below when time allows you to do so.
Many of you are aware of the false teaching that those in the ‘Word of Faith‘ movement, such as Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Joyce Meyer, Fred Price, and others present when they say that ‘after Jesus died physically He also died spiritually and descended into hell where He was tormented by the demons, and became the first ‘born again’ man.’ If not, please take a few minutes to listen to one example in the following video:
However, this Jesus Died Spiritually (JDS) teaching that I am speaking of in this particular post is different in many ways and is presently being taught by some well respected professing Christian teachers and pastors! I personally heard two different pastors teach this on one particular Sunday (December 10th 2017) as I was looking for a sermon to listen to since I was, and presently still am, churchless. I was shocked and quite stunned because I had never heard this being taught by those whom I believed presented Biblical Christianity.
The first time that I heard this being taught was while I was watching a live streamed service from Duluth Bible Church, and it was said right before their communion service. Although this may not be an exact quote (because they deleted that portion of their service when they uploaded it onto YouTube), it was very close to what I heard Pastor Dennis Rosker say:
‘It wasn’t Jesus’ physical death that brought about our salvation, it was His spiritual death that did.’
I was completely shocked to hear him say that!
After I listened to him for a couple of more minutes to make sure that I understood him correctly and in context, I shut off this live streamed service and then decided to listen to another pastor that I had been listening to at that time –Pastor Greg Durel, of Heritage Bible Church. This particular sermon was entitled, ‘Who Did Jesus Claim To Be?’ This was a prerecorded sermon, so you can imagine how shocked I was to hear him say almost the same exact thing when he spoke of the spiritual death of Jesus Christ! Below is a written portion from that sermon which is an exact quote from a portion between the 25:31 minute mark and the 27:30 minute mark. You can listen to his whole sermon or just listen to the three minute portion which will be enough for you to hear what he says concerning Jesus dying spiritually in context.
“Now, John 19:30, Christ, human plus deity. Understand, God in the flesh. 100% human, 100% God. He had to be 100% human otherwise, what did He prove? He’s tempted in all points in His humanity as we are, yet He never transgresses. So He’s sinless. So He’s going to offer Himself as the sin offering, the Lamb of God. Now, He’s on the cross and He dies spiritually, during the course of time when He says, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” We understand that to mean that the humanity of Christ, in some form or fashion, experiences separation, spiritual separation, from the deity of Christ. The penalty for sin is spiritual death, the consequence of the byproduct of spiritual death is physical death. Remember, the day Adam sinned he died. How? Spiritually. The byproduct was hundreds of years later he died physically. That’s what has to be corrected. The spiritual death has to be paid for. If that’s paid for then we don’t experience spiritual death, we can have eternal life with the Lord. Why? Because our sins have paid for, by whom? By Christ.”
Let’s take a few minutes and examine what Greg Durel said in light of Scripture. (Acts 17:11)
Yes, Jesus Christ was 100% God and 100% man. (John 1:1, Hebrews 1:1-13, Philippians 2:5-11, Colossians 1:15-19)
Yes, Jesus Christ lived a sinless life and became our sin offering; the Lamb of God. (1 Peter 2:22, 1 John 3:5)
No. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that Jesus died spiritually.
No. Nowhere in Scripture can we find anything to even hint at the humanity of Jesus Christ separating from the deity of Christ. That would have divided the Trinity; the oneness/unity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Many try to use the Scripture in Habakkuk 1:13 that says the eyes of the LORD are “too pure to look upon evil,” so he turned away from His Son, when, as some (wrongly) teach, He became sin. We must not add to God’s Word — or take away from it — in order to make it say what it does not clearly say. (Deuteronomy 4:2, 12:32, Revelation 22:18)
Yes, the penalty for sin is spiritual death, the byproduct being physical death, however, this applies only to Adam and Eve and passed on to all humanity because of their choice to sin. Jesus Christ never sinned, and thus He did not die — or have to die — spiritually. Jesus’ shed blood and His physical death was all that God required to pay the debt for all sin.
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit.” (1 Peter 3:18)
In the sermon series exposing this unbiblical JDS teaching that I have linked to for you below, Pastor Tyler goes into this much deeper by explaining that Jesus was fulfilling Psalm 22 when He cried out on the cross:
“My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”(Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34)
God did not turn His back on His Son. Pastor Tyler goes on to clearly show from Isaiah 53:11 that God, His Father, actually saw Jesus as He hung on the cross:
“He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.” (Emphasis added).
Using many other Scriptures in his sermon series he also shows that this is why it is necessary for people to accept the unbiblical teaching that Jesus literally became sin, in order to accept the unbiblical teaching that Jesus died spiritually).
Continuing on:
After hearing that same false teaching a second time from Greg Durel within just minutes after hearing it the first time, I then knew that God was trying to clearly show me just how prevalent this false teaching is becoming, and realized that I needed to write about this not only to warn Christians, but also in order to expose this false teaching and to “earnestly contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.” (Jude 3)
A related side note:
A few years before I permanently left Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows (the church I called home for 14 1/2 years – June 1997-January 2012 , right after ER2), I remember Pastor James MacDonald taught this in one respect when I heard him say something very similar and equally disturbing during a *sermon regarding what Jesus said to God, His Father, when He prayed on the Mount of Olives:
“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)
What I heard James MacDonald clearly and loudly say during his sermon raised an immediate red flag, brought many Scriptures to mind to refute what he said, and caused me to jump and my eyes to open wide out of shock. He said:
“What was in the cup? He saw Himself becoming sin!”
Hearing him say that troubled me so much that I left Harvest and did not plan on returning! Jesus did not literally become sin or He would not have been the perfect, spotless Lamb of God. He was our sin offering (Isaiah 53:10). He bore our sins (1 Peter 2:24), our sins were placed upon Him (Isaiah 53:6), but He did not literally become our sin; our sin was imputed to Him, just as the righteousness of Jesus Christ is imputed to those of us who choose to place our trust in the once for all sacrifice of Jesus Christ as being sufficient to pay the debt for all of our sins and guilt –in full! *[Sermon by James MacDonald that I am referring to was preached on Nov. 17, 2008]
After that incident I did a search to find some information regarding 2 Corinthians 5:21 and came upon an article written by Ron Rhodes. Here is a portion of his article:
When I first became a Christian my first Bible study teacher presented us with a very good teaching in which she shared many Scriptures and explained to us from the Old Testament regarding the scape goat and how one was to be sacrificed to the LORD for a sin offering, and the sins of the people were spoken over the second goat and then it was released into the desert as a scape goat, and how it was foreshadowing the day when all of our sins would be laid upon Jesus Christ, the perfect, spotless Lamb of God, who would take away the sins of the world. (Read Exodus 12, Leviticus4:3, 23,33 Leviticus16:6-10, Isaiah 53)
Regarding this teaching of Jesus becoming sin, I took some time to search the Scriptures and to write down many of them that show Jesus Christ was sinless: Isaiah 53:9, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 4:14-16, Hebrews 7:26, 1 Peter 2:22, 1 John 3:5
I also searched through the Scriptures for instances where the word “cup” was used in that type of context in order to see what God’s Word revealed about it and found the following verses that clearly show, in most cases, that “the cup” is symbolic of God’s judgment, fury, or wrath:
“Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out.”(Isaiah 51:17)
“Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again.” (Isaiah 51:22)
“For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it.” (Jeremiah 25:15)
“Then took I the cup at the LORD’S hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me.” (Jeremiah 25:17)
“And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ye shall certainly drink.” (Jeremiah 25:28)
“For thus saith the LORD; Behold, they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunken; and art thou he that shall altogether go unpunished? thou shalt not go unpunished, but thou shalt surely drink of it.” (Jeremiah 49:12)
“Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD’S right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.” (Habakkuk 2:16)
“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12:2)
“The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
“But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized.” (Mark 10:38,39) *(See more information concerning this verse a little further in this post that I marked with an asterisk).
“And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.” (Mark 14:23)
“The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.” (Revelation 14:10)
*If indeed “the cup” symbolized Jesus becoming sin or spiritual death, as some teach, then, as Pastor Tyler Leigeb correctly reasons (in his three part sermon series that I posted for you below regarding the false JDS teaching), the meaning in the passage of Scripture below would then be that the disciples would lose their salvation, and that simply cannot be true:
“But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? And they said unto him,”We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized.” (Mark 10:38,39)
During the time after I left Harvest I attended another church for a few months, but ended up returning to Harvest (for two more years, all the while praying for change) simply because I couldn’t find a Biblically solid church to attend after something happened at that church that caused me to believe that I couldn’t trust the leadership there either.
Now back to the main topic of this post:
After listening to the second sermon that one Sunday in December of 2017, I quickly messaged one of my dear friends who also (once) appreciated the teachings coming from Duluth Bible Church, and I expressed my deep concerns to her about what I had heard Pastor Dennis Rosker say, as well as what Pastor Greg Durel had said, and I continued to express my concerns with her for the next couple of days. I also made it clear to her that what they were teaching was different in some ways than what the false teachers in the Word of Faith Movement, such as Joyce Meyer, Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, etc., teach. Being the Berean (Acts 17:11) that she is, she contacted Duluth Bible Church via email to ask Pastor Rosker about this to receive clarification on what he had said. Below I have shared her email interaction with one of the pastors at Duluth Bible Church with my friend’s permission, but removed her last name to protect her privacy:
As you can (hopefully) see from Pastor Stegall’s reply to my friend’s email above, even though he makes it abundantly clear that he “categorically rejects the Word of Faith view,” (something I never claimed that Pastor Rosker taught), he admits — without apology– that the pastors of Duluth Bible Church do hold to a belief “about the “spiritual” aspect of Christ’s death,” thus admitting that they believe Jesus died spiritually as well as physically. Note also what Pastor Stegall goes on to say concerning what they do believe about the spiritual aspect of Christ’s death:
“….the view we hold and teach is the view held by the vast majority of grace oriented, dispensational, non-charismatic Bible teachers over the last century.”
In the next paragraph Tom Stegall clearly denies that what he and Dennis Rosker “believe about the spiritual aspect of Christ’s death” is a “false view of Christ’s death” after at least one blogger, it seems, took the time to shed light on this teaching in order to expose it as error. One of them being Jim Floyd, the author of the book, ‘The Perfect Sacrifice,’ (which I have linked to below).
What seems like an attempt to discredit Jim Floyd’s Biblically based belief that “Christ died only physically on the cross,” Tom Stegall goes on to say:
“I don’t know of any other Bible teachers of any prominence who holds Jim’s view.”
Tom Stegall then basically accuses Jim Floyd of attacking their ministry and wrongly labeling them as false teachers by saying:
“I’m not sure why Dennis and I have been targeted and labeled with teaching a false view on this subject since the view we hold (and have always held) is simply the mainstream view among sound Bible teachers…”
Dear reader, we cannot base what we hold to believe upon the teachings of men, but rather we are to test the teachings of men against the truth of God’s Word — in context — and compare Scripture with Scripture. No matter how well known and respected a pastor or Bible teacher may be, we must reject everything that does not line up with Scripture.
Throughout Scripture we are urged and shown to test everything in light of Scripture:
“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21,22) (KJV)
“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11) (NIV 1984)
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15) (KJV)
God’s Word also shows us that we are to expose error and warns us about those who will falsely teach God’s Word: (Ephesians 5:11, Acts 20:26-31, Romans 16:17,18, 2 Corinthians 11:4, 2 Peter 2:1, 1 Timothy 4:1)
When Jesus’ disciples asked Him about the signs that would signal His soon return and the end of the world, Jesus lists spiritual deception as the first sign:
“And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.”
For Jesus to list deception first should alert us to the importance of being on guard against being deceived.
Even though some who teach that ‘Jesus died spiritually’ (JDS) do not teach that Jesus went to hell, was tormented by demons, and became the first born again man, as those in the Word of Faith movement do, what they do teach contradicts the clear teachings in God’s Word that say it was His shed blood and the physical death of Jesus Christ that provided for our salvation.
“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.”(Ephesians 1:7)
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:12-14)
“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” (1 Peter 1:18,19)
Jesus did not have to die physically and spiritually. He died once for all. Consider these Scriptures:
“Wherefore he is also able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.” (Hebrews 7:25-27)
“Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” (Hebrews 9:12-14)
“Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” (Hebrews 9:28)
“Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And having an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)” (Hebrews 10:8-23)
So much more could be said, but since my time is presently rather limited, and since Jim Floyd did such an excellent job in exposing this JDS teaching by reasoning with many Scriptures in his articles and book, and as Pastor Tyler did, as well, in the same book and in his sermons, there is no need for me to say any more than what I have already shared with you in this post.
I urge you to please take time to read the very thorough teachings by Jim Floyd that expose this heretical ‘Jesus died spiritually‘ teaching so that you are aware of how it perverts the Biblical gospel. I have linked to both of his excellent articles below.
Here also is the book that Jim Floyd just recently finished writing on this topic along with his pastor, Tyler Leigeb:
You can learn more about this book and purchase it, if you’d like, at the link below:
This book goes into great detail concerning the heretical JDS teaching, focusing on many Scriptures, as Jim Floyd does in his excellent and very in depth articles:
I also highly encourage you to listen to the sermon series that Pastor Tyler Leigeb preached on this subject (JDS) at the link further below. He exposes this false teaching with many Scriptures and reasons with Scripture the damaging effects that this teaching has upon the Biblical gospel. If you choose to listen, I pray that you will find (as I did) your faith being renewed and strengthened as you become encouraged by hearing the many Scriptures that he shares and that you will also come to appreciate even more all that Jesus Christ accomplished for us through His sinless life, His willingness to submit to the will of God, His Father, and go through such brutal torture as crucifixion in order to take upon Himself the full wrath of God intended for us because of our sins, and to shed His blood and die in our place, thus fully satisfying God’s wrath and just demands as full payment for all sin –no matter how heinous those sins may be. When the veil/heavy curtain that hung in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:38), it clearly showed that God, the Father, accepted the death of Jesus Christ, His Son, as fully providing the way for sinful man to come into His presence and to be reconciled to Himself –a completely Holy God. (Ephesians 3:12, Hebrews 4:15,16, Hebrews 10:19-23)
When Jesus Christ gloriously arose bodily from the dead, it further showed that His physical death was enough to satisfy God’s just demands and wrath that He had towards us because of our sin, proving that His death paid the debt for all sin in full, and that we can know that we have — present tense — eternal life.
“He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” (Romans 4:25)
“If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” (1 John 5:9-13)
If you are someone who has yet to hear the truly good news of the Biblical gospel and to believe it and place your trust in *Jesus Christ alone for your salvation instead of trusting in your good works or in your church to save you, the many Scriptures shared in this sermon series will definitely reveal who Jesus Christ is to you. This series will also show you the depth of the love that God has for each and every one of us, and the extent that God went through to provide the one and only way for you to receive His love and forgiveness. That one and only way is by placing your trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ; the sinless life that He lived so that He would become the Lamb of God — the perfect sacrifice — His horrific death on the cross in our place as He took upon Himself the full wrath of God intended for us because of our sin and guilt, His burial, and His glorious bodily resurrection from the dead for your salvation. *(John 14:6, Acts 12:4, 1 Timothy 2:5, Romans 4:1-8, Ephesians 2:8-10, Titus 3:3-7)
The sermons in this series that expose this JDS teaching can be found at the Sermon Audio link below. The titles of these sermons are as follows:
Although I am sharing Jim Floyd’s articles and information about his book that he wrote along with Tyler Leigeb, and sharing Tyler Leigeb’s sermons with you, as well, it should not be considered by you to be an endorsement of Jim Floyd, Tyler Leigeb, and Billings Bible Church. Sadly, when I have endorsed pastors, teachers, and ministries to you in the past, I have regretted doing so because of the errors that I have discovered in some of their teachings as time went by. This is why I no longer endorse anyone on my Living4HisGlory blog anymore. I do, however, highly recommend these resources to you because they line up with Scripture and show this JDS teaching to be completely unbiblical!
I urge each one of you to please be Bereans and constantly test every teaching that you hear and read by every pastor and teacher that you receive your teachings from, making sure that what is said is in context, as well, in order to make sure that what they say lines up with the truth of God’s Word (Acts 17:11). Make sure that you pray for discernment, as well! (Side note: Also pray for discernment whenever you are considering attending a church and make sure to read their statement of faith to find out where they stand on Theological issues to make sure what they believe lines up with Scripture).
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed
For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”(Isaiah 53:1-12)
“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” (Romans 3:25)
“Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.” (Romans 5:9)
“Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (Hebrews 9:12)
“In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:22)
“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.” (2 Peter 2:1)
“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.” (1 John 4:1)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:1-4)
“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-10)
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” (Acts 20:25-31)
Thank you very much for stopping by today.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
NOTE:
I am so very thankful to my friend, Lori, for telling me about Jim Floyd and the book, THE PERFECT SACRIFICE, that he wrote along with Pastor Tyler Leigeb.
I am also deeply thankful to Jim Floyd not only for the excellent articles that he wrote on this JDS subject, but also for his book, THE PERFECT SACRIFICE, that he wrote along with Tyler Leigeb. This is an extremely important book in defense of the gospel and Jesus Christ’s ‘perfect sacrifice.’ I also truly appreciate Tyler Leigeb for the excellent in depth Biblical sermon series that he preached exposing this JDS false teaching. Their teachings were a true blessing to me at the time I needed them the most, and they will continue to be as we see this unbiblical teaching being accepted by many because they fail to test things in light of Scripture. These teachings will help equip us to defend the Biblical gospel and to help us open the eyes of those who have been led astray by this unbiblical JDS teaching.
IMPORTANT UPDATE:
I need to take some time off for the next three weeks for personal reasons and in order to prepare to have my taxes done. Lord willing, in the latter part of April, I will be going back to writing the series in which I began comparing the Catechism Of The Catholic Church to Scriptures in a Catholic New Testament Bible in order to reach precious Catholics with the truly good news of the Biblical gospel. When that series is completed I will then finish the series concerning the Alleged Apparitions Of The Virgin Mary and move on to some other important topics. Thank you for your patience.♥
Photo ‘Clouds – Rays of Glory’ by Mary K Dalke – Reflections Of His Glory Photography
Scripture added by Mary K Dalke using Pixlr free online Editor
“The One who knows you better and loves you more than any person on the planet is inviting you to a weekend with Him like no other!”
So says the above invitation to all women who attend Harvest Bible Chapel. How could a woman pass up an invitation when it is presented to her in such an alluring manner? After all, what woman would turn down an invitation from –God?
But let’s take a closer look at what else this invitation says. Notice what is included in their camp activities…“meditation stations.”
What comes to mind when anyone uses the term “meditation stations” is what I have seen in videos that shows what takes place at churches that are involved in the Emerging/Emergent Church Movement. They have sectioned off areas where prayer altars have been set up for those who attend such gatherings, so that the participants can pause and reflect or meditate, such as the prayer/meditation station pictured below.
On April 2, 2010 when I was still attending Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows, their Good Friday service was set up in a similar manner. There was a station where a six or seven foot cross was laying flat on a table so that each person could write their name on the cross with a marker as a reminder that Jesus died in our place, and another station where a video continuously played featuring a doctor who shared in great detail, the effects that flogging and crucifixion had on the human body.
There was also another station with tables set up that had a crown of thorns, so that you could feel how sharp the thorns were and reflect on how Jesus must have felt when it was forced upon His head, as well as a whip that was recreated to be like the one that was used on Jesus that had leather strips and sharp metal pieces at the ends which would tear at the skin of the one who was to be crucified, and there were also long nails like those that were used in the painful process of crucifixion on display, accompanied by a small sign that said, “Touch.”
In another station there was an artist who sat drawing a scene related to Jesus’ death. Everything was set up in such a way that they caused you to engage all of your senses.
I must admit that it was a very moving experience, but that was the problem. Because even though it did cause me to reflect upon the pain that Jesus endured, I couldn’t stop thinking of the similarities of these stations that were set up and the stations that I saw in the many videos that I had seen concerning the Emergent Church Movement and how everything is geared towards the worshipers having an experience with God by having them see, touch, smell, taste, and hear things. I left that night feeling very troubled.
What I truly enjoyed were the Good Friday services that they had in the past where all that you did was either come into the worship center where quiet Christian music was being played and there was an atmosphere of reverence as different Scriptures were shown on a screen at the front of the church and you could stay for as long as you wanted and leave in silence as you walked out to your car. Or there were other years when you would just come into the worship center and reflect on the Scriptures that were projected onto the screen to prepare your heart for a drama of the reenactment of the crucifixion, or the days leading up to it, and hear God’s Word being read. But that Friday night in April of 2010 simply added to the concerns that I already had because of my awareness of the dangers of the Emergent Church Movement in which there is a moving away from Scriptural truth and instead the focus is more upon having experiences with God.
For those of you who are not familiar with what the Emergent Church Movement is, when time allows please watch this video, as well as the video Playlist under Related Videos:
Now back to focusing on the women’s retreat and I’ll tie all of this together for you:
The speaker for Harvest Bible Chapel’s women’s retreat is Shannon Milholland. When I searched YouTube hoping to find a video of a conference that she had spoken at in the past so that I could test what she said against Scripture, there were none to be found.
So I began to do research on her to see if she was involved in SpiritualFormation, Contemplative Prayer, Lectio Divina, or some form of meditation since meditation stations were being set up at this retreat that she would be speaking at. Here is what I discovered:
First I found an old comment that Shannon had made on a post by Robert D Smith who I discovered is a motivational speaker. He wrote a book called “20,000 DAYS ANDCOUNTING” which tells you to figure out how many days that you have been alive so far, and to live the rest of your days one moment at a time and to make them count.
After reading some of the INFORMATION ABOUT ROBERT D SMITH’S BOOK ON AMAZON, it reminded me of Steven Furtick’sCRASH THE CHATTERBOX because of how he talks about changing your negative thinking. Robert D Smith also addresses how to talk to yourself in one of his blog posts by suggesting that you:
“Write down what you say.” “Read it over and over again. Say it aloud 30 times before you go to bed. Then say it 30 times first thing in the morning. Or when you are taking a shower.” (SOURCE)
He speaks about God in some of his writings, but instead of telling his readers to renew their minds with the truth of God’s Word, his advise sounds more like positive confession teachings that can be found in the Word of FaithMovement, or the mantra’s uttered over and over by those involved in the New Age Movement, and not like Christianity at all.
In Robert D Smith’s book under ‘Section 1 Point 4’ of his Notes section, it shows that he quoted Norman Vincent Peale who promoted positive thinking and whose New Age teachings strongly influenced Rick Warren. (Read THIS ARTICLE by LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS RESEARCH to learn more).
While there was nothing wrong per se with Shannon Milholland’s comment that she made on Robert D Smith’s interview post, it was concerning to see that she was interested in this type of book and author.
I decided to check if she was on Pinterest to see what her interests were and discovered the following:
This is a quote from one of her books entitled, Jesus & My Orange Juice. Is it possible that she also promotes “hearing from God” as Beth Moore and Priscilla Shirer do, who are both highly promoted at Harvest Bible Chapel?
Is it also possible that Shannon Milholland practices yoga?
Below is a quick capture of the most concerning information that I found. I will explain in detail just a little further in this post.
Most of you are already aware of the serious concerns that many have with Steven Furtick. If not, please consider reading through the following previous posts that I wrote about him which are listed HERE:
Also consider watching the Playlist that I posted below under Related Videos which features an interview of Steven Furtick by Lysa TerKeurst, (which is all that I feel is necessary to say about her at this time to make my point that she is not one who should be promoted since she strongly endorses Steven Furtick), and I also added other videos to that Playlist in order to help you see the concerns that many have about his teachings.
Now, notice in the quick capture above that Shannon Milholland also recommends a book by Mary DeMuth. Further below you will see a quick capture of a portion of AN ARTICLE POSTED ON LIGHTHOUSE TRAILSentitled, Dear Dr. Charles Stanley, What Are You Trying To Tell Us? Are You A Contemplative? In part, it states the following:
“In the In Touch article, DeMuth tells readers to visit “prayer rooms – sacred spaces where you can experience different aspects of praying.” DeMuth tells readers to “[r]esearch online to find a prayer room near you.” Lighthouse Trails goes on to make the point that by doing so, “One of the first entries you’ll come up with…” is a website “where a higher consciousness and New Age thought is promoted.” (SOURCE)
This is the clearest evidence that shows Shannon Milholland is endorsing someone — Mary DeMuth — who is involved in these mystical practices even if she is personally not involved with them, but at this point I still cannot be certain if she is or not.(SOURCE)
Although it is uncertain at this point in time what will actually take place at next weekend’s women’s retreat at Camp Harvest, since Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows promotes Beth Moore and Priscilla Shirer as well as their Bible studies, and since they are both known to promote spiritual mysticism and teaching how to hear God speak to you, as I demonstrated through the information that I shared with you in some of the previous posts that I have written, (such as BETH MOORE LIVE SIMULCAST – WILL YOUR CHURCH BE BRINGING BETH MOORE TO YOUR COMMUNITY, as well as HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL LEADERSHIP, CHRISTIAN LEADERS, AND THE LACK OF BIBLICAL DISCERNMENT), and since it is possible that Shannon Milholland may lead women into some form of Contemplative, meditative prayer exercise as demonstrated by the information that I provided for you in this post, and because of the fact that Harvest Bible Chapel has made it known that they will be having “meditation stations” at this retreat, I thought that it was very important to try and alert all of you women who are considering going to this retreat so that you can be aware of the possible spiritual dangers that you may encounter, and give you an opportunity to change your mind and choose not to attend this retreat.
One thing is very clear though. Spiritual mysticism is becoming increasingly prevalent in many churches today, and leading many Christians down the spiritually deceptive contemplative path that leads one to embrace the unbiblical teachings of Roman Catholicism. Here is just one example of what is happening at Willow Creek Church in Barrington IL where Bill Hybels is pastor. Keep in mind that James MacDonald is good friends with Bill Hybels:
Women of Harvest Bible Chapel, what is being presented to you as a supposed “divine invitation” and a “regret-free decision” may end up being the complete opposite. If you accept this invitation and what takes place at this retreat is anything like what is taking place in many other churches these days, I can tell you that it will be a regretful decision, because if you end up going you may be led into participating in spiritually deceptive practices that are akin to what takes place in the world of the occult. If you ignore this warning and the many others who warn about these very same things, you will gradually continue to be led down a spiritually deceptive path.
Some Christians believe that a Christian can never be deceived. However, that simply is not true. When the disciples asked Jesus what the signs of His coming would be, the very first thing that Jesus said was,
“Watch out that no one deceives you.” (Matthew 24:4)
Consider reading the following personal testimony of a dear Sister-in-Christ who was deceived by these very things that I have been warning you about when she was introduced to Spiritual Formation by the teaching pastor at her former church:
This post goes out to all of you as a strong warning that I hope you will seriously take to heart! If you truly desire an encounter with God, you don’t need to look any further than in the pages of your own Bible. Save yourself $100.00, and, if possible, get up very early in the morning before your husband and your children wake up, take your Bible with you and either sit out in your yard, or take a walk to a nearby park as the beauty of God’s handiwork begins to display pinks and reds across the eastern sky as the sun begins to rise, and spend some one on one time with God by reading His Word and praying and praising Him for the Mighty and thrice Holy God that He is.
As JUSTIN PETERS has been known to say quite frequently:
“If you want to hear God speak to you, read your Bible. If you want to hear God speak audibly, read it out loud.”
Thank you for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
Former member of Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows from June 1997 – January 2012
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you.” (Matthew 24:3,4)
“Therefore I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” (Acts 20:26-31)
“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith…” (1 Peter 5:8,9a)
“Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11)
RELATED VIDEOS – LEARN TO DISCERN
LYSA TERKEURST INTERVIEWS STEVEN FURTICK
ROGER OAKLAND OF UNDERSTAND THE TIMES – THE EUCHARISTIC CHRIST & NEW EVANGELIZATION, THE EMERGING CHURCH: ROAD TO ROME & ROAD TO BABYLON
Welcome to another post in the series of posts that I have entitled, Warning You With Tears Wednesdays. Lord willing, at least once a month on Wednesdays I will be writing and sharing one of these posts with you so that I can make you all aware of some important information that I come across on the Internet that you may not have heard about. Since I knew that I would soon be starting a new part-time job (and I did in June) and that my free time would then be somewhat limited, I was trying to think of something that I could write on a regular basis that would be short and to the point (at least that was my intention). And since I am a detective-at-heart and desire to make you all aware of the importance of testing things that pastors and teachers say (and do) in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11), the idea to do these posts — as well as the name — came to my mind in November of 2014, based on Acts 20:26-31:
“For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
So with all of that in mind, here is what I’d like to share with you in today’s WARNING YOU WITH TEARS WEDNESDAY:
There have been so many Bible versions coming out that have caused many of us who are Bible believing Christians to cringe and to be horrified by how God’s Word has been altered. And now Glenn Chatfield, who writes atTHE WATCHMAN’S BAGPIPES, shares with us about the latest version that’s perfect for those who are “lovers of self” (2 Timothy 3:2), and you can read about itHERE. While you’re there, please take some time to read through the many very good articles that he has written. He exposes false teachings and also addresses “discernment issues as they relate to the current state of society and the church.”
Speaking of being horrified, the more we learn about what takes place behind closed doors concerning Planned Parenthood, the clearer it becomes that not only are the hearts of all people hard and sinful — some more harder and more sinful than others — but also it becomes evident of the truth declared in God’s Word that everyone is in need of a Savior –Jesus Christ. HERE is the latest heart-wrenching information from LifeSite News.
Berean Research also revealed more information to us that was just released yesterday concerning Planned Parenthood which I happened to see posted on Facebook this morning: THIS ARTICLEwhich reports a story of “sheer evil” gives more solid evidence that in the eyes of some, the value of human life is reduced simply to dollar $ign$.
I hope and pray that after reading these horrific stories, that you will be moved to earnestly pray and speak out for the precious lives of the unborn as THESE people and many others are doing.
The lie that women are often, if not always told when they walk into an abortion clinic, is: “It’s just a clump of tissue.” To destroy that lie, below you will see one of many pictures that a woman took of one of the two precious babies that she miscarried; one at just seven weeks, and the other at eight weeks. Truly we are fearfully and wonderfully made by our Creator (Psalm 139):
You can see more of Mindy Raelynne Danison’s amazing pictures HERE.
Are you a “Christ follower” or a “Christian.” Berean Research shows us of the very important distinction that is being made these days between the two, and how many are out to destroy Christianity in THIS article. (When time allows, please consider reading the many White Paper research articles on Berean Research’s website that are filled with very helpful information on topics such as Contemplative Prayer, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the New Age Movement, and much more).
In the following article, Roger Oakland, of UNDERSTAND THE TIMES, shares with us the top ten ways the church is being led astray and down the: PATHWAY OF APOSTASY When time allows, please consider reading more of his many good articles in which he makes us as Christians aware of what is taking place within Christianity today and how many are being lured into mysticism which directs many people down the road that leads to Rome.
Speaking of apostasy, yesterday, Tuesday August 26, ’15, Glenn Chatfield of The Watchman’s Bagpipes shared in his post how he and his wife are among the many of us who have sadly watched the downward spiral of James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows. You can read about itHERE
I’ll end this post with something that will bring God the glory that He is so deserving of:
Here’s a time lapse video from Dakotalapse that will truly show you the amazing beauty of God’s creation:
If you’d like, you can watch more beautiful Dakotalapse videos on YouTubeHERE
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4)
Welcome to another post in the series of posts that I have entitled, Warning You With Tears Wednesdays. Lord willing, at least once a month on Wednesdays I will be writing and sharing one of these posts with you so that I can make you all aware of some important information that I come across on the Internet that you may not have heard about.
Since I knew that I would soon be starting a new job (and I did last week) and that my free time will then be somewhat limited, I was trying to think of something that I could write on a regular basis that would be short and to the point (at least that was my intention). And since I am a detective-at-heart and desire to make you all aware of the importance of testing things that pastors and teachers say (and do) in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11), the idea to do these posts — as well as the name — came to my mind in November of 2014, based on Acts 20:26-31:
“For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
So with all of that in mind, here is what I’d like to share with you in today’s WARNING YOU WITH TEARS WEDNESDAY:
If you have been noticing alarming changes taking place within your church and you can’t quite understand what’s happening and why, this article may answer some of your question:
Here’s a presentation that Roger Oakland gave on this very important topic:
Many are baffled by the decision that Pastor James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel recently made when he announced at the Southern Baptist Convention that his church has voted to affiliate with the Southern Baptist Convention. You can read all the Twitter comments on the subject HERE. Personally I find his decision somewhat alarming considering the fact that Rick Warren and Beth Moore are also Southern Baptist, and they promote false unity and mysticism:
In case you’re not aware of the mystical, unbiblical form of prayer that is being highly promoted by Beth Moore, Rick Warren, and many others these days, here’s a post giving you a lot of very good information on the subject:CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER-BEREAN RESEARCH
With all of that in mind, a word of caution goes out to those of you who attend Harvest: Since James presents many of Beth Moore’s Bible book studies at Harvest and since he thinks so highly of her, and in light of the fact that James has been involved with Rick Warren at previous conferences (HEREis one for an example) the bond between all of them may be getting tighter. If Rick Warren or Beth Moore ever show up as guest speakers, I suggest that you run — not walk — to the nearest exit and do not go back!
What would you do if you found out that your children were being taught gender fluidity in school?
And what would you do if you found out that, in the name of religious freedom, the school that your child is attending is allowing devil worshipers to hand out coloring books filled with their beliefs?
One of my dear friends who moved out of state called me two weeks ago. After we caught up on what has been happening in our lives, she asked me if I have heard of the term transabled. When I told her that I had not, she proceeded to explain to me what it was. I was horrified! I was also filled with a deep sense of anger because I see this as just another way that Satan is using in his attempt to destroy God’s greatest creation –mankind. Because we are created in the image and likeness of God, Satan is resorting to doing all that he can to pervert and to destroy as many as he can. So many precious teens and others are already in the state of confusion with what is being presented to them concerning their gender, and now this! You can read this heartbreaking and disturbing story posted by Christian News, HERE.
For those of you who, because of deep hurt and anger welling up within you for how you feel about what you may have done, or what has been done to you or a loved one, and because you have also lost all hope you have resorted to inflicting pain upon yourself through cutting yourself or harming yourself in some way in an attempt to deal with your pain, please read these articles, as well as the Scriptures that I posted below:
I’ll end this post with something good to give God the praise and glory that He is so deserving of:
If any of you still doubt the humanity of a ‘fetus,’ please watch this video of a 14-week old fetus unborn baby clapping.
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-13)
“Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” (1 Corinthians 1:10)
“For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.” (1 Corinthians 12:12)
“For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth anotherJesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or anothergospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:2-4)
“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
“Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son,and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And He said also to the people, When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is. And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There will be heat; and it cometh to pass.Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth; but how is it that ye do not discern this time?” (Luke 12:51-56)
“Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)
“O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous arethy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.” (Psalm 139: 1-10)
Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:6-8)
“For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” (Romans 5:6-10)
“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” (Romans 3:19-28)
“In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:9,10)
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” (Galatians 2:20,21)
“Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.” (John 14:6)
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Timothy 2:5,6)
Thank you for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
In the video above, Roma Downey, who is known mostly for her role that she played as an angel named Monica in the series, ‘TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL’ which ran from September of 1994 until April of 2003, sent out a message to church leaders concerning the series that she and her husband, Mark Burnett produced, entitled, ‘A. D . The Bible Continues,’ which premiered on Easter Sunday 2015 on NBC. She excitedly informs church leaders that,
“A. D. tells the epic story of the birth of the church…” “It stars the Holy Spirit. And it’s exciting that all the stories from Acts — Chapters 1 through 10 — are included in season 1.”
Here is more of her video message:
“We can’t wait to bring this beloved book of the Bible to life on prime time network television What a fantastic opportunity for your church to be a part of the national conversation and to go deeper with some of the resources provided by OUTREACH. So be sure to pick up the official A. D. church kit, and the official study and guide book…” “And as you make plans for a 12 week campaign in tandem with the series, please allow this trailer to inspire you and to give you vision on how you can use this in your church.”
Sounds pretty exciting, right? And, as Christians we should be excited to think that the book of Acts will be presented on prime time television so that many who have never even read the Bible can see the amazing things that happened after the Holy Spirit filled the apostles with boldness to preach the gospel fearlessly! What a contrast to how they had been hiding in fear behind locked doors as John 20:19 reveals to us!
All these pastors are excited about ‘A. D. The Bible Continues,’ as you can see from their tweets and endorsements below:
Soon after I found out about this new series, I came across THIS ARTICLE by Stand Up For The Truth, which is entitled, ‘A. D. WILL YOUR CHURCH BE BUYING THE ROMA DOWNEY SERMON KIT?’ I knew that my new pastor was not promoting ‘A. D. Bible Continues,’ and I was truly hoping that my former pastor, James MacDonald, of Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows was not one of the many who were endorsing these programs. But sadly, as you can see from what I soon discovered, he was also highly endorsing them:
Well, to answer those of you who may have that question, I am presenting you with a lot of information to make you all realize, once again, the extreme importance of praying for discernment and the need for us always to test not only the things that people say and do who claim to speak for God against the truth of His Word, but also the importance of testing what we read and hear against the truth of God’s Word. We can’t just accept something wholeheartedly based on the fact that our pastor, or a certain teacher who might be highly respected by many, may be promoting something or someone.
Above is a two part video presentation of the article that I originally saw posted on LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS RESEARCH which was written by Gregory Reid, entitled: CONFUSED BY AN ANGEL: THE DILEMMA OF ROMA DOWNEY’S NEW AGE BELIEFS, Here is just a little of what you will discover about Roma Downey if you watch the video or read the article:
1) Roma Downey is a devout Roman Catholic who prays to Mary.
2)Roma Downey graduated from USM, University of Santa Monica, which is a New Age Metaphysical school.
3)Roma Downey endorsed a New Age book, entitled, ‘Loyalty to Your Soul.’ Here are two excerpts from the book:
“When people speak of spirituality, they simply mean awareness of the sacred reality of the Divine Essence within and beyond all creation. (Page 8 quoting favorably a New Age “spiritual teacher”)
“You begin to recognize others as Divine Beings, and the situations and circumstances in life as learning devices.” (Page 31)
I encourage you to watch the two part video series above or read the article at the link above so that you can learn many even more alarming things concerning Roma Downey. I also ask you to please pray for Roma, as well as for her husband, Mark Burnett, that they might both come to the knowledge of true Biblical Christianity and who Jesus Christ truly is as God’s Word reveals Him to be.
I am saddened and shocked to see the lack of Biblical discernment among prominent pastors and teachers these days! I realize that many pastors are overloaded with responsibilities, but that is no excuse for them to endorse something without testing it against the truth of God’s Word.
Even more frightening is the thought that many pastors who are endorsing these programs fail to see the problems with what is being presented in these programs! They have the responsibility to ‘earnestly contend for the faith that was once for allentrusted to the saints,’ (Jude 3) and to ‘keep watch over themselves and all the flock of God of which the Holy Spirit has made them overseers.’ (Acts 20:28) As teachers they are even more accountable to God! (James 3:1)
Thankfully there are many godly pastors and teachers and other Christians who do see the serious problems in these programs! Here are some of their reviews of ‘A. D. The Bible Continues.’
The following ones were written by researcher and writer, Avery Foley:
I saw the need to write this post to, once again, stress the importance for all of us who are Christians to follow Jesus Christ alone. We as Christians must think for ourselves and not accept anyone’s endorsement of another pastor or teacher, or a program, book, movie, etc., without checking everything out for ourselves first and praying for discernment as we test everything in light of Scripture.
What a person believes will have a strong influence on what they write and produce. Yes, we much leave room for artistic license, but if you take the time to read all the reviews and articles, and watch the videos that I posted below for you, you will come to the realization, along with many other Christians, that Roma Downey and her husband, Mark Burnett, are presenting another Jesus and another gospel; a Jesus and a gospel that easily appeals to all religious faiths –except for true Biblical Christianity in many respects.
As Christians, we can, however, watch programs like these and use them as opportunities to not only become Bereans by testing the content against the truth of God’s Word to see if what is being said is true (Acts 17:11), but also we can use them as opportunities to begin conversations with other people who are watching these programs. Whether they are unbelievers, or Christians who have not come to realize the importance of reading and studying God’s Word on a regular basis and therefore lack the discernment necessary to know truth from error, we can simply begin by asking people if they watch these programs, and, if they do, we can ask them to share their thoughts with us about them. Then, if we discover that they truly enjoyed these programs and they don’t express any concerns about what important things were missing, and what was added that caused them to be concerned, then we will know that we need to pray for God to give us wisdom on how to respond to their comments. With humility and gentleness we can then begin by pointing out some of the truths and amazing things that are in Scripture that we noticed were missing from what was portrayed in each episode, as well as the problematic things that were added that could lead people away from having a true understanding of who Jesus Christ is and what the good news of the gospel is, as well.
I hope you are learning — along with me — the importance of not only thinking for yourself and searching things out, but also the extreme importance of testing everything against the truth of God’s Word so that you will never be deceived.
Thank you for stopping by, and thank you very much for taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11)
“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:3,4)
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned.” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and days with tears.” (Acts 20:25-31)
“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. (2 Corinthians 11:13,14)
“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:16)
“The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 3:16 – 4:1-4)
This is the second post in a new series of posts that I will be doing once a month on Wednesdays (I published this one a few minutes after midnight on Wednesday because of the final story I added, so it’s now actually Thursday, but on with my post…) so that I can make you all aware of some important information that I come across on the Internet that you may not have heard about. I have been trying to think of something that I could write on a regular basis that would be short and to the point (at least I’ll try to be), and since I am a detective-at-heart and desire to make you all aware of the importance of testing things in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11), the idea to do these posts — as well as the name — came to my mind in November of 2014, based on Acts 20:26-31:
“For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.”
So with that in mind, here are some of the things ‘d like to make you all aware of on this Wednesday:
When are some pastors going to go back to just preaching the Word and place their trust in God to grow the church and stop resorting to worldly methods in order to attract people in an attempt to grow their church! Sadly, I can really see some pastors of certain mega-churches — that many of us are well aware of — getting on board with this idea!
HERE’Sa very good article by Mike Ratliff — ‘The Golden Calf of the Church Growth Movement”
God’s Word has a lot to say about the character traits of a godly elder. How many of us today can actually say that our pastor meets God’s standards for an elder regardless of how successful they may be in a worldly sense. Many of us have sadly watched the demise of Mark Driscoll’s ministry, and other ministries come to mind that fill us with serious concerns, as well.HERE’Sa very good article on the subject written by Tim Challies that tells it like it is. (Stand Up For The Truth posted this on Facebook on Wednesday night December 3, 2014)
HERE’S the latest concerning Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church. Please continue to pray for all the people who attended Mars Hill Church, especially those who have been emotionally and spiritually abused and devastated, and also pray for God’s will to be done concerning Mark Driscoll and that he will receive the proper and Biblical church discipline.
HERE’Sanother good article, entitled ‘The Bashing of the Bloggers’ written by Jordan Hall of ‘Pulpit and Pen,’ and expanded by Dustin Germain.
Some ‘Christian’ churches have added these to their sanctuaries claiming they will help those who desire to go deeper in their spiritual journey, and now a certain Christian University has also added one ofTHESEto their property. Unbelievable! But we must do all we can to be ‘relevant’ to reach today’s culture, regardless of the warnings in Scripture against pagan practices, right? Wrong!
Do you know what they say is at the center of a labyrinth? Watch this video and you’ll discover the frightening truth!
Do you monitor the music your children are listening to? Do you also take the time to read the lyrics? Thanks to someone who used the search words “monstrance clock” which led them unintentionally to my site because I wrote about the “monstrance” worship in Catholicism, I decided to do my own ‘search’ to find out what exactly a monstrance clock is, and I discovered these>LYRICS<to a song that expresses a frightening call for unity!
Do you also monitor the cartoons and programs your children are watching? Something that seems so cute and innocent may be teaching your children something that is not so innocent. Take for example this extremely popular BBC pre-school program called WAYBULOO. It features adorable, huge-eyed characters called Piplings that interact with real children in each of their programs. The pre-school children who watch these shows in their homes will learn about sharing, and being thoughtful, and patient. However, then the time comes during these programs when the sound of wind chimes is heard and the Piplings call out, “Time for yogo!” Yogo is a gentle form of yoga, and the Piplings then instruct the children how to do different yogo poses. I came across this information on Marcia Montenegro’s Facebook page, and you can read the controversy about these programsHERE.
Since I had never heard of this program before, I decided to do a search on YouTube for more Waybuloo videos to see if ‘yogo’ was just in that one particular episode, or if it is a consistent element in all of the programs they present to the pre-school children who watch the Waybuloo series. Upon finding and watching the following three hour video that has multiple episodes of this program, I came to realize that yogo indeed is a reoccurring feature in the Waybuloo programs.
Are you aware of everything your children are doing and learning while they’re at school all day? As you know, prayer is not allowed in many schools these days. However, you need to be aware of the fact that many schools are offeringTHESEclasses, claiming they just want to “ease youth anxiety andstress.” I had to personally deal with something very similar when my children were in school in the 90’s! (Posted by Marcia Montenegro on December 2, 2014 on her Facebook page).
If you are not aware of the occultic nature of yoga, when time allows, please watch the following video:
Florida’s capital is addinga new holiday displaythis year so that the Satanic temple can say “Happy Holidays” in their own unique way. After all, we live in a country where we all have the freedom to express ourselves, right? Unless, of course, you happen to be on CNN and express your faith in Jesus Christ like this NFL stardid. Then you find out the truth; those of us who are true followers of Jesus Christ according to God’s Word, the Bible, who choose to express our faith in a public way, will be silenced in a very rude way. (Found out about both of these stories from Stand Up For The Truth).
On the other hand, if you happen to be an actorwho starts his own religion,CNN will give you a write up about your spiritual journey and share your thoughts about “advanced spiritualism” with the world. (This story was posted by a person who shared this on Marcia Montenegro’s Facebook page).
Beware of false unity, because even if you’re the pope,thisis not the unity and oneness that Jesus prayed for in John Chapter 17. Do not be deceived!
And speaking of the pope and unity,This mega-pastor not only recently referred to the pope as “Holy Father,” but also he had this to say concerning Christians and Catholics:
“We have far more in common than what divides us.”
I’m sorry, but nothing could be further from the truth! And if you are aware of the teachings of the Catholic church and know God’s Word well, I know you will agree with me!
If you’ve been wondering what Rob Bell has been up to lately since writing his very controversial book, ‘LOVE WINS,’ wonder no more.He’s busybringing Americans to the New Age “Christ.”(Found this story on Lighthouse Trails). He also has his“OWN”television show starting on December 21st. (Found on Stand Up For The Truth).
Harvest Bible Chapel attendees and members: Remember when James made his announcement about partnering with TBN in March 2014? The following video will refresh your memory:
HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL ALERT: Well, if you were as grieved as I was to hear the news concerningJames partnering with TBN,THISNEWSwill probably devastate and grieve you even more, as it did me! Please continue to pray for James; pray that God will give him eyes to see and ears to hear the truth concerning the wrong choices he has made and is continuing to make, and that his heart will finally be filled with a godly sorrow that will lead him to repent. One can only hope and pray that he has not hardened his heart to the point of no return.
RELATED SCRIPTURES
“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God — having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5)
“In fact everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived, But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 3:12-17, 4:1-4)
“The Spirit clearly says that in latter times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1:16,17)
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to Him. But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpents cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Corinthians 11:2-4)
“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” (Isaiah 5:20)
“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.” (2 Corinthians 7:14-16)
“Be careful to do everything I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips.” (Exodus 23:13)
“Do not make a covenant with them or with their gods. Do not let them live in your land. or they will cause you to sin against Me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.” (Exodus 23:32,33)
“You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? But He gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts you double-minded. Grieve, mourn, and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.” (James 4:4-10)
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10)
Elliott Nesch, who writes for the site, HOLY BIBLE PROPHECY, has updated his excellent video, entitled: Church ofTares: Purpose Driven, Seeker Sensitive, Church Growth, and the New World Order’ today, and I just wanted to share it with you. I must warn you though…there are clips of Mark Driscoll using very explicit sexual language in this video; things that Mark Driscoll has actually said in front of his church congregation!
Just test all that is said and done in this video in light of Scripture and keep these things in mind:
Did Paul the apostle — or any of the apostles — use worldly methods to grow the church? Or were they simply faithful men who preached the gospel and taught the Word of God, day afterday, and relied upon God to grow the church?Are many pastors today preaching another gospel and another Jesus? How many pastors today still preach about sin, repentance, and hell, as well as God’s grace, mercy, and forgiveness?
How many pastors today are drifting further and further from Biblical truth and instead are now resorting to growing the church through appealing to the sinful lusts of the unsaved, resulting in having their churches filled with goats, with just a few starving sheep left, still hanging on, hoping and praying for their pastor to wake up and repent?
How many Christians today are followers of a man and his ministry, instead of followers ofJesusChrist?
Please pray for wisdom and discernment and watch the video above when time allows. If you have never seen the shorter version of this video, or if you are not familiar with terms such as the ‘church growth movement,’ and ‘purpose driven,’ you are going to learn a lot from the well researched information in this video.
For those of you who have been attending a church for many years and all of a sudden you began noticing that things have been changing and you can’t quite figure out what exactly is happening, I believe as you begin to watch this video your eyes will be opened and you will begin to understand what is actually happening at your church, and you will have many of your valid concerns confirmed by much of the information in this video.
Just keep your eyes on Jesus and don’t be discouraged. God wants to use this hard time in your life to teach you to trust in Him alone. And He also wants you to take the time to read and study His Word so well that you will be able to discern truth from error as soon as you hear or see it.
Thank you for stopping by. And thank you very much for taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
SCRIPTURES FOR YOU TO REFLECT ON
“Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.” (Acts 2:41)
“Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:46,47)
“But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.” (Acts 4:4)
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy , which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)
“I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to Him. But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Corinthians 11:2-4)
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned. As we have already said, so now I say again: if anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” ( 1 Corinthians 1:18)
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16)
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on His left. Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:31-34, 41)
On Sunday, January 5th 2014, James MacDonald enticed his congregation with these words:
“…the biggest miracle that’s ever happened in the history of Harvest Bible Chapel is happening right now.”
Butthen he went on to say that ‘he couldn’t tell them for another three months.’
Then last week Harvest Bible Chapel sent out an email entitled ‘Big News You Need To Hear!’ This is what it said in the final paragraph of that email:
“Last, there’s some big news you need to hear! If Harvest Bible Chapel is your church home, we also have a special ministry update for you this weekend. I wish I could tell you all of it now, and can hardly wait till we share in it together. Trust me–you’ll want to hear this news first hand.”
Since I left Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows (my church for over 14 1/2 years) at the end of January 2012 right after I heard what took place during the‘Elephant Room 2 Conference’ with T DJakes,I was unable to discover what the “big news” was, and they didn’t include that information on their online service. However, last night I happened to notice the following tweet on Twitter which had the link that led me to the picture and information you see in the ‘quick capture’ that I posted above:
“Does anyone know if this is true?”
After reading the information at that link I was pretty certain that the information was true — as disturbing as it was — but I hesitated to write about it until I could confirm it with certainty. So I began my own Internet search and found the following video of a June 5th 2013 TBN program entitled, ‘Behind the Scenes’ in which you can see the ‘quick capture’ below of former president of TBN, Paul Crouch (who sadly died less than 6 months after that program), shaking hands with James. Upon playing the video I heard Paul Crouch say to James at the 23:13 minute mark:
“We’re gonna have lots to talk about with regards to Chicago Illinois, I have a feeling. You’re a great church there.”
You can watch the video by clicking on the word‘SOURCE’under the ‘quick capture’ below. The portion where James begins talking starts at the 8 minute mark:
This definitely added to the certainty that James is becoming involved with TBN, and then just a few hours ago I noticed that a person who tweets in defense of James replied to the previously mentioned tweet by saying the following, and thus confirming the news concerning TBN and James to be true:
“yes, they talked about it at length in church this past weekend.”
“the elders are behind it and they seem to have thought it through. seems like a good thing for the word to go out.”
“They talked about it at length,” and “they seem to have thought it through. seems like a good thing for the word togo out.” But the question is, ‘Did they seriously pray about it and earnestly seek God for His will? Somehow I don’t think so, because God’s Word clearly warns us about those who preach ‘another gospel’ and ‘another Jesus’ which the prosperity teachings clearly preach.
“But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Corinthians 11:3,4)
“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel– which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians 1:6-9)
“Trinity Broadcasting Network — TBN is the world’s largest religious network, delivering the Christian message of hope around the world.”
So says the information that I found after clicking on the link I saw posted on Twitter. Yes, James can reach many people around the world through his program, for sure. And, yes, there are a few — very few– Biblical programs on TBN such as ‘Way of the Master.’ But associating with many pastors and teachers who are known for teaching ‘Word of Faith’ heresy, and airing his ‘Walk in the Word’ program on a station that is known for promoting heresy does not seem like godly wisdom to say the least! (I am assuming that’s the program that TBN will be airing).
**CORRECTION 3-24-14 9:49 A.M.**: It didn’t occur to me when I first wrote this post, but it will probably be their weekend services that are now being live streamed, which will be aired on TBN.
**UPDATE 3-27-14** While listening to their 3-23-14 online service, James confirmed by what he said that it will be ‘Walk In The Word Television.‘ This may, however, include their weekend services, because James had this to say:
“I announced last weekend in church that God has opened a miraculous door for ‘Walk in the Word Television’ to truly touch the world. Plant more churches in more places maybe than any church in our generation has done. Maybe. God knows. But aren’t you astounded –by His grace?”
“God is going to use us like that? You have got to be kidding me! It’s shockingly, outrageously gracious of God to take this thing that goes on between us every weekend and somehow get that to the ends of the earth. I feel immensely unworthy. I’m surprised that you don’t feel the same –if you don’t.”
Looking down at the pulpit, James also read off some serious questions with a sassy tone in his voice, giving the people at Harvest the impression that he was ‘being bombarded by these kind of questions’ from those who attend Harvest. Questions such as:
“How much money are you going to make from this, Pastor James?”
“Then how much do you make on your books?”
“What if I don’t agree with everybody on that channel you’re going on?”
But then as if James was trying to make light of the fact that he was going to be on TBN, he had this to say:
“I don’t agree with everyone in this church. I don’t agree with everyone in my own family.”
Those comments brought laughter from some people in attendance. Shortly after that he read 1 Corinthians 16:9 out loud, which says:
“A wide door for ministry has opened to me and there are many adversaries.”
Then, in part, he went on to say:
“Um good news? Ready for some good news? I made up every one of those questions. Not one single one; I made it all up. And our church is incredibly excited and positive about what’s happening. Isn’t that awesome?”
So for those of you who do have serious concerns about your church being involved with TBN, it’s time for you to express those concerns to the leadership at Harvest because your decision to remain silent is implying that you are in agreement. And if you have the courage to do so, be prepared for the possibility of being called ‘negative’ and ‘divisive’ and possibly labeled as an ‘adversary.’
As for me, even though I left Harvest 2 years ago, I will pray even more for James and for all of you who are still attending Harvest. (End of 3-27-14 UPDATE).
What happened to the Biblical discernment James once had? By associating with the many false teachers that TBN promotes, this can only damage his reputation further than it has already been damaged by the fallout of ER2. *And because T D Jakes was proclaimed at ER2 as having embraced a Biblical understanding of the Trinity, and since T D Jakes was not confronted about the heretical ‘prosperity message’ that he preaches, is James willing to take partial responsibility for those who may be led astray for his failure to properly confront T D Jakes if they also begin to watch T D Jakes and the many other false teachers that are on TBN? Besides T D Jakes, here are just a few of the many other pastors and teachers that are on TBN: Jesse Duplantis, Joel Osteen, Kenneth Copeland, Steven Furtick, Brian Houston, Beth Moore, Joyce Meyer, Benny Hinn, and Marilyn and Sarah Hickey. All of those listed, except for Beth Moore and Steven Furtick have teachings that are saturated with ‘Word of Faith’ heresies. Although Steven Furtickdoes incorporate some‘Wordof Faith’ principles into his teachings, he is more known to distort Scripture and reads himself into many texts of Scripture as he preaches, which is just as unbiblical as the Word of Faith teachings. And Beth Moore promotes the unbiblical practice of ‘Contemplative Prayer’ and also teaches people how to ‘hear God speak,’ thus promoting the false teaching that we can ‘receive ‘direct revelation’ from God,‘ which can lead people to no longer believe in the sufficiency of Scripture. (*This paragraph was updated by just adding *this sentence on 3-27-14)
If you are not aware of what the ‘Word of Faith’ teachings are, I strongly encourage you to watch the following excellent series, ‘A Call for Discernment‘ by Justin Peters. He also has an updated series called, ‘Clouds Without Water.’
Though this is almost but possibly not quite an exact quote, I once heard James say on his ‘Walk in the Word’ program at the end of 2012:
‘The drift to compromise starts out slow and steady.’
And sadly, James is proving this to be completely true. What happened to the man he once was who strongly stood against all the “distortions of the gospel” which includes prosperity teachings?
There was a time when I believe he would have never considered partnering with TBN. But obviously his choice to begin to compromise has caused him to drift further than any of us ever thought was possible.
What kind of reaction did the members and those who attend Harvest Bible Chapelhave to the “big news” that was announced concerning TBN? Were they caught up in the excitement that HBC was attempting to generate through their hyped up emails and hints about the “big news” to come? Or will many begin to leave in droves after coming to the conclusion that this decision to partner with TBN is not something that is honoring to God and to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Time will tell.
“He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.” (John 7:18)
“For they loved praise from men more than praise from God.” (John 12:43)
“Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10)
Please pray for James more than you have ever prayed for him before. Is James seeking to please God? Or is he seeking the acceptance and approval of men? Only God knows his heart, but this just doesn’t sound like a wise decision for him to make.
Maybe God will somehow use this partnership with TBN in James’ life to open his eyes so that he will finally realize just how far he has drifted from standing for solid Biblical truth. At least that is my hope and prayer.
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory/Living For His Glory
* *UPDATED 3-21-14 10:13 A.M.**ADDED MORE SCRIPTURES AND COMPLETED CLOSING THOUGHTS.
YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN READING >WARNING YOU WITH TEARS<WHICH EXPLAINS IN DETAIL WHY I LEFT HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL ROLLING MEADOWS
If there’s one thing we can rely on these days in spite of the fact that our world is changing so drastically, it’s the ‘unchanging’ nature of God and the ‘unchanging’ truth of God’s Word –the Bible (though I must add that ‘The Message’ and ‘The Voice’ translations are excluded as being ‘God’s Word’ because of the ‘new age’ terminology and the distortions of Scriptures presented in these versions).
Sadly, however, many of us who are true Christians — born of the Spirit of God — are also seeing many of our once strong and committed pastors and teachers beginning to change, as well. And these changes are not for the better! Instead of a pastor focusing on the importance of his role to ‘preach the Word’ of God and to ‘equip the saints’ and trust God to grow the church as He has always been faithful to do in the past, they have been led into falling for worldly strategies of growing the church by non-Christians such as Peter Drucker. Rather than ‘contending for the faith’ they now are not only uniting with some pastors and teachers (who many have serious concerns about) at conferences, but also they are placing some of these ‘pastors’ in their own pulpits!
Some are even involving themselves with unbiblical, and even demonic, mystical, spiritual practices such as ‘breath prayers,’ ‘contemplative prayer,’ ‘visualization techniques,’ –occultic practices often cloaked in Christian terminology claiming to allow the ‘Christian’ to ‘hear from God‘ or to ‘connect with God on a deeper, more intimate level.’ (Much more on this in an upcoming post —Lord willing). God’s Word is no longer seen as the way to hear from God…now it’s all about ‘experiences.’ But to those who are not cautious and who fail to continually test things in light of Scripture, these techniques will lure them in and lead them astray.
How could it be that so many pastors and teachers are going astray? Is it for the love of money, position, or power? A ‘mid-life crisis’ maybe? What sin is at the root of all these serious changes we are seeing?
Is it pride that has caused many of them to close their ears to not only the pleadings of their people to disassociate with certain pastors, but also to the legitimate and serious concerns their people are expressing to them?
God’s Word gives us a picture of the condition that this world will be in before the return of Christ, as well as Scriptures that give an alarmingly accurate picture of ‘Christianity’ today. Here are just a few of them:
“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.” (Luke 21:10,11)
“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” (2 Peter 3:3,4)
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5)
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there be a falling away first…” (2 Thessalonians 2:3)
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (1 Timothy 4:1)
**UPDATED MON. 2-17-14 6:20p.m.** May I suggest to you that the reason many of us are seeing pastors and teachers who once strongly stood for Biblical truth without wavering, is because many are choosing to –compromise. Take for instance, Pastor Greg Laurie. When he preached a sermon he always gave a clear gospel presentation complete with making each listener understand they must be willing to repent; to turn from sin and follow Christ, and I believe he still does. However, there are other things Greg Laurie is doing that gives many of us valid reasons to be concerned. I’ll share one example with you that I found out from speaking to a person I met on the Internet who leftGreg Laurie’s church. This person told me at the end of 2012 that they “saw signs of spiritual formation in junior high and up.”
If you are not aware of what Spiritual Formation is, I highly recommend this article (and all the articles) by Pastor Gary Gilley– SPIRITUAL FORMATION
Below is a portion of that article that explains the philosophy of Spiritual Formation:
“The Spiritual Formation Movement is concerned more about individual experience than biblical knowledge or truth. This does not mean that adherents are totally uninterested in the Bible, and some would know it well. But the emphasis is on what a person experiences through the Bible more so than what they learn. Contemplatives, such as Dallas Willard and Richard Foster, will strongly encourage Bible reading and prayer but they mean something different from what most Christians mean when they reference the same terms. As we will see in future articles, contemplative prayer is not the same as prayer defined biblically; “sacred reading” (also called “lectio divina” of Scripture is not the same as Bible study; meditation (mystically encountering God) is not the same as knowing God and so forth. Many of the same terms are used, but as the classical liberals, and the more recent emergents, are fond of doing, they take our terms, including biblical ones, and give them new definitions and twists.”
Now back to what I was saying about Greg Laurie: When I first became a Christian and didn’t yet have a full-time job, I would eagerly get up early every morning to hear him preach on the radio instead of sleeping for an extra hour or so. Never did I think the day would come when he would give in to compromise! However…one day when I got up in the morning and turned on my computer, I saw the following video on YouTube:
Here is the late Pastor Chuck Smith (who sadly, also gave in to compromise) introducing Rick Warren as his “good friend” at —Greg Laurie’s Harvest Crusade in 2009:
For those of you who are still unaware of the serious concerns that many of us have with Rick Warren, I urge you to watch this video that I added to many of my other posts, as well, because of the detailed and very important information this video contains on Rick Warren:
**ADDED 2-17-14**And then there’s Francis Chan. I never heard of him before until my former pastor, James MacDonald, recommended his book ‘Crazy Love‘ one Sunday during his sermon. I did a ‘search’ on him that day to find out who he was, and at first he just seemed like a very humble man who desired to wholeheartedly seek after God and live an extremely simple life in order to give to the poor. However, as time went on he began to get involved in promoting the unbiblical practice of ‘Lectio Divina‘ along with Lecrae, Beth Moore, Louie Giglio, and John Piper at the Passion 2012 Conference. After reading portions of Ephesians, each speaker would stop and say things like this:
Beth Moore: “Without any comment, please, let’s pause and be still and ask Jesus to speak His Word to us.” Let’s pause, be still, and let God’s Word speak to us.”
Lecrae: “Pause, reflect, and hear from the Lord.”
John Piper: “Let’s be quiet and ask the Lord to speak.”
You can’t see it in the video above, but at this conference they had a banner in the background that said “Jesus, speak to me.” In my search to document that for you, I came across the following, thanks to Ken Silva of Apprising Ministries:
SOURCE : APPRISING MINISTRIES – BETH MOORE AND JOHN PIPER LEAD LECTIO DIVINA – LITE AT PASSION 2012
Didn’t God’s Word already speak to them? They just read the whole book of Ephesians out loud, so for them to say to “Be still, and let God’s Word speak” seems to imply they are desiring to hear more than what can be learned by examining the passage of Scripture in context to see what God already said to us through His Word in this particular book, this one being Ephesians. Though God may speak to someone on extremely rare occasions, they are presenting this as a normative practice to be embraced by all Christians. Everything God wants us to know has already been recorded in His Word, the Bible, and Jesus was God’s final Word to us:
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom also He made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.” (Hebrews 1:1-3a)
Also, I had heard that there were some who attended Passion 2012 who left there doubting their salvation because they didn’t hear Jesus personally speak to them. It was mainly because of what Louie Giglio said to them at this conference. Once again, in my search to find what Louie Giglio actually said so I could share it with you, I found that on the same post by Ken Silva. These are the words of Louie Giglio at the close of session 5:
“How many of you heard the voice of God speak specifically, clearly, directly, and personally, to you? Can you just put a hand up? I’d like you to share it. Can you put a hand up for a minute?
Just want you to look around; that’s people saying, “God Almighty (pause) the Maker of heaven (pause) the one Who’s sitting on the only throne (pause) that’s not under threat (long pause, audience cheers) –He spoke to me. He spoke to me.”
“God spoke to me.” (long pause) Don’t let the voice of the darkness, tell you that you are not (pause) worth (pause) that God would not speak to you. (pause) Don’t let him tell you, you don’t matter. (pause) God spoke to you.” (SOURCE) Apprising Ministries
Then, to make matters even worse, on December 30, 2013, Francis Chan chose to take part in an event at IHOP (International House Of Prayer), where he openly praised its leader, Mike Bickle, thus giving credibility to Mike BickleandIHOP. If you are not aware of the unbiblical teachings of Mike Bickle, as well as the unscriptural manifestations and even deadly things that have taken place within this movement, I strongly urge you to watch this video and read the articles below it:
When we as Christians — especially pastors — consider getting involved with another pastor, teacher, or a movement claiming to be ‘Christian,’ we have the God-given responsibility of testing everything in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11, 1 Thessalonians 5:21,22) and we also need to seriously consider the warnings of those who know more than we may know about a certain person or movement, and check it out before choosing to get involved. But sadly, as you can hear in the very beginning of the video I posted above, Francis Chanignored the warnings he received and chose to publicly proclaim to those in attendance at that IHOP event, the following:
“This is the first time I’ve ever been to an IHOP event. Which is..it’s kinda crazy to me because I didn’t know that much, and, you know, so I kinda went on the Internet and started looking things up and, I go ‘man there’s a lot of great things going on here. ‘ And today’s was the first time I ever met Mike Bickle, and, I love that guy. I do.
There’s people that told me not to…hang out with him. Like, you know, you know, words like creepy come up and yet I get to know this guy and I’m going, “Man I love his heart.” And I just want to publicly say, I love Mike Bickle.”
Then there’s Mega-pastors, Steven Furtick of Elevation Church in Charlotte N. Carolina, and Perry Noble of Newspring Church in S. Carolina. Both of whom my former pator, James MacDonald, is deeply involved with. I’ll start with Steven Furtick.
INFORMATION CONCERNING STEVEN FURTICK:
As I shared with you in my >WARNING YOU WITH TEARS< post, StevenFurtick took James MacDonald’s place in the pulpit on August 14, 2011 when James was on his summer break. Steven Furtick was also one of the pastors who took part in the ‘Elephant Room Conference,’ an idea that James MacDonald had that could have turned into something good, but instead ended in disaster. (You can also read about that on the previously mentioned post). I had never heard of Steven Furtick before all of that took place, so I cannot comment on how he was when he first started out, but I can share with you what is presently happening that many find rather disturbing. Below is something I again found posted by someone on Twitter. You can find this posted on Elevation Church’s Website. Read all the points below and see if you find some of their reasons just a little bit disturbing as many other people do –including me:
Just now (1:47p.m. 2-19-14) I found the above picture through a tweet on Twitter by ‘Stand Up For The Truth.’ This is an illustration from a coloring book at ‘Elevation Church‘ called ‘The Code,’ in which it appears that at a very early age, the children — along with the adults at ‘Elevation Church‘ — are learning that:
“Elevation Church is built on the vision God gave Pastor Steven.” And that Elevation Church “will protect our unity in supporting his vision.”
I don’t know about you, but I find this rather creepy and downright disturbing! SOURCE
There’s so much information coming out on Twitter concerning Steven Furtick and Elevation Church that I’m finding it hard to keep up! Here’s something else for you to take a close look at; ‘The Code‘ for Elevation Kidz that Steven Furtick wants them all to learn:
(SOURCE) FOUND IN TWEET POSTED BY CHRIS ROSEBROUGH
1. We are a generation of honor
2. We act in audacious faith
3.We eat the fish and leave the bones
4. We are known for what we are for
5. We lead the way in generosity
Don’t you find it rather concerning that Jesus isn’t even mentioned in the Kidz Code?
STEVEN FURTICK ADDRESSING ELEVATION CHILDREN TO LEARN ‘THE CODE’
Just searched YouTube and found this precious little girl, Isabella, who seems to know ‘the code’ quite well:
Please pray for the children and families at Elevation Church. One can only hope and pray that the children at ‘Elevation‘ are learning that our lives should be built upon Christ and His Word as our solid foundation! (Matthew 7:24-27) (1 Corinthians 3:10,11) Somehow by all this new information, I am finding it very hard to believe, because the focus clearly is more on Steven Furtick and Elevation Church rather than on Jesus Christ and His Word.
Here are two more“creepy,” things that I heard concerning Steven Furtick and Elevation Church while listening to Chris Rosebrough of Fighting For The Faith:
IN THE VIDEO BELOW, CHRIS ROSEBROUGH DISCUSSES ‘VISION CASTING’ WITH ‘ISSUES, ETC.’S,TODD WILKEN. AT THE 29:10 MARK YOU WILL HEAR THE ‘CREEPY’ CODE FOR STEVEN FURTICK’S, ELEVATION CHURCH, AT 43:10 MINUTE MARK YOU WILL HEAR JAMES MACDONALD SPEAKING TO A GROUP OF PASTORS ABOUT WHAT TO DO WITH THE ‘DIVISIVE’ MAN, AND AT THE 45:45 MINUTE MARK YOU WILL HEAR WHAT MARK DRISCOLL HAS TO SAY CONCERNING THOSE WHO WILL OPPOSE THE ‘VISION’ OF MARS HILL CHURCH. NOTE THE EVIL IN HIS VOICE AS HE SPEAKS. THOUGH I FIND ALL OF THESE CLIPS DISTURBING, MARK DRISCOLL’S CLIP IS THE MOST DISTURBING AND CLEARLY HIS ATTITUDE DOES NOT REFLECT CHRIST AT ALL!
CLICK BELOW TO LISTEN TO CHRIS ROSEBROUGH’S DEC. 16th 2013 PROGRAM:
At the links below, you will read about some more disturbing information concerning Steven Furtick and Elevation Church that I also found today on Twitter. More and more we are seeing manipulative tactics being used on people who attend mega-churches in order to bring about the results that only God can produce in a person’s heart. Clearly and sadly, many ‘pastors’ today view the church simply as an organization or corporation, and they are using the strategies of men to produce growth and results. May God bring all who participate in things similar to this to true repentance, for they will stand before a Holy God one day and give an account for all they have done and their motives for doing so, as will each and every one of us have to do. (1 Corinthians 3:12-16) [NOTE: Although I do not agree with Chris Rosebrough on where he stands on many theological issues, I do appreciate how he exposes false teachings.]
MORE REASONS TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT STEVEN FURTICK:
I must admit that over the 14 1/2 years that I attended Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows, Pastor James would frequently have ‘spontaneous baptisms’ as Steven Furtick does at Elevation Church. Sadly, it wouldn’t surprise me if the same manipulative tactics that are clearly used at Elevation Church are also used at Harvest Bible Chapel.
AT THE 45 MINUTE MARK AT THE LINK BELOW, CHRIS ROSEBROUGH POINTS OUT THE SERIOUS AND EVEN BLASPHEMOUS THINGS STEVEN FURTICK SAYS IN AN INTERVIEW WITH SANDY KRAKOWSKI CONCERNING HIS NEW BOOK, ‘CRASH THE CHATTERBOX’
**UPDATED 3-4-14** FINAL POINT WHY YOU SHOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT STEVEN FURTICK:
Last year at the ‘Holy Trinity Brompton Leadership Conference,’ Steven Furtick said the following starting @4:15:
“I feel real strongly what God put in me to give to you tonight…” “So I want to share with you…tonight from the Old Testament book of 2 Kings, and I want to share with you about a transitional moment in the life of Elisha the prophet. And if you’ll stay with me in this sermon…I don’t know that you’ll take a lot of notes…usually when I come to a conference like this by this point I feel like I cannot write another thing…I have a notebook full of ideas, and…I feel like I don’t need another piece of information at this point. So with that in mind, I thought I would get a little bit beyond the information realm, and…maybe we can move together tonight into a time of impartation (someone cheers at this point) and then maybe together we can see if God would bring us into a… an encounter with Him before we leave this place that…will change us and change our world.” (applause) SOURCE
In case you’re wondering why what Steven Furtick said should be very concerning, and in case you’re not aware of what ‘a time of impartation’ is to many leaders in the Charismatic Movement, please consider watching the following videos I posted below. Briefly I will just say that since 1990 Nicky Gumbel has been the leader of the Alpha Course, and Holy TrinityBrompton Church is known for their promotion of the ‘Toronto Blessing‘ which includes ‘manifestations of animal noises,’ people being ‘slain in thespirit,’people acting ‘drunk in the spirit‘, and many other unbiblical manifestations as you will see in the second video that I posted below.
BENNY HINN HAVING A TIME OF IMPARTATION:
SHOCKING DOCUMENTARY BY ANDREW STROM:
ALPHA – ATTEND OR AVOID – CECIL ANDREWS – PART 1 OF 2
Is it possible that Steven Furtick has gotten involved with these types of manifestations since he has become involved with Nicky Gumbel? I am only speculating at this point, but it really makes you wonder why he used the term ‘atime of impartation‘ instead of ‘a time of prayer.’
**UPDATED 2-20-14** INFORMATION CONCERNING PERRY NOBLE:
Just as with Steven Furtick, I never heard of Perry Noble until information came out concerning the first ‘Elephant Room Conference‘ in which he took part in along with Steven Furtick and others. As many in the ‘ChurchGrowth Movement‘ do, Perry Noble chooses to use worldly methods to appeal to unbelievers in order to bring them into the church. And in April of 2009 he chose to play AC DC’s song, ‘Highway To Hell‘ at his EasterService at Newspring Church. His reason for doing so, however, does not line up with what he declared during the ‘Elephant Room Conference.’ In the video below you will hear not only a short clip from ‘The ElephantRoom Conference‘ in which Perry Noble explains his reason for doing so, but also you will hear him explain to his whole church congregation the reason why he played ‘Highway to Hell‘ for his Easter service. His reason seems quite clear by what he says, but ultimately God will be the one who will judge his motives:
After listening to what he says in the video above, I encourage you to listen to the entire segment that took place during the ‘Elephant RoomConference‘ at the first link below where you can hear James MacDonald, Mark Driscoll, and Perry Noble discuss his decision to play that song in church:
A REVIEW OF PERRY NOBLE’S SERMON FROM AC/DC SUNDAY – IN SPITE OF THE FACT THAT HE PLAYED THE SONG, ‘HIGHWAY TO HELL’ DID PERRY NOBLE AT LEAST PREACH THE GOSPEL ON EASTER OF 2009? READ HIS THOROUGH REVIEW AT THE LINK BELOWAND FIND OUT:
**UPDATED 2-28-14**INFORMATION CONCERNING JAMES MACDONALD:
Then there’s my former pastor, James MacDonald of Harvest Bible Chapel, Rolling Meadows, whom I deeply appreciated because of his strong stand for Biblical truth and how he would preach God’s Word without apology. After leaving my former Assembly of God Church of 16 years because the leadership was beginning to get involved with the ‘Pensacola‘revival,’ I was finally beginning to trust a pastor again, and felt assured that James would be a pastor who would never give in to compromise. However, as many of us now know, sadly he did begin to change. If I had to pinpoint exactly when he started to change, I can say without a doubt it was right after he came back from staying with Greg Laurie when he was having his cancer treatments. And by reading some comments on The Elephant’s Debt and comments on some of the posts on Blood Stained Ink, I know that many other people who used to attend HBCRM (and some who still attend) have come to that same realization. Whether Greg Laurie influenced him in some way, or someone else did, it was obvious to many of us that he was no longer the same James MacDonald that we once knew and looked forward to hearing when he preached almost every Saturday evening and Sunday morning. He changed so much that one morning as I heard him preaching I actually had these thoughts:
“Who are you, and where is the real James MacDonald? Did someone clone him and replace the real James with his clone?”
One day when I was doing a ‘search’ on the Internet, I came across the following article which made me laugh:
It was rather comforting knowing now that I wasn’t the only one who had some outlandish thoughts about James because the changes in him were so obvious and rather concerning! In the article above which was written on February 10th 2012, Cameron Buettel said the following:
“It would seem that my theory about the real James MacDonald being abducted by aliens some time last year is not as far fetched as my doubters first thought. Of the multitudes of weird things James MacDonald has done over the last year or so, perhaps the most alarming was his invitation to TD Jakes to attend his Elephant Room Conference where “brothers” discuss their methodological differences.” (SOURCE)
Yes, Cameron, I am in total agreement! And because of what happen that night concerning T D Jakes — as I explained in detail in my WARNING YOU WITH TEARSpost — I did not return to Harvest Bible Chapel, Rolling Meadows — my church of over 14 1/2 years — ever again.
**UPDATED 2-27-14** As previously mentioned, James came up with the idea of the ‘Elephant RoomConference.’ We then began to see James form a close bond(or should I say they formed a “tribe,” as they referred to it in these ‘Elephant Room’ conferences)with pastors that many of us have valid concerns about: Mark Driscoll, Steven Furtick, Perry Noble…and then in ER2 there was T D Jakes –a known Modalist. An idea that could have been amazing if James would have firmly, but lovingly held each pastor accountable to God’s Word and challenged them in certain areas where they were compromising, sadly ‘ER2‘ ended in disaster because of how TDJakes was basically declared as having embraced the Biblical understanding of the Trinity, when it was obvious to many Biblical scholars who examined all that he had said that night that he was still using the language of a Modalist. (Please consider listening to the many videos I added on my ‘Warning You With Tears’ post that examine all that T D Jakes said at ‘ER2’ in light of Scripture and in light of how one who does not believe in the Doctrine of the Trinity describes God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit). And even though James did stand his ground concerning Perry Noble’s idea of playing ‘Highway To Hell’ and constantly and firmly said it “was a bad idea,” and said, “”I just don’t get it atall,” and “The message of ‘Highway To Hell’ is blatantly offensive,” if you listen to the link I posted above — ‘ShouldChurch Leaders Play ‘Highway To Hell’ To Reach Unbelievers,’ — after James continued to listen to Perry Noble justify his reasons for playing it, near the end you will sadly hear James suddenly begin to change his once firm stand on his strong opposition to it. Towards the end of the video after listening to Perry Noble constantly defend his decision to play ‘HTH’, he asks Matt Chandler if he would play ‘HTH’ in his church, and then James says the following:
“He’s really making me think. I gotta say that. I mean he’s really making me think… he has a strategy, it’s thought through…he believes it honors God, he doesn’t think he’s compromising in any way.” Like he is on it with a passion, and a reason, and defending it –toe to toe.” …”He’s thought it through very carefully”
After Matt Chandler expresses concern about the possibility that pastors may fly into license; all things are permissible,’ James says:
“To me personally I would never allow something that so defames the glory of God and the reputation of Jesus. I would not allow it in my service. Unclean! I would not allow it.”
Concerning Perry Noble’s decision to play ‘Highway To Hell,’Mark Driscoll asked James:
“…do you think it was a sin against God?”
James replied:
“…I don’t doubt his motives and I definitely don’t think it was sin for him to do it…”
“Here’s my thought on the subject for what it’s worth: I’m already being instructed by this. Frankly I’m not surprised, but I’m blessed by the sincerity, and the intentionality with which you’re doing the things that you’re doing. Like I’m instructed by that. I’m going have to think about that –some more. My perspective is this: If it doesn’t adorn the gospel…it’s the beauty of Christ that’s at stake in everything we do. The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (Then quotes 2 Corinthians 3:18 )
“If it doesn’t adorn the beauty of God’s great Son, if it doesn’t display Him and show Him off…it’s the manifest presence of God in the service which is the powerful life changing element. I believe that if it doesn’t adorn the gospel it doesn’t advance the gospel. We may see fruit…some fruit from it…we may draw people with it, we may draw decisions with it…and I’ll say it as simply as I know how in summary: I do think that if it doesn’t adorn the gospel, it doesn’t advance the gospel.”
Perry Noblesays, in part:
“…I think it was used to adore, and be used to advance the gospel because the song was redeemed.”
James replied:
“I’m gonna just say that I’m really blessed by you right now because your…your thinking is a lot different that I thought it was gonna to be. I think you’re wrong about it. But you really have thought it through…as you said, ‘we prayed on it’…” “I’m just gonna stand on that point… if it doesn’t make Jesus more beautiful to people it’s not advancing our mission.” ” If it’s not elevating God and God’s glory and God’s great Son then it’s not advancing the mission. I really struggle with this idea that to be-in order to connect people with Christ you have to be like them. That ‘I gotta become like them to reach them’ is something that uh…I’m just not there yet.”
Perry:
“That’s what Jesus did.”
James:
“Yeah?” (Silence for 3 seconds, and then James says: “That would take another session.”
James:
“All right. Fantastic. Let’s wrap it up.”
And then that particular ‘conversation’ came to an end.
These conferences seemed more like ‘Hegelian Dialectic‘ sessions where the goal is to wear down those with opposing views so they conform to the beliefs of the majority. Did you notice how James would have his focus on Scripture, and yet notice how many times “I think” was said instead of them keeping their focus on the truth of God’s Word and the Holiness of God and the reverence that we should have in our times of worship. A shift began to take place where the belief of playing something so horrendous in a church as ‘Highway To Hell‘ was slowly becoming a possibility…at the very end it seemed that James might possibly consider trying to ‘be like them to reach them‘ with maybe a little more time and a little more thought.
We cannot be led by our feelings or our own ideas and justify something by simply saying, “We prayed about it.” Our standard to judge what’s right and wrong must always be God’s Word, and we must never lose sight of the fact that God is pure and completely Holy and our worship we give to Him must be nothing less than that; pure and completely holy!
“…worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:28,29)
If you are not aware of what the ‘Hegelian Dialectic Process‘ is, I highly encourage you to watch the following video:
Just think of the many who attended ER2in January 2012 or watched by live stream and walked away that night believing that TD Jakes indeed is a “brother-in-Christ.” Think of those who bought the DVD’s, and those who are not firmly grounded in the truth of God’s Word who may even begin to listen to his sermons and be caught up in his ‘Word of Faith‘ false teachings, which is another serious error in T D Jakes‘ teachings that James and the other pastors chose not to address and confront him on that night. Those of us who are ‘born of the Spirit,’ must be Bereans and examine the Scriptures daily to see if what is being said (and done by those who claim to speak for God) is true,’ (Acts 17:11) so that we will not be deceived. We are not to trust in men but in God alone. Pastors and teachers are to follow Christ and His command to ‘preach the Word,’ and to ‘go and make disciples,’ and not be led astray by following the dictates of their deceitful hearts.
Not only have some people lost sight of the Holiness of God, but also many have lost their fear of God. Profanity in the pulpit is a common occurrence in many churches today, when God’s Word clearly says otherwise, concerning the speech and conversations of those who profess to be followers of Christ and leaders in the church, as you can see from some of the Scriptures I posted further down.
When friendships with certain people begin to eclipse our ability to discern, and if our acceptance by others slowly becomes more important that our desire to honor and please God, you can be sure that it will be the beginning of a continuous downward spiral. And that is what I believe we are all witnessing concerning James and many pastors and teachers today –compromise for the sake of ‘unity’ and acceptance which not only causes one to harden their heart against the warnings and truth presented in God’s Word, but also hinders them from discerning truth from error.
Here’s another example: In January, James went away for some rest. And by his tweet below you can see that on one of those days he attended Perry Noble’s Newspring Church. And concerning Perry Noble’s new series on ‘CHANGE,’ he said the following:
I haven’t yet listened to the actual sermon that James listened to on that particular Sunday, but it was entitled:‘ThreeThings That Must Happen For Change To Happen.’ If you’d like, you can go to Newspring Church’s website and listen to it in light of Scripture (Acts 17:11) and come to your own conclusion.
If you’d like to listen to a Biblical analysis of one of Perry Noble’s sermons in his series on ‘Change,‘ you can listen to Chris Rosebrough of‘Fighting For The Faith,’at the link below. That will give you a glimpse into how Perry Noble misapplies Scripture, and will also leave you wondering why James would publicly tell his followers on Twitter that one of Perry Noble’s sermons is “great.” Maybe that particular one was, but by all the other ones I have heard him ‘preach,’ I am sorry to say that it is highly unlikely that it was.
Here’s an example of how Perry Nobleclearly takes Scriptures out of context. In this video Perry takes Scriptures that can only apply to Jesus and applies them to Steven Furtick! It is not a stretch at all that ChrisRosebrough entitled the following video,‘THE BLASPHEMOUS GOSPEL OF STEVEN FURTICK BY PERRYNOBLE’
Another concern we should have with James and his involvement with — and promotion of — Perry Noble, is the fact that Perry Noble promotes the book, ‘SACRED MARRIAGE‘ by Gary Thomas. In the following video Perry says:
“It is the best book on marriage written,” and “…very excellent information that everybody needs to hear”
And in case you’re wondering why Perry Noble promoting that book by Gary Thomas is concerning to many, please consider reading the following articles at Lighthouse Trails at the link below this ‘quick capture‘ and you will understand why you should be concerned about Perry Noble or any pastor promoting a book by Gary Thomas. Here’s an excerpt from one of those articles which clearly reveals why many are concerned about the unbiblical and even mystical teachings that Gary Thomas presents in his books:
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:17)
“He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind; for He is not a human being, that He should change His mind.” (1 Samuel 15:29)
“I the LORD do not change.” (Malachi 3:6a)
“People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” (Hebrews 6:16-19a)
**2-9-14 ** PLEASE READ THESE SCRIPTURES WITH THIS QUESTION IN MIND: DO THE QUALITIES IN SOME OF THESE SCRIPTURES DESCRIBE MY PASTOR?
“To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s suffering who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them–not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.” (1 Peter 5:1-3)
“Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task. Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own family well and see that his own family obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.” (1 Timothy 3:1-7)
“An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless–not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” (Titus 1:6-9)
“The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. For Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.” Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses. But those elders who are sinning you are to reprove before everyone, so that the others may take warning. I charge you in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism.” (1 Timothy 5:17-21)
“So Christ Himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip His people for works of service, so the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fulness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the head, that is, Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-15)
“I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people.” (Romans 16:17,18)
“Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” (Acts 20:26-31)
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the Word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:1-4)
“For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder.” (2 Corinthians 12:20)
“You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good. For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that man will have to give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:34-37)
“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children. And live a life of love,just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or course joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person — such a man is an idolater — has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful to even mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said, “Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Be very careful, then, how you live — not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:1-16)
“But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.” (Colossians 3:8)
“Let your conversations be always full of grace, …so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:6)
“Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by Him deeds are weighed.” (1 Samuel 2:3)
“To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.” (Proverbs 8:13)
“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” (Proverbs 11:2)
“He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.” (Proverbs 13:3)
“Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advise.” (Proverbs 13:10)
“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18)
“A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor.” (Proverbs 29:23)
“The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled and the pride of men brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.” (Isaiah 2:11)
“The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ (Obadiah 1:3)
“The Word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: “This is what the Sovereign LORD says, “Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them. Therefore, you shepherds, hear the Word of the LORD: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because My shepherds did not search for My flock but cared for themselves rather than My flock, therefore, you shepherds, hear the Word of the LORD: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for My flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue My flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them. For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I Myself will search for My sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after My sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.” (Ezekiel 34:1-12)
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” (Galatians 6:7,8)
**UPDATE 2-9-14** If you have read all the Scriptures above, then please click HERE, and if your pastor is JAMES MACDONALD OF HARVEST BIBLE CHAPEL ROLLING MEADOWS, please take the next hour or so to listen to his message from the ‘ACT LIKE MEN’ CONFERENCE in its entirety.
If you have been one of those who have ignored the serious concerns that many of us have tried to warn you about concerning James MacDonald’s character, and how much he has changed, after listening to his message can you now honestly say that his character and speech honors Christ and matches the Biblical description of an elder?If you are a man and you brought your son or a man you were sharing Christ’s love and the gospel with to this conference, would you be proud of the speech of your pastor, or cringe and feel ashamed? Or more importantly, what do you think Jesus thought of his message? Did James truly glorify God with his whole message, or did he compromise in order to please men?
Since James has become very good friends with Mark Driscoll — who is sadly referred to by many as “the cussing pastor,”— maybe he has been wrongly influenced by his behavior. However, there is no excuse for James speaking as he did at the ‘Act Like Men‘ conference. He knows full well how our speech and our behavior as a follower of Christ is to reflect Christ and not reflect the behavior of the world.
James’ brother is in extremely critical condition after suffering a massive stroke, and I am deeply sorry to hear that and am praying for him, but this issue needs to be dealt with and not ignored!
SECOND ITEM OF CONCERN:
A long time former member of Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows informed me that HBCRMsent out a very lengthy letter to those who have recently left Harvest. (I have not received one yet. Maybe they are sending letters only to those who have not already let them know why they have left). Below is a ‘quick capture‘ of a condensed summary giving just the main highlights in the letter that this person received from HBCRM and was nice enough to share with me by email:
So, former Harvesters, what would it take for you to return? Would you even consider returning? Would you return if James sincerely repented for the reasons that caused you to leave? Are you planning on responding to this letter? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Someone who just read the recent HBCRM ‘Elder’s Update‘ informed me of the fact that James has agreed to take a pay cut and made many other commendable ‘lifestyle adjustments.’ But is this enough? True change takes place in the heart when godly sorrow grips a person and they realize the wrong they have done and ask forgiveness from those they have offended and sinned against. Are we seeing these changes take place in the heart and words of James? Only God knows his heart, so we must not judge his intentions, but the evidence of true repentance must be more than superficial changes.
The elder update also speaks of “accountability between senior staff and Elder board,“and “the priority of seeking reconciliation in relationships with former church leaders.” All good steps in the right direction, for sure!
But what about the ”ELDER VIDEO” in which the character of men were destroyed in front of all who attended Harvest that day? What kind of impression did ‘first time visitors’ have if they attended that particular day? Below is a ‘quick capture’ of a review of HBCRM on ‘yelp,’ given by a person who attended HBCRM only a few times, and one of those times he attended was the day the ‘Elder Update‘ video was played for the entire congregation. I accidentally came across this a couple of weeks ago:
The ‘elders video,’ incident was bad enough, but what do you think a first time visitor thought if they came to HBCRM on Easter Sunday 2013 when James chose to preach on –money??!! I never would have thought that James would have passed up an opportunity to preach the gospel on such a perfect day as the day we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! How utterly sad and even possibly blasphemous that he would choose to do such a thing! Truly James has changed!
Personally, I would not return even if he had a sincere change of heart and repented and asked forgiveness from all the people he has hurt, although I am still continuing to pray that one day that will indeed happen.
Even though I have forgiven James and long to be with some of my friends who are still there, I have found a church where the pastor has served faithfully for many years, and who preaches verse by verse without taking any verses out of context, or distorting it in order to add his own agenda. My new pastor preaches every Sunday and does not get involved with pastors who distort the Word of God. My new pastor knows me by name, and has talked with me almost every Sunday over the two years that I have now been there since leaving HBCRM. I have even had lunch with my pastor and his wife and daughter, and he kindly and generously paid for my lunch. Sadly, James would not even know me by name, even though I was a member for over 14 years and sat in the front of church within the first three or four rows, Sunday after Sunday. A smaller, more intimate church where they sing hymns with lyrics that praise God, giving Him all the glory He is SO deserving of, and where people know one another and encourage one another has been the kind of church I have now found, and I am very happy and at peace there. No more waiting for James to change and going home every Sunday feeling discouraged and righteously angry because of how he used certain Scriptures to insult those of us who have discernment and instead he labeled us as being “divisive.”
Please keep James and his brother in your prayers as I will be doing. It is not my intent to “bash” James— it saddens me to post this, especially knowing his brother is now in such serious condition, but I found this audio from the ‘Act Like Men‘ Conference before I heard about his brother, and had been planning on updating this post with more information since I wrote it on Jan. 23, 2014. My sole intention of adding the audio clip is that I am hoping and praying that God will use it to help those of you who are not only continuing to cling to the idea of “how much James has accomplished in the past,” but also to help those of you who are refusing to listen to the concerns that many have expressed on ‘The Elephant’s Debt,’ (especially on their latest and possibly last post —‘TO EVERY SEASON’). It is my prayer that many of you will finally realize — after first reading the Scriptures I posted and then listening to his message — that indeed the character of James does not line up with the godly character traits that an elder must have according to God’s Word, and that all of you will begin to think and pray about what God would have you to do.
Scott and Ryan have shed light on many serious concerns regarding the conduct and character of James MacDonald. Many godly men have come forward to give their statements concerning why they have left, and they have shared their personal stories of their experiences with James. It’s time that all of us get our focus on Jesus, and not on any man and his ministry. It’s time to examine the evidence and seek God in prayer for answers and wisdom as to what He would have you all to do.
Men, no matter who your pastor is, you are ordained by God to be the spiritual leader for your family. You will have to stand before God one day and give an account for how you have led your wife and your children spiritually, so please make sure you are testing all the messages that your pastor is preaching against the Word of God, (Acts 17:11) and if necessary, find a new church home where the Word of God is accurately preached and the pastor’s character reflects the character of Christ Himself.
HBCRM members and attendees, spend time praying for God to change James’ heart, but seek God as to how much longer He would have you wait to see true repentance take place. Or maybe in your time of prayer He will lead you to begin a search to find a new church where the pastor is accountable to godly men who have been appointed as elders by the votes of members of the church, and where the pastor will be faithful to preach God’s Word and will not give in to compromise.
**UPDATED 3-5-14** 7:05 p.m.** IN CLOSING
There was a time when most men of God were faithful to the call of God to go and preach the gospel and make disciples and correct and rebuke those who were in error. But sadly today some pastors simply view the church as an ‘organization’ and some even go as far as saying, “I think that Jesus is theproduct”(that they attempt to sell) as T D Jakes stated in the following interview:
Many mega-pastors use worldly marketing strategies and some use feel-good messages that appeal to the desires of their ‘consumers’ to grow their church instead of preaching a gospel of sin and repentance and the glorious good news of the gospel of God’s mercy and grace. Many may leave feeling good and many will probably even come back, but without hearing the truth that we are all sinners on the road to a real eternal lake of fire, their ‘best life’ will be only the good they experience here ‘now’ on this earth, and those who have ‘preached’ a ‘gospel’ that has no power to save will have to stand before God one day and answer for what they have done and failed to do. The blood of their people will be upon their hands.
And some pastors go to the other extreme and focus more on the law and make their people feel condemned because of their sins, and they do not share the ‘good news’ of the gospel that if they repent and receive what Jesus did when He not only took upon Himself the detestable sins that we have committed, but also Jesus took upon Himself the full wrath of God that was intended for us because of our sins, and that we can be completely forgiven and clothed in the righteousness of Christ, and our sins will then be as far as the east is from the west, and cast into the depths of the sea.
Presently we are seeing more and more pastors and teachers focusing on ‘unity’ and focusing less and less on Biblical truth.Few today are men of God who have remained faithful to preach and to teach God’s Word to their congregations –all because they have not allowed the pressure to conform to the new standards to measure success as a church by, which seems to be,“It’s all about the numbers,”as mega-pastor Steven Furtick has been known to say. More and more these types of pastors continue to lose sight of their mission of preaching the gospel and equipping the saints, and instead seek to build more and more churches which have become their empires destined to crumble if these pastors do not repent and return to Jesus, their first love.
The true gospel is about preaching sin and repentance to people to make them see their need for a Savior, and realizing that God alone has the power to convict someone of sin and to lead someone to repentance. To use emotionally manipulating tactics — such as playing music when the pastor is preaching or about to give an altar call, or planting people in the service to come forward so as to motivate others to follow and come forward in an altar call — (as many of us have discovered is being done by seeing the latest news coming out concerning Steven Furtick, Elevation Church, and so-called ‘spontaneous baptisms‘), or to present sermons and music in a worship service that appeals to the sinful nature of men, implies that the good news of the gospel no longer has the power nor is it sufficient any longer to save someone. And nothing could be further from the truth!
Many pastors and teachers — and all of us who are followers of Christ, for that matter — may start out with pure motives and a heart that desires to follow God without compromise, however, what really matters is how we finish on this road called ‘life.’ This thought came to mind towards the end February of this year as I was doing my daily Bible reading. As I often do at the start of a new year, I began reading through the Old Testament. On this one particular day as I was reading through 2 Chronicles, I began to reflect upon the many kings of Israel who started out serving God, but in the end they began to compromise and did not remain faithful to God. Here are just a few of them:
“Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD. He removed the foreign altars and the high places, smashed the sacred stones, and cut down the Asherah poles. He commanded Judah to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, and to obey His laws and commands. He removed the high places and incense altars in every town in Judah, and the kingdom was at peace under him. Zerah the Cushite marched out against them with a vast army and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah. Then Asa called to the LORD his God and said, “LORD, there is no one like You to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on You, and in Your name we have come against this vast army. O LORD, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You.” The LORD struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled, and Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar. “The Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded. He went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.” When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage. He removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the towns he had captured in the hills of Ephraim. He repaired the altar of the LORD that was in front of the portico of the LORD’s temple. They entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul. All who would not seek the LORD, the God of Israel, were to be put to death, whether small or great, man or woman. They took an oath to the LORD with loud acclamation, with shouting, and with trumpets and horns. All Judah rejoiced about the oath because they had sworn it wholeheartedly. They sought God eagerly, and He was found by them. So the LORD gave them rest on every side. King Asa also deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made a repulsive Asherah pole. Asa cut the pole down, broke it up and burned it in the Kidron Valley. Although he did not remove the high places from Israel, Asa’s heart was fully committed to the LORD all his life. “At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa King of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. Were not the Cushites and the Libyans a mighty army with great number of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, He delivered them into your hands. For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war. Asa was angry with the seer because of this; he was so enraged that he put him in prison. At the same time Asa brutally oppressed some of the people. The events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was afflicted with a disease in his feet. Though his disease was severe, even in his illness he did not seek help from the LORD, but only from the physicians. Then in the forty-first year of his reign Asa died and rested with his fathers.” (2 Chronicles 14:2-5,9-13a,15:1,2,8,9,12-17,16:7-13)
“Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin; she was from Jerusalem. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly. When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them. The anger of the LORD burned against Amaziah, and He sent a prophet to him, who said, “Why do you consult this people’s gods, which could not save their own people from your hand?” While he was still speaking, the king said to him, “Have we appointed you as an adviser to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?” So the prophet stopped but said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.” From the time that Amaziah turned away from following the LORD, they conspired against him in Jerusalem and he fled to Lachish, but they sent men after him to Lachish and killed him there. He was brought back by horse and was buried with his fathers in the city of Judah.” (2 Chronicles 25:1,2,14-16,27,28)
“Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jecoliah; she was from Jerusalem. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father Amaziah had done. He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God. As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success. God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites. The Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful. But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. Azariah the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the LORD followed him in. They confronted him and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD. That is for the priests, the descendants of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the LORD God.” Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the LORD’s temple, leprosy broke out on his forehead. When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the LORD had afflicted him. King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died.” (2 Chronicles 27:3-5,7,8,16-21)
After reading all the many accounts of the kings of Israel, suddenly I thought of many popular pastors and teachers who no longer serve God wholeheartedly and who began to change and who have given in to compromise. These pastors no longer contend for the faith and no longer protect their sheep from false teachers as they once did. Instead they invite them in to preach from their very own pulpits! On theday they stand before a Holy Godwho alone knows their hearts and their motives, it won’t matter how many churches they planted, or how many people came forward in an altar call, or how many came forward to be baptized. What will matter is did they really place their trust in Christ. And, if so, were they faithful to preach the gospel without compromise? Were they faithful to earnestly contend for the faith? Were they faithful to preach His Word in season and out of season and teach their people how to rightly divide His Word? Did they bring correction when it was needed? Did they expose error and protect their people lovingly and fervently as a shepherd protects his sheep from wolves whose main intent is to kill and destroy them?
Many pastors and teachers — and many ordinary followers of Christ, as well — need to have a fresh realization of the Holiness of God. Because, sadly, many obviously have lost their fear of God, or they would not be doing some of the many things that they are doing these days and claiming that ‘God told them to do it.’ We all need to have our focus on Jesus Christ alone, and seek Him in His Word alone.
We also need to pray for our pastors and teachers, and pray for one another that God would fill our hearts with repentance and that we would seek Him wholeheartedly so that we will not change along with the culture of this world that is so obviously in rebellion against a Holy God.
As always, God has a remnant of believers who will not give in to compromise and who will continue to earnestly contend for the faith. Will you be one of them?
WHY I WROTE THE FOLLOWING POEM
I began writing this poem a few months ago out of concern because of what I see happening in mega-churches in general. However, after listening to a video of a sermon from the weekend of January 4th and 5th 2014 preached by James MacDonald — my former pastor for over 14 1/2 years — and hearing how he enticed the people in his congregation by saying,“The biggest miracle that’s ever happened in the history of Harvest Bible Chapelis happening right now,” and how he went on to say that ‘he couldn’t tell everyoneabout it yet, but would in a few months,’ and upon learning from an ‘inside source‘ at the very end of December that “the [giving] “envelopes” were on every chair as people entered the auditorium,” and that “…the give stage was set from the beginning,”I was then strongly motivated to finish this poem so that I could warn people of not only the manipulative tactics that some pastors use to lure them in and to keep them there, but also I again realized the need to remind people of the importance of looking to Jesus Christ alone and studying God’s Word so that people would not be deceived by men and lured and captivated by their ‘vision casting’ plans that are presented to them by these pastors. Therefore, the following poem has some verses that are much longer than the verses in most of my other poems because whenever I attempt to express my concerns about serious matters, I find it very difficult to condense my thoughts into short verses. I apologize for how it appears, but I hope the message comes across without the lengthy verses being a distraction to you.
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
**UPDATED AND COMPLETED WEDNESDAY, 3-5-14** 7:17 P.M.
**UPDATED WEDNESDAY 3-5-14 10:00 A.M.** ADDED ARTICLE ON THE CHURCH GROWTH MOVEMENT BY PAUL PROCTOR. SEE UNDER ‘FURTHER READING.’ DATED IN RED.
**UPDATED TUESDAY 3-4-14 6:02 P.M.** ADDED INFORMATION CONCERNING STEVEN FURTICK. SEE UNDER ‘FINAL POINT WHY YOU SHOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT STEVEN FURTICK,’ DATED IN RED. WILL ADD CLOSING THOUGHTS WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS WHICH WILL FINALLY COMPLETE THIS POST.
**UPDATED SATURDAY 3-1-14 3:30 P.M.** ADDED SOME CLOSING THOUGHTS. SEE UNDER ‘IN CLOSING’ AND ‘WHY I WROTE THIS POEM,’ DATED IN RED. ALMOSTFINISHED…JUST A LITTLE MORE TO GO. LORD WILLING, SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY EARLY NEXT WEEK.
**UPDATED FRIDAY 2-28-14 10:10 P.M.** ADDED SOME ‘CONVERSATION’ BETWEEN JAMES MACDONALD, PERRY NOBLE, AND MARK DRISCOLL FROM ‘ELEPHANT ROOM 1’ CONCERNING PERRY N. PLAYING ‘HIGHWAY TO HELL.’ ( DATED IN RED – SEE UNDER ‘INFORMATION CONCERNING JAMES MACDONALD’)
**UPDATED THURSDAY 2-27-14 9:17 p.m.** ADDED MORE INFORMATION CONCERNING JAMES AND PERRY NOBLE (DATED IN RED) JUST NEED TO ADD MY CLOSING COMMENTS, BUT MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FINISH TOMORROW. HAVE AN IMPORTANT FAMILY MATTER TO ATTEND TO THAT CAME UP. LORD WILLING, I WILL COMPLETE THIS POST WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS. THANK YOU FOR STOPPING BY, AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
**UPDATED WEDNESDAY 2-26-14 9:00 p.m.** ADDED ARTICLE ‘THECULT OF THE VISIONEER’ BY TODD PRUITT UNDER ‘FURTHER READING,’ SOME INFORMATION CONCERNING JAMES MACDONALD, AND AN ARTICLE CONCERNING JAMES BY CAMERON BUETTEL. (DATE IN RED). LORD WILLING, I AM HOPING TO COMPLETE THIS POST BY THE END OF THIS WEEK. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
**UPDATED FRIDAY 2-21-14 12:00 P.M**. ADDED ‘STAND UP FOR THE TRUTH’ PODCAST CONCERNING STEVEN FURTICK -“WHEN DOES A CHURCH CROSS INTO A CULT” AND VIDEO OF STEVEN F. ENCOURAGING ‘ELEVATION CHILDREN’ TO LEARN ‘THE CODE.’
**UPDATED THURSDAY 2-20-14 9:13 P.M.** ADDED MANY LINKS TO INFORMATION ON PERRY NOBLE, PERRY NOBLE VIDEO, ARTICLE BY DR. RANDY WHITE CONCERNING THE ‘CHURCH GROWTH MOVEMENT. (DATED IN RED).
**UPDATED WEDNESDAY, 2-19-2014** ADDED INFORMATION ON STEVEN FURTICK AND ELEVATION CHURCH, AND MORE ON FRANCIS CHAN. ALSO ADDED LINK (COLORED IN RED) TO THE ‘ELDER VIDEO.’ ALL INFORMATION DATED ANDCOLORED IN RED. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
**UPDATED MONDAY, 2-17-14 6:20p.m.** ADDED MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GREG LAURIE AND INFORMATION ON FRANCIS CHAN. SEE INFORMATION DATED 2-17-14
** UPDATE 2-15-14 9:26 P.M.** I WAS HOPING TO FINISH THIS POST BY TODAY, BUT THERE WAS SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT I NEEDED TO TAKE CARE OF FIRST. LORD WILLING, I HOPE TO FINALLY COMPLETE THIS POST BY WEDNESDAY. ONCE AGAIN, I AM VERY SORRY, AND APPRECIATE YOUR PATIENCE.
**UPDATED 2-12-14**SEE UNDER THE FIRST SET OF SCRIPTURES. DATE IN RED. LORD WILLING, HOPE TO HAVE THIS POST COMPLETED BY THE END OF THIS WEEK
**UPDATED 2-9-14 9:01 p.m.** ADDED LINK TO JAMES MACDONALD’S MESSAGE FROM HIS ‘ACT LIKE MEN’ CONFERENCE WITH SOME THOUGHTS FOR YOU TO PRAYERFULLY PONDER, AS WELL AS A HBCRM REVIEW I CAME ACROSS ON ‘YELP,’ AND INFORMATION ON A LETTER RECENTLY SENT TO MANY WHO HAVE LEFT HBCRM. (ALL UPDATES DATED IN RED
UPDATE 2-6-14 3:32P.M. ADDED MORE SCRIPTURES** WILL TRY TO COMPLETE POST WHEN TIME ALLOWS…NEED TO CATCH UP ON SOME THINGS FIRST. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
UPDATE 1-31-14 11:38A.M.** FOR THE PAST WEEK I HAVE BEEN GATHERING INFORMATION TO SUPPORT SOME OF THE COMMENTS I WILL BE ADDING TO FINALLY FINISH THIS POST. LORD WILLING, I HOPE TO HAVE EVERYTHING I AM SEARCHING FOR — AND THIS POST COMPLETED — BY EARLY NEXT WEEK –MAYBE SOONER. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE.
“The Word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel ; prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them. ” ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the Word of the LORD: As surely as I live, declared the Sovereign LORD, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because My shepherds did not search for My flock but cared for themselves rather than for My flock, therefore, you shepherds, hear theWord of the LORD: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for My flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue My flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them. ” ‘For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I Myself will search for My sheep and will look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after My sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.” (Ezekiel 34:1-12)
Even though the Scripture I posted above speaks of the rulers in Israel and their failure to care for their people, and how they instead chose to seek after the best of things in order to satisfy their own needs, this passage of Scripture still came to mind when I was reading some of the comments on THE ELEPHANT’S DEBT one day last month. These comments were made by many who still attend Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows (my former church of almost 15 years), as well as by those who have left there. So many of them were heart breaking, to say the least!
The first words that came to my mind as I read one of the comments in particular, were, “Woe to the shepherds” because of the obvious hurt and devastation that James and his behavior has caused this person, and countless others. Could it be that James MacDonald — among many other prominent pastors — has forgotten the responsibility he has been given by God to not only love and care for his sheep, but also to be there to feed them His Word on a consistent basis, as well as how he is to set a good example for his congregation? Maybe the fact that one day he will have to give an account to God for how he cared for them has somehow escaped his mind, as well. Or maybe the pleasures and riches of this world have captivated his heart and caused him to wander, as 1 Timothy 6:6-10 clearly warns us can happen. (Posted below).
I wondered about the recent ‘Act Like Men‘ Conference. Was the focus on Christ and magnifying His name, and were the teachings based on sound Biblical theology? Were men challenged to be strong in the faith and to ‘actlike men‘ as God’s Word challenges and commands men to do? The video below seems to indicate that was the main intention of this conference:
However, I read one response by someone who writes on ‘HUMBLE STUMBLE‘ and who attended the ‘ACT LIKEMEN CONFERENCE.’ And although he reports on the fact that he was beginning to “appreciate some solid teaching,” he follows that by giving a very sad and detailed account of the heartbreaking things that happened next that shows the conference — at this particular location — to be anything but a conference that teaches men how to ‘act like men.’ At least not godly and maturemen. You can read his account, as well as the godly advice he gives, here: MY RESPONSE TO ACT LIKE MEN
And add to that the immature decision of James MacDonald and MarkDriscoll to show up at John MacArthur’s ‘STRANGEFIRE CONFERENCE’on the way to James MacDonald’s ‘ACT LIKE MEN’ CONFERENCE, (as seen in the ‘quick capture’ below) and you can see that somewhere along the line, sadly, James seems to have lost the ability he once had to be a true reflection of Jesus Christ and to honor God with his life. You can read more about what happened on that day, below, under ‘FURTHER READING.’
The sadness that I feel concerning James MacDonald’s (among other pastor’s) behavior over the past five years or so, and the desire to see him once again be the man he once was — a man who powerfully preached God’s Word and never gave into the pressure to conform and use the tactics that so many modern day preachers use today to ‘grow the church’ — as well as the deep concern I have for all of you who still attend Harvest Bible Chapel Rolling Meadows, in spite of the fact that many of you have been harshly treated or ignored by James and those in leadership, and yet still cling to hope that James will change, –these are the things that prompted me to write the following poem. I am still praying that James, and those in leadership at Harvest, will one day come to realize the downward spiral that they are going in, and that each of them will truly repent and be restored so that God might once again be glorified at Harvest in every way.
Even though I have posted the following video on a few of my other posts, I am choosing to do it once again, because it clearly demonstrates the shift taking place in many churches today to water down the gospel and to make the church into an organization by using worldly methods and the philosophies of men to grow the church rather than depending on the Spirit of God:
“And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47b)
“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (1 Corinthians 3:6,7)
If you have never watched this video before, I encourage you to do so in order that you may realize what is happening in many churches today. The information will clearly help you understand the dangerous trends taking place today that are causing many to move away from solid Biblical doctrine, leaving many people in a state of confusion and sadly, causing many to leave churches permanently.
Below is the updated and longer version of the video above:
Thank you very much for stopping by and taking time out of your busy day to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary Dalke/Living4HisGlory
RELATED SCRIPTURES FOR YOU TO REFLECT ON
“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person–such a man is an idolater–has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them.” (Ephesians 5:1-7)
“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (1 Timothy 6:6-10)
“He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young.” (Isaiah 40:11)
“When He saw the crowds He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36)
“For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:17)
WOE TO THE SHEPHERDS
Woe to the shepherds who lead their sheep astray
They seek to satisfy themselves, they’ve veered off the narrow way
Their sheep are bruised and broken, from the lack of their shepherd’s care
And God will hold them to account, of this truth they seem to be unaware
Often harsh and immature in word and in deed, and yet they speak of ‘love’ and
how to ‘act like men’
Will they ever rend their hearts in grief, and return to Him again
Will they repent of their ways and stand for the truth, content to just preach
His Word
Will their hearts turn back to their First Love once again, will they preach the
gospel of grace to those who have not heard
Or will they continue to run here and there, pursuing their own passions
and dreams
Desiring instead to be pleasers of men, will they continue on with their fleshly
schemes
God’s Word is filled with warnings to shepherds , who reject His firm
command
He Himself will somehow remove them, and He will do so by His very
own hand
His sheep He will not leave as prey to shepherds, who seek to satisfy their lusts
Their behavior must grieve the very heart of God, and fill Him with disgust
God Himself will rescue His sheep, He will gather them near to His heart
He will rescue the lost and bind up their wounds, and from Him they will
never depart
This warning goes out to the shepherds, to fear God and to repent of your ways
For the way you now live brings shame to His name, a life that surely betrays
How many today are like Judas, they appear to follow Christ by all that they do
Tares among wheat who walk the broad path, those who walk the narrow way
we are told will be few
Woe, woe to the shepherds, wake up before it’s too late
Repent and return, and give heed to His Words, if you don’t you will seal your
Scriptures taken from The Holy Bible New International Version® 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
Desiring for God to use all that I have been through in life, I decided to start my first blog, living4hisglory.wordpress.com, in order to write poems about some of those experiences to bring glory to God, as well as to share them with others with the hope of encouraging those of you who have been broken and shattered by life's circumstances and hurt by those who were supposed to have loved you rather than abuse you in some way.
Also, because of some pastors and teachers today who seem to be abandoning Biblical Christianity and instead seem to be either seeking to build their own empires and promoting their own agendas, and at times even leading the people in their churches into unbiblical, 'mystical practices' without some people even realizing it, I saw the importance and necessity to begin writing poems and posts in order to inform Christians, as well as to make Christians realize the extreme importance of testing what people say (who claim to speak for God) against the truth of God's Word, (Acts 17:11) so that they will not be deceived. It has never been -- nor shall it ever be -- my intention to bash any particular pastor or teacher; my sole purpose in bringing attention to false teachings is to make Christians realize that we are to be followers of Jesus Christ, and not to be followers of any man (or woman) and his (or her) ministry. I hope that you will be blessed -- as well as challenged -- by the things that I write.
NOTE: COMMENTS ON ALL POSTS CLOSE ONE MONTH AFTER THEY ARE PUBLISHED.
Thank you for stopping by and taking time to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary - Living4HisGlory
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary K. Dalke and Living4HisGlory Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
NOTE: Any adds that may be displayed on my blog have not been chosen or approved by me; I can't even see any adds that WordPress chooses to post here.
Desiring for God to use all that I have been through in life, I decided to start my first blog, living4hisglory.wordpress.com, in order to write poems about some of those experiences to bring glory to God, as well as to share them with others with the hope of encouraging those of you who have been broken and shattered by life's circumstances and hurt by those who were supposed to have loved you rather than abuse you in some way.
Also, because of some pastors and teachers today who seem to be abandoning Biblical Christianity and instead seem to be either seeking to build their own empires and promoting their own agendas, and at times even leading the people in their churches into unbiblical, 'mystical practices' without some people even realizing it, I saw the importance and necessity to begin writing poems and posts in order to inform Christians, as well as to make Christians realize the extreme importance of testing what people say (who claim to speak for God) against the truth of God's Word, (Acts 17:11) so that they will not be deceived. It has never been -- nor shall it ever be -- my intention to bash any particular pastor or teacher; my sole purpose in bringing attention to false teachings is to make Christians realize that we are to be followers of Jesus Christ, and not to be followers of any man (or woman) and his (or her) ministry. I hope that you will be blessed -- as well as challenged -- by the things that I write.
NOTE: COMMENTS ON ALL POSTS CLOSE ONE MONTH AFTER THEY ARE PUBLISHED.
Thank you for stopping by and taking time to read some of my posts and poems.
God Bless You
~Mary - Living4HisGlory
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog's author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Mary K. Dalke and Living4HisGlory Blog with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
NOTE: Any adds that may be displayed on my blog have not been chosen or approved by me; I can't even see any adds that WordPress chooses to post here.
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Mary Dalke - Living4HisGlory
Living4HisGlory 