What do Ann Voskamp, Beth Moore and Sarah Young have in Common?

All three women have succumbed to the wiles of our enemy, the devil—leading masses away from sound doctrine and luring them to follow and practice panentheism, western mystiscm (e.g., lectio divina), extra-biblical revelations and viewing our holy relationship with God Almighty in a sexual manner.

Though I will speak clearly and firmly as I ought about all three women and the dangerous effects of their writing, speaking and teaching of God's holy Word, I will refrain from making any unnecessary personal attacks for as far as I know, all three women are my sisters in Christ.

The purpose of this article is not to demonize any of these sisters, but to carefully and lovingly warn and exhort them and other women to be more diligent in studying the Word, seeking wisdom and biblical teaching from their husbands (if they're Christians), submit to their husbands' headships whether or not they are Christians (1 Cor 7:13-16, 2 Peter 3:1-2) and imitate the faith of those who are singularly faithful to God and His Word—with no deviation or imaginations (Heb 13:7, 2 Tim 1:13-14, 2 Cor 10:4-6).   Continue at Sunny Shell

Jesus Calling

The Daily Beast has picked up on the publishing sensation that is Jesus Calling, a book which Todd Pruitt actually made me read for a forthcoming MoS podcast.  That is ten dollars and two hours of my life which are gone forever.  Am I a better person, though?  I somehow doubt it.

The book is an odd mix of mysticism, sentimentality, and highly flawed theology. Tim Keller's wife, Kathy, did a quite superb review of the book back in 2012 which, given Jesus Calling's continuing popularity, is well worth reading.

The whole phenomenon raises tangentially one of the cultural problems which seems to be emerging amidst the current popular evangelical market for books written by women.   I consider that market in itself to be a good thing. No man could have written Wuthering Heights, after all, and what's true for literature might well prove true for theology.  Indeed, various genres of theological writing seem on the whole to have been enriched by women's voices. It is interesting, however, that critiquing such literature seems to be becoming increasingly hard and subject to vehement reaction.  Witness the response to Tim Challies' comments on Ann Voskamp from a while back, or the author's own preemptive publicity on Jesus Feminist which ruled any future criticism as unfair and hateful.  And who in this age wants to be seen to be beating up on women?   Continue at Carl Trueman

The Strange Saga of ‘Jesus Calling,’ The Evangelical Bestseller You’ve Never Heard Of

A ten-year-old devotional written in the voice of God suddenly became a commercial juggernaut. Now, its publisher is trying to reconcile its New Age origins with evangelical orthodoxy.

 

The seventh-best selling book in America last year was a 10-year-old Christian devotional written by a woman who claims to have written down the words of God. Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence sold more copies in 2013 than the much more buzzed-about titles Lean In, the latest Stephen King book, and 50 Shades of Grey, according to Nielsen BookScan. Overall, more than 10 million copies in 26 languages have been sold since the book’s inauspicious debut in 2004.

Jesus Calling is a devotional, a mainstay genre in Christian publishing and in the daily lives of many Christians. Best-selling devotionals like Our Daily Bread, My Utmost for His Highest, and The Purpose-Driven Life consist of short sections that are meant to be read each day for encouragement and contemplation. Christians who value the idea of nurturing a personal relationship with Jesus—or of the idea of spending time each day in quiet contemplation—often use devotionals as a tool to accompany prayer and Bible-reading.  Continue at Ruth Graham

Christians Mystically Encountering God

For a couple of decades there has been a big push by numerous evangelical leaders to incorporate pagan practices into the visible Church. These unbiblical practices have their origins in Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, likewise the New Age movement. Roman Catholic Trappist Monks fully embraced Eastern religion's pagan practices. Through the writings of Thomas Merton, Basil Pennington, William Menninger and Thomas Keating these practices have been introduced into mainline Protestant churches as well as independent, nondenominational, charismatic and Pentecostal churches.

Those who wish to develop a more meaningful prayer life are urged by popular evangelicals such as Dallas Willard, Richard Foster, Rick Warren, John Ortberg, Ruth Haley Barton and Tony Campolo, just to name a few, to undertake a mystical prayer practice called The Silence.

How does one achieve The Silence? By practicing eastern-style mantra meditation aka Transcendental Meditation (TM).

What is the goal of TM? To gain "ultimate knowledge of God by a direct experience that bypasses the mind."

What must one do to attain this sort of mind-altering experience? Settle into a quiet comfortable place and with eyes closed repeat a word or phrase from Scripture over and over until the thinking process shuts down to the point of silence.....and, low and behold, the practitioner will allegedly have an encounter with God in the spirit realm.    Continue at Marsha West

The Boundaries of Evangelicalism

As I survey the contemporary church, one of my gravest concerns is the power and prevalence of mysticism. It appears in pulpits, books, and conversation. It is at the heart of Sarah Young’s bestselling Jesus Calling, it is in all the much-loved books by John Eldredge, it fills the pages of so many books on spiritual disciplines or spiritual formation, it is almost everywhere you look. Language that was once considered the distinguishing language of mysticism is now commonly used by Evangelicals.

Mysticism was once regarded as an alternative to Evangelical Christianity. You were Evangelical or you were a mystic, you heeded the doctrine of the Reformation and understood it to faithfully describe the doctrine laid out in Scripture or you heeded the doctrine of mysticism. Today, though, mysticism has wormed its way inside Evangelicalism so that the two have become integrated and almost inseparable. In an age of syncretism we fail to spot the contradiction and opposition.

Several years ago Donald Whitney attempted to define the boundaries of Evangelical spirituality--the boundaries of how we may rightly live out our Christian faith. His paper has been very helpful to me as I’ve thought this through.   Continue at Tim Challies

Cessationism, Revelation & Prophecy

From Voice, Nov/Dec 2012. Used by permission.

Despite the fact that the majority of conservative evangelical Christians since the Reformation have held to a cessationist position with regard to divine revelation, true cessationists are rapidly disappearing. In the articles and books I have written nothing has evoked as much criticism and anger as my position that God is speaking to His people today exclusively through Scripture. Due to the influence of a multitude of popular authors, theologians and conference speakers, cessationism is barely treading water, even within the most biblically solid churches and organizations.

As a matter of fact, among those who claim to be evangelicals there are five identifiable views prevalent today on the matter of revelation:

Pentecostal/Charismatic/Thirdwave

All miraculous gifts exist today, including the gift of prophecy. God speaks through prophets and to His people both audibly (through dreams, visions, words of knowledge), and inwardly (inaudibly in the mind or heart). Representatives of this position are Jack Deere, John Wimber, the Kansas City Prophets, the Assemblies of God and the Word of Faith movement. Charismatic author Tommy Tenney, in his popular book The God Chasers, writes,

God chasers…are not interested in camping out on some dusty truth known to everyone. They are after the fresh presence of the Almighty… A true God chaser is not happy with just past truth; he must have present truth. God chasers don’t want to just study the moldy pages of what God has done; they are anxious to see what God is doing.¹

Classical Mysticism/Spiritual Formation

 

Through the use of various disciplines and spiritual exercises, God will speak to us both audibly and inaudibly. Dallas Willard and Richard Foster are two such examples. Willard, a leader within the Spiritual Formation Movement, recently updated a previous book renaming it Hearing God, Developing a Conversational Relationship with God. The thrust of his book is that we can live “the kind of life where hearing God is not an uncommon occurrence, [for] hearing God is but one dimension of a richly interactive relationship and obtaining guidance is but one facet of hearing God.”² In other words, the maturing Christian should expect to hear the voice of God on a regular basis, independent from Scripture, and that voice will reveal God’s individual, specific will for his life. Such personal communication from the Lord, we are told, is absolutely essential because without it there can be no intimate walk with God.³ And it is those who are hearing from God today, in this way, who will redefine “Christian spirituality for our time.”⁴

 

Evangelical Mysticism

God is speaking to Christians regularly, mostly inaudibly through inner voices, hunches, promptings, feelings and circumstances (examples: Henry Blackaby and Beth Moore). Southern Baptists ministers Henry and Richard Blackaby wrote Hearing God’s Voice to “teach God’s people not only to recognize his voice but also immediately to obey his voice when they heard it.”⁵ They promise that “as you spend time with Jesus, you will gradually come to recognize his voice more readily than you did at first…You won’t be fooled by other voices because you know your Lord’s voice so well.”⁶ And, once you have figured out when God is speaking to you, “write it down in a journal so you can refer back to it as you follow him.”⁷

In this category could be placed the New Calvinists or Calvinistic Charismatics such as John Piper, Wayne Grudem, Mark Driscoll and C. J. Mahaney. Their followers are sometimes called the young, restless, and Reformed.   Continue at Gary Gilley

Unbiblical Teachings on Prayer and Experiencing God

To a Christian, praying to God is privilege, a blessing, and a Biblically defined responsibility. We are called to pray. But a genre of literature exists that I call “prayer secrets.” Practitioners claim to have discovered new avenues of prayer that can create power, excitement, success, and even new revelations from God. These “prayer secrets” add unbiblical practices and claims to prayer in the hope of spicing up the topic to make it more interesting. And this is not a new development; mystical practices have been brought into the church under the guise of prayer since medieval times.

However, since these teachings change in form and packaging, I will review three books about prayer and “experiencing God” subjectively. What they have in common is a form of pietism that promises better things than to go before the throne of grace to find help in time of need, as well as other basic Biblical teachings on prayer.

Experiencing God by Henry T. Blackaby

Blackaby’s book, co-authored by Claude King, promises readers that they can come to know God by experience and come to know God’s will beyond what is revealed in Scripture, thereby living out a life full of adventure.¹ Blackaby promises his readers that they will, among other things, learn to hear God speaking to them and learn to identify God’s activities.² He promises to alleviate their problem of being frustrated with their Christian experience.

Experiencing God does start out with some basic facts about the gospel and has a place for people to check to indicate that they have made a “decision for Jesus.” I am glad he told his readers about such things as sin and repentance but am disappointed in the “make a decision for Jesus” approach. We have addressed that elsewhere.³ But having checked the appropriate box, the reader is quickly ushered into the realm of subjectivity that permeates Blackaby’s approach from beginning to end. For example, we are urged to evaluate our “present experience with God.”⁴ However, I have known people who are totally deceived and in bondage to false doctrine who are very excited about their experience with God, so such evaluation doesn’t do much good. For example, I once met a pastor who just returned from the Toronto laughing revival and was so very excited because he had seen “God” cause people to bark like dogs and quack like ducks. That is just one example why what one thinks about his own “experience with God” is immaterial. What we need to know are the terms God has laid down for knowing Him and walking faithfully with Him.  Continue at Bob DeWaay

Spiritual Formation at Worship

Within spiritual formation and similar circles, there has been much criticism of worship as found in evangelical Protestantism.  Much of this criticism is aimed at the seeker-sensitive churches with their push for polished performances, entertainment, and the desire to keep the seeker (i.e. unsaved people who are attending the services) as comfortable as possible by offering them an environment and experience similar to what they would encounter at a secular gathering or concert.  The idea is that people unfamiliar with church life feel more at home and will be more likely to return if they do not encounter something foreign or “weird” in the form of worship.  This approach is obviously working, if one evaluates a church on the basis of nickels and noses, as the largest churches in the world have adopted this philosophy.   But there has been a considerable push back against this viewpoint within not only more conservative evangelical churches but also from the emergent and spiritual formation camps.  Mike King believes the church should offer an alternative experience and states, “It should be a bit odd and peculiar for visitors to enter our sanctuaries and engage in worship.  This isn’t bad.  It’s good.  It shows that we are a subculture that’s distinct.”[1]And Dan Kimball observes that “many of these very things [methods promoted by the seeker-sensitive movement] are contrary to what emerging generations value and are seeking in their spiritual experience...The things that seeker-sensitive churches removed from their churches are the very things nonbelievs want to experience if they attend a worship service.  So I don’t think there will be much controversy about bringing back all the spiritual elements and going deeper with our teaching!”[2]

It would be hoped that many who have grown tired of the splash and show of consumer-oriented, market-driven strategy would seek out biblically-based churches that major on Christ, the gospel and Scripture.  There are many churches throughout the world that are seeking to please the Lord, not the consumer, and that draw their marching orders from Scripture and not from the culture.  Some reacting to the seeker-model will head for these churches and be discipled according to biblical principles.  Continue at Gary Gilley

 

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6 Unbiblical Methods for Change

Many professing Christians seek change in their lives using methods which are contrary to Scripture. As a result, they don’t experience the change which God seeks to produce in his people. In the very helpful booklet, HELP! Want to Change, which I refer to as a primer on progressive sanctification, pastor and biblical counselor Jim Newheiser mentions six common, but ineffective, methods for lasting personal transformation.

1. Deliverance Ministries: Some claim that the source of every personal problem is demonic and that the solution is to identify and cast out the evil spirit(s). Certain preachers claim to have the special powers and methods to perform these deliverances. They often draw large crowds of people desperate for help. While the Bible does teach that we are engaged in spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:11–12), it does not teach that all our spiritual problems can be solved by casting out demons.
2. Mysticism: Many believers expect that God will somehow instantly zap away their sin patterns and problems through dramatic answers to certain kinds of prayers. Some seek out spiritual leaders who claim to have special powers in prayer to produce dramatic results. The Bible, on the other hand, teaches that spiritual growth and true wisdom are typically obtained through a persistent disciplined pursuit of God (Proverbs 2:2–12), not through a one-time experience.
3. Medication: While we embrace the use of medicine for true medical problems, many believers are hoping to find quick and easy solutions to their spiritual problems through pills. Some drugs may dull some of the symptoms of our emotional pain, but they do not address the heart issues from which sin comes (Proverbs 4:23; Mark 7:20–23). Wisdom must be exercised.   Continue at Paul Tautges

What Is Spiritual Formation and Why Does It Matter?

It’s possible—perhaps even likely—that you’ve never heard the phrase spiritual formation before. It’s the kind of terminology that’s often sequestered in academic circles. But in recent years, the concepts and practices of spiritual formation have gained popularity in the church and brought related issues to the forefront for many believers.

If the emails we receive at Grace to You are any indication of the overall direction of the church, the popularity of spiritual formation has exploded in the last several months. Weekly—sometimes daily—we hear from men and women wrestling with difficult questions about the disciplines and practices of spiritual formation. They’re struggling to reconcile what they’re reading and hearing with the Word of God.

The topic has even come up in some of John MacArthur’s recent Q&A’s, so I know it’s on the minds of many believers and raising questions in congregations around the world.

Even forming a basic definition of spiritual formation is no simple feat. It’s a fluid concept, with a wide range of accepted meanings and applications.

In broad terms, spiritual formation is the process of spiritual shaping and growth. Sending your children to a Christian school would fall under the wide canopy of spiritual formation. The same could be said of any education tied to a specific religion—Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, or Muslim schools all contribute to the spiritual formation of their students.  Continue at GTY

Accustomed to Express the Inexpressible

Mystics, in their pursuit of communion with God, downgrade theology in favor of experience. Machen demonstrates the folly of seeking communion independent of knowledge. 

Mysticism unquestionably is the natural result of the anti-intellectual tendency which now prevails; for mysticism is the consistent exaltation of experience at the expense of thought. But in actual practice mysticism is seldom consistent; indeed it cannot possibly be consistent if it seeks to explain itself to the world. The experience upon which it is based, or in which it consists, is said to be ineffable; yet mystics love to talk about the experience all the same. Dr. E. S. Waterhouse quotes and epigram of Mr. Bradley “to the effect that Herbert Spencer told us more about the Unknowable than the rashest of theologians has told us about God.” So it may perhaps be said that mystics are accustomed to express the inexpressible more fully than the ineffable character which they attribute to their experience may seem to warrant.  Continue at Thirsty Theologian

Mennonite Brethren Herald Gives Okay to Emergent Bible ‘The Voice’

There was a surprise in a recent MB Herald (April 2012) in the form of a review of a new Bible version called The Voice New Testament (by Ecclesia Bible Society). The Crosscurrents crtique, called New Translation Hits Some High Notes, seemed to base its criteria on personal preference and layout more than on who the voices are behind this retelling of Scripture. Although there was some hesitancy to give The Voice a full stamp of approval, the reviewers pointed out its many positive points: it reads as a play, makes dialogue acceptable, simplifies stories, is helpful, gives the occasional “aha!” moment, and fills a niche (somewhere between the NLT and The Message). They then concluded that it is “certainly a useful translation for newcomers or alongside other more standard versions,” giving it 3 1/2 stars out of 5.

But here’s what the MB Herald has not told its readers about The Voice:

Unfortunately, the project turns out to be an emerging church creation, thus the foundation of it is marred from the beginning. Because mysticism, New Age ideology, and a return to Rome, are the building blocks of the emerging church, The Voice is going to be a spiritually dangerous conduit for adherents. Some of the emergent leaders involved in the project are Chris Seay (project founder), Brian McLaren, Lauren Winner, Leonard Sweet, and Blue Like Jazz author, Donald Miller.

Of monumental concern is Brian McLaren’s contribution to The Voice and his work on improving the books of Luke and Acts. It’s not surprising that McLaren’s approach to God’s written Word is so lighthearted that he thinks it is a production of man and therefore is open for upgrading. As he wrote in one of his many controversial books:

“Scripture is something God had ‘let be,’ and so it is at once God’s creation and the creation of the dozens of people and communities and cultures who produced it.” (Brian McLaren, A Generous Orthodoxy, p. 162)   Continue at Menno-Lite

Chuck Swindoll Points us to Roman Catholic Mystic Henri Nouwen…Again

Apprising Ministries continues to point out that syncretism, which is rooted in the love of self (cf. 2 Timothy 3:2), is really beginning to get out of hand within contemporary evangelicalism. Know nothing good will come of it.

It seems this truth from the Master has been forgotten — Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6). Notice we are to beware of false teachers, not turn to them.

Why? I’m glad you asked; because God has already told us — A little leaven leavens the whole lump (Galatians 5:9). It’s important to note the inspired Apostle Paul wrote that concerning the Galatian church and the Judaizers.

A few years ago I had told you that on page 13 of his book So, You Want To Be Like Christ? Essentials to Get You There (SYW) respected Bible teacher Chuck Swindoll makes some rather odd citations and recommendations.

In SYW, the pastor of the nondenominational megachurch Stonebriar Community Church, heartily endorses the work of Dallas Willard along with his spiritual twin, Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster.

You may know that, through their corrupt Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism (CSM) masquerading as so-called Spiritual Formation, this dubious duo comprise key mentors of the neo-liberal cult in the Emerging Church.

However, it’s beyond question that the CSM of Foster-Willardism actually germinated in the so-called “Desert Fathers” and would then later blossom throughout various monastic traditions of apostate Roman Catholicism.

Swindoll informs us in SYW:

I came across Dallas Willard’s excellent work The Spirit of the Disciplines. Bedside reading it is not. This convicting piece of literature is not something you plop down on the sofa and read alongside People magazine. Willard’s words make you think. Continue at Apprising Ministries

Spiritual Disciplines

Almost two decades ago I wrote an essay titled " When Is Spirituality Spiritual? Reflections on Some Problems of Definition ." 1 I would like to follow up on one aspect of that topic here.

The broader framework of the discussion needs to be remembered. "Spiritual" and "spirituality" have become notoriously fuzzy words. In common usage they almost always have positive overtones, but rarely does their meaning range within the sphere of biblical usage. People think of themselves as "spiritual" because they have certain aesthetic sensibilities, or because they feel some kind of mystical connection with nature, or because they espouse some highly privatized version of one of any number of religions (but "religion" tends to be a word with negative connotations while "spirituality" has positive overtones). Under the terms of the new covenant, however, the only "spiritual" person is the person who has the Holy Spirit, poured out on individuals in regeneration. The alternative, in Paul's terminology, is to be "natural"—merely human—and not "spiritual" (1 Cor 2:14). For the Christian whose vocabulary and concepts on this topic are shaped by Scripture, only the Christian is spiritual. Then, by an obvious extension, those Christians who display Christian virtues are spiritual, since these virtues are the fruit of the Spirit. Those who are "mere infants in Christ" (1 Cor 3:1), if they truly are in Christ, are spiritual inasmuch as they are indwelt by the Spirit, but their lives may leave much to be desired. 2 Nevertheless the NT does not label immature Christians as unspiritual as if the category "spiritual" should be reserved only for the most mature, the elite of the elect: that is an error common to much of the Roman Catholic tradition of spirituality, in which the spiritual life and the spiritual traditions are often tied up with believers who want to transcend the ordinary. Such "spiritual" life is often bound up with asceticism and sometimes mysticism, with orders of nuns and monks, and with a variety of techniques that go beyond ordinary Joe or Mary Christian.   Keep Reading >>>

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Where To Look When You’re In Trouble

A shift has taken place in the Evangelical church with regard to the way we think about the gospel and it’s far from simply an ivory tower conversation. This shift effects us on the ground of everyday life.

In his book Paul: An Outline of His Theology, famed Dutch Theologian Herman Ridderbos (1909 – 2007) summarizes this shift which took place following Calvin and Luther. It was a sizable but subtle shift which turned the focus of salvation from Christ’s external accomplishment to our internal appropriation:

While in Calvin and Luther all the emphasis fell on the redemptive event that took place with Christ’s death and resurrection, later under the influence of pietism, mysticism and moralism, the emphasis shifted to the individual appropriation of the salvation given in Christ and to it’s mystical and moral effect in the life of the believer. Accordingly, in the history of the interpretation of the epistles of Paul the center of gravity shifted more and more from the forensic to the pneumatic and ethical aspects of his preaching, and there arose an entirely different conception of the structures that lay at the foundation of Paul’s preaching.

Donald Bloesch made a similar observation when he wrote, “Among the Evangelicals, it is not the justification of the ungodly (which formed the basic motif in the Reformation) but the sanctification of the righteous that is given the most attention.”    Keep Reading...

Contemplative Prayer - Subtle Promotion

In this article, we want to look at contemplative spirituality’s subtle promotion. In other words, we will examine how this error creeps in and takes minds captive unawares. To illustrate the point, we will use the document found at the Alabama Baptist Convention website.

In the very first paragraph, the document quotes Contemplative Mystic, Richard Foster:

“Superficiality is the curse of our age. The doctrine of instant satisfaction is a primary spiritual problem.”

That’s actually a pretty good observation. I would agree with its fundamental premise but I would disagree with the statement as a whole (but more on my disagreement a little later). Most ministers, even most confessing Christians, might look around and say, “Hey, he sure nailed that one.” This basic agreement on a major observation automatically lends validity and credibility to its spokesman. A powerful sentence draws us in, and the following sentence illuminates more specifically the severity of the problem. The unsuspecting, undiscerning Christian will read on willingly because, after all, “It’s about time someone uttered the very same thoughts I was thinking with regard to the Christian religion as we know it today.” Those who are completely unfamiliar with Richard Foster will buy into a whole lot more than the snake oil he’s selling because Mr. Foster is one that has mastered quite readily, manipulation by and through his words. In his form and format, he typically uses only one or two power sentences (two in the case above), and then slithers beside the slippery slope in order to catch the undiscerning in a fall. We will see that in a moment because the specifics he mentioned in the second sentence to reinforce the first, will be lost by the third or fourth sentence. The hook was powerful enough to grab its reader, so once apprehended, he can virtually say anything he wants.   Keep Reading...

Contemplative Prayer - Sinful Practice

Contemplative Prayer - Sullied Perspectives

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New Age Defined

Having spent nearly 40 years in “Christianized” New Age practices within the walls of the church, I find it interesting that if you ask most Christians, to this day, what New Age consists of; to define it, they are pretty much at a total loss. One reason that they are at a loss is that the church has been conditioned over the years to dismiss the term New Age, instead opting for more acceptable words, most likely for fear that the people would go running for their tin hats. Using flowery rhetoric for the term New Age allows people to let down their guard against New Age teachings. In my estimation, I think we should all come clean – use the term, for that’s what we have.

Personally, I don’t find it alarming or surprising that we now have ‘The First Church of  The New Age’ on every corner and in every corner of the world. I look back to my beginnings in the church and although the practice of  New Age was a kind of fringe movement at the time, being the late ’60′s, early ’70′s, would soon explode into mainline denominations.

I found an article that I wanted to share, written in 2005 by Sandy Simpson entitled New Age/Mysticism in the Church that takes us through New Age teachings. Keep in mind that this was written in ’05. How far the apostate church has come since then! I thought this list and explanation would be helpful to those that have a hard time defining  just what New Age teachings are and at the same time puts the correct name, New Age, to these teachings. To the point article, I like that.

As Dick Sutphen says in “Infiltrating the New Age into Society”

“One of the biggest advantages we have as New Agers is, once the occult, metaphysical and New Age terminology is removed, we have concepts and techniques that are very acceptable to the general public. So we can change the names… demonstrate the power… open the door to millions who normally would not be receptive.” (Summer 1986 issue of “What Is.” Magazine. p.14) Source 

Keep Reading...

5 Reasons To Be Cautious with Tim Keller’s Theology

Last night a ‘new calvinist’ young buck let me know in no uncertain terms that my concern for Tim Keller’s theology was ‘silly’. Fair enough. I disagree with that of course. The sounding alarm of error is never silly.

Now, I have received many questions by some who are quite fond of Tim Keller and have been blessed by his preaching and teaching. Great. I myself consider Tim Keller an ally for the sake of the Gospel, but there are some things that cannot be ignored when it comes to Tim Keller’s – and others – theology, and here are five of them:

1) Endorsed Eastern Mystic feminist Adele Calhoun’s Spiritual Disciplines Handbook, also endorsed by mystic Ruth Halye Barton. Read more here.

2) Believes true Christianity is attractive to unregenerates and one purpose of the local church is to exist for and welcome unbelievers to worship with believers. Read more here.

3) Recommends Roman Catholic mysticism. Read more here.

4) At Tim Keller’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church, teaches contemplative spirituality, eastern mysticism and held classes on The Way of the Monk where students were helped to get in touch with their ‘inner monk’ – another term for the ‘inner self’.

Here’s a promotional quote of the classes:

The Way of the Monk (April 28, May 5 & 12)
Do you long for the great theology in your head to be more real to your heart? Come discover age-old methods of contemplative prayer and worship that can help you encounter Christ in a more intimate, experiential way. In this hands-on workshop, you will experience theancient art of chanting the Psalms (they were meant to be sung!), embark on a practice of authentic Christian meditation, discover how a simple, time-honored tool can help unleash the prayer warrior in you, learn what a typical monastic day is like and how you can make your own, private retreat at a monastery, and much more!

Read more here.

5) Denies the biblical truth of young-earth creation and literal six 24-hour day creation:

“I believe in the historicity of Gen 1-11 and Adam and Eve and I don’t believe in young earth-creation or six 24-hour day creation.”

Read more here.

There are more reasons, but these alone should raise your eyebrows and give pause. It is my hope that those who snap up every book and lecture of Bro. Keller will be made more aware of what’s going on within the camp of ‘new calvinism’. By no means is Tim Keller the only reformergent to endorse and promote these things and people. Again, for the record, I do consider Tim Keller an ally for the sake of the Gospel, but we cannot condone the admittance of error into the Church. We simply cannot turn a blind eye to corrupt doctrines in the name of unity and peace. Truth in doctrine and it’s application must be paramount.

“Let God be true though every one were a liar…” – Romans 3:4

HT: 5ptsalt

See Also: Tim Keller: “Jesus Lived like Mother Theresa”

The Myth Of Mother Theresa

Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice

Counterfeit Gospels

FROM MYSTICISM TO THE GOSPEL

Contemplative Prayer in a Nutshell - Mindless Mystical Gazing
Neither Christ nor the apostles ever instructed the believers to use mystic contemplation, centering, or mantras, as a way of prayer and deeper spirituality. New Testament prayer is active, logical, worshipful, and heartfelt communication with God based on His Word and the concrete needs of the believer. Conversely the core aspect of contemplative prayer is contemplation. Contemplation (theoria in Greek) is not a Biblical word or practice. In the western world it originates with Plato, the Greek philosopher, 4th century B.C. The Eastern Church Fathers transferred it directly into the Church both as a word and practice. The Platonic concept of contemplation was further developed by Neoplatonists in the 3rd century A. D. Contemplation in philosophical/pagan way implies pondering on philosophical ideas or gazing at something with an empty mind having the aim to achieve oneness with god. The Desert Fathers of the Eastern Church, who were monks living in the Sinai Peninsula or lower Egypt desert, employed Platonic and Neoplatonic concepts of contemplation. Among them was Evagrius a heretic who claimed that the human mind was divine, as he was a devotee of platonic philosophy. Thomas Merton and Henry Nouwen both Roman Catholic apostates widely accepted among the Evangelicals, drew a lot of their “spirituality” from the Desert Fathers and Buddhist/Hindu religions. On the other hand, the Quaker mystic Richard Foster, among other things, relies heavily on Merton. So we see how Eastern Orthodox mysticism including Hindu/Buddhist practices, through Foster, Merton, and Nouwen, came to the forefront as the new “spirituality” for Evangelicals. Contemplative prayer takes over theological seminaries, churches, and leadership training programs by a landslide.

From Mysticism to the Gospel
 

As we shall see in the E. Orthodox mysticism section of this essay, the prayer of the heart of the Eastern Church leads to the same altered state of consciousness as Raja Yoga, and Bhakti Hinduism. Key features of contemplative prayer are emptying of the mind, sometimes breathing techniques, mantras, which suggests that the person should come to a mental state beyond words, emotions, and thoughts, waiting on God “to speak”. The most used mantra is the Jesus Prayer. Objects are used for focusing, such as icons, candles, pictures of Jesus, or even pictures with family members. Those objects have theurgic significance when used as aids of spirituality. Theurgy is the attachment of spiritual powers to material objects used by early Neoplatonists, as well as in the magical arts of medieval Europe. Read all 120 pages HERE

HT: Pyromaniac