For J.T.P. - The Forbidden Chapter in the Tanakh...

Posted by Christine Pack

 Is God Finished With The Jews? 

The Apostle Paul, a Jew who had converted to Christianity, wrote a great deal of the Christian New Testament. Paul loved his fellow Jews so much, and desired so much for them to come to saving faith in the Messiah, that he wished he could have given his own life in order for the Jews to be saved:

"I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen." (Romans 9:1-5)

"Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for (the Jews) is for their salvation. For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes." (Romans 10:1-4)

But just as God said He would, after the Jewish people rejected (and crucified) the Messiah God sent them, He went outside of his chosen people with the gospel proclamation. From Romans 10:

"But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says, 'I will make you jealous by that which is not a nation, by a nation without understanding will I anger you.' And Isaiah is very bold and says, 'I was found by those who did not seek Me, I became manifest to those who did not ask for Me.' But as for Israel He says, 'All the day long I have stretched out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.'" (Romans 10:19-21) 

God went outside of the Jewish nation, not because He no longer loved them, but because:

(1) He was being merciful to all the other lost, pagan people groups of the world in offering them the way of salvation, and  

(2) He desired to provoke the Jews to be jealous again for God's love, when they saw how great his mercy was. 

Does this mean God is forever finished with the Jews? No! Many Christians today believe that God, in the very final days and after having thrown wide open the way of salvation for two thousand years to all the pagan (Gentile) people groups of the world, will bring back into the faith his beloved Jews, based on this passage from Romans 11:

"For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written:

'The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob. This is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.'  

From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all." (Romans 11:25-32)

Do you know any Jews? Keep telling them this, and keep praying for them. God is not done with them yet.


 The Forbidden Chapter in the Tanakh 

Even today, there is evidence that God is once again moving among the Jewish people. The video at the link below is entitled "The Forbidden Chapter In The Tanakh" and refers to the 53rd chapter of the book of Isaiah. The 53rd chapter in Isaiah is referred to as "forbidden" not because this passage has been deleted from the Jewish Old Testament (Tanakh), but because it is removed (forbidden, hidden away) from the regular readings in the synagogues today. But why? More on the "why" later; for now, please just take a few minutes to watch this video, which is linked in the caption of the picture below. It is very encouraging.

Isaiah 53 clearly prophesied a Messiah to come, a Messiah who would suffer and die (make atonement) for the sins of His people.  From Isaiah 53:

"He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows." (verse 4) 

"He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities." (verse 5)

"Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed." (verse 5)

"But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him." (verse 6)

"By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?" (verse 8)

"When his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days." (verse 10)

"By his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities." (verse 11)

"He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." (verse 12)

Today's Jews reject this understanding of the Messiah, and which Isaiah 53 proclaims in plain language. But you have just read it for yourself. Does it not say that a servant (Isaiah 52:13) will come forth, and will make atonement for sinners?

One view held by Jews today is that this passage is an allegorization of the Jewish nation, that the Jewish nation is the "suffering servant."

Another view is that the person referenced in this passage referred only to the human, infant son of the king ruling at that time. But how can a mere human make a substitutionary atonement for sinners, as this passage from Isaiah states? We know by plain common sense that an ordinary human being can't offer up his life as atonement for other people's sins, right?

However, because Isaiah 53 is so controversial within Jewish circles, this passage is deleted from the regular readings in the synagogues. And those few Jewish leaders and writers who do try to address this passage are forced to twist and allegorize it in a way that doesn't even make sense. But just watch the Jews in the video above who are reading this passage for the very first time, without having their minds tainted with a skewed version of what this passage means. It means what it means! They can see that instantly.

 Messiah Is Prophesied In Other Old Testament Passages 

Prophesies about the Messiah were not just in Isaiah 53. Consider also Daniel 9, where it was prophesied that the person of the Messiah had to come before the second destruction of the temple (and that occurred in 70 A.D.).

And Micah 5 said that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. None of these passages *work* for the view held today by Christ-rejecting Jews who want to allegorize the nation of Israel into somehow being the Messiah for the world in a corporate way. The nation of Israel wasn't "born" in Bethlehem; how could it be? The nation of Israel were first a pagan people group whom God in his great mercy selected out of a lost world to be His own. They didn't come from Bethlehem, they came from Ur (modern day Iraq), out of a pagan people group associated with moon worship.

This is the gospel message that the Old Testament tells: God had so much love for the humans He made in His own image that He used the Jews, the pagan people He chose out of all the pagan cultures of the world, to be His people, and through whom the Messiah, a Saviour, would someday come. He meant for the Jews to be a light to the nations. But He also knew beforehand that even though He (God) had given many, many prophecies that could only point to Jesus as the culmination of all of redemptive history, that the Jews would reject this Messiah. Their Messiah. Was this a horrible accident? No, it was so that God, in an almost infinite display of mercy, could then open up the gospel message to the rest of the world. But He's not done with Israel. One day He will enfold them back into His family, and they will again be sons and daughters of God.

Look at that beautiful video linked above. Jews who haven't been conditioned to twist themselves like pretzels and jump through hoops in order to allegorize Isaiah 53 into the nation of Israel know instantly, upon a plain reading of the passage, that it is describing and pointing to a person, not a nation. And that this Person had to, somehow, have the constitution to be able to withstand upon the Cross, in some mysterious way, the eternal hell of each and every person saved. This required a Person possessing a supernatural nature, because no-one who was only human could have borne that kind of suffering. And yet this Person also had to be human, in order to be mankind's representative. Jesus was both fully God and fully Divine. Adam represented us corporately in the Garden.....and he failed. Christ came and represented us corporately on the Cross.....and He did NOT fail.

God gave us the Law so that we would know what His standard for holiness was and is. It is perfection. It is not trying real hard to be good enough. It's not hoping that we have enough good deeds to offset our sins. It is not even just praying and asking for forgiveness. God set up a very specific way of approaching him in the Old Testament, and that was a sacrificial system whereby an animal was killed in place of the human who deserved death for his sin. God is holy-holy-HOLY, and sin is serious. God set up this system and gave us the Law so that no serious seeker could look at these things and say, God doesn't really think sin is a big deal. God doesn't really care how I approach Him. And besides, I am a good person. I have kept God's Laws perfectly. I don't need a Saviour. I can save myself.

We're sinners. We've all broken these Laws. We've all lied. We've all stolen. We've all taken the Lord's name in vain. We've all coveted. We've all had impure thoughts.

And yet, Jesus accomplished on the Cross what God set out in eternity past to do, and that was to atone for sins, so that those stained with sin could be cleansed, washed clean, made holy and righteous in God's eyes.

"'Come now, and let us reason together,' says the Lord. 'Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool.'" (Isaiah 1:18)

It takes humility to look at one's own heart and admit that no good thing dwells there. That you need a Saviour. But run to Him today! Believe on Christ, as the sinless, perfect One who lived a pure life of righteousness on your behalf, in order to give himself up as your ransom. Will today be the day of salvation for you?  The Bible closes with a beautiful plea, and a promise; a plea, to come, freely, and take what the Lord offers. You don't have to pay a price, and if you did, you couldn't afford it. Jesus paid the price on your behalf.

"Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb.....The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.' And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of life without cost." (Rev 22:1, 17)

"And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.” (Rev 22:7)

 Additional Resources 

What Is Progressive Revelation? (Got Questions?)

More.....and more.....and more archaeological evidence of the early canonicity of the New Testament

Discrepancies Between the Gospel Accounts? Not So Fast..... (Answers in Genesis)

Problems With Bestselling Book "Jesus Calling"

Posted by Christine Pack

 Did Author Sarah Young Write Jesus Calling Using Occultic Practice of Automatic Writing? 

The bestselling book Jesus Calling was almost surely written through the occultic practice of "Automatic Writing." A shocking claim? All right, then, I will grant that some of the book could have come from the author's own imagination. However, I also believe it is entirely possible that the book is truly from the spiritual realm; only, it is not the Jesus of the Bible with whom the author got in touch, but rather a demon. And I'm saying this not as just a Christian researcher, but as a former New Ager who practiced Automatic Writing. I should also point out that Christians don't get to flip some switch somewhere and turn occultic practices into biblical practices just by adding biblical terminology to what they are doing.

Automatic Writing is an occultic practice that is a form of divination, a practice that is expressly forbidden by God (see Deut 18). Author Sarah Young recounts how she decided to write the book Jesus Calling:

"My journey began with a devotional book (God Calling) written in the 1930s by two women who practiced waiting in God’s Presence, writing the messages they received as they 'listened.' About a year after I started reading this book, I began to wonder if I too could receive messages during my times of communing with God. . . . So I decided to 'listen' to God with pen in hand, writing down whatever I sensed He was saying." (from a Question and Answer session with Sarah Young, CBN)

Now compare Young's description about how she decided to write Jesus Calling to the practice of Automatic Writing as written about in Wikipedia*

"Automatic writing or psychography is an alleged psychic ability allowing a person to produce written words without consciously writing. The words are claimed to arise from a subconscious, spiritual or supernatural source." (source)

* NOTE: Don't be hating on me for using Wikipedia. I didn't want to link to a New Age source, and sometimes Wiki actually does get things right, as they do in this instance.

Nowhere in Scripture are Christians told to do as Sarah Young did when writing her book, and that is to sit with pen in hand waiting for a form of channeled dictation from "Jesus." We are to read the Bible, seek to understand it in its proper context, believe it, accept it by faith as truth, and and pray for the enabling power of the Holy Spirit to walk in obedience where we are commanded to take action. But no zoned-out trance states seeking a "fresh" word from God, no. A thousand times no.

For more on the practice of Automatic Writing in Jesus Calling, please read this article by Marcia Montenegro. Like me, Marcia is a former New Ager (she was a professional astrologer). Marcia, who has a Masters degree in Religion from Southern Evangelical Seminary, is now a born again believer in full time apologetics ministry.

You can also read more about this in our article here - Sarah Young's Bestseller Jesus Calling: An Overactive Imagination or a Demon?

“When you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord; and because of these detestable things the Lord your God will drive them out before you. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God. For those nations, which you shall dispossess, listen to those who practice witchcraft and to diviners, but as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do so.” (Deut 18:9-14)

 "Another Jesus" 

"The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. Whenever he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. They will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him; for they don’t know the voice of strangers...... My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:3-5, 27, my emphasis)

The "voice" of the "Jesus" in Jesus Calling does not match the "voice" of the Jesus of the Bible. It just doesn't. And Christians who are very familiar with Scripture know this. If you're not sure about this, just pick up the Bible and read through any one of the gospel accounts. If you do so, you will realize that the "Jesus" of Jesus Calling is not the Jesus of the Bible.......he is "another Jesus," one that the Apostle Paul warned us about receiving and accepting in the second book of Corinthians:

"For if someone comes along and preaches another Jesus than the one we preached, or should you receive a different spirit from the one you received or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you are all too willing to listen." (2 Corinthians 11:4)

In fact, not only is the "voice" of the "Jesus" in Jesus Calling not the "voice" of the Bible's Jesus, but it speaks in a way that is remarkably similar to the demonic spirits I was in touch with while in the New Age. Satan is the father of lies, and has been from the beginning, which means that he, and his demonic legion, have no moral constraints about lying and deceiving those playing around in the supernatural realm, as I was. What this means is that when I was communicating with demons as a New Ager, they didn't identify themselves as demons. Spooky music didn't start playing, and green smoke didn't ooze under the door when they showed up, like we see in the movies. They had beautiful names, and they professed to me to care for me, and to desire to help me grow spiritually. They had a very smooth, soothing way of communicating. (The more Bibley term for that would be 'ear tickling.')

When these demons communicated to me, they would often say 'Trust me' or 'Trust us,' a phrase ('Trust me') that is also often used by the false 'Jesus' in Jesus Calling. If you read through the book, you will see that phrase used repeatedly, yet that is not something that Jesus uttered on a regular basis during his earthly ministry or elsewhere in the Bible, even though we are to trust in the Lord. I think the repetition of this phrase is used by demons to lull humans into, well, trusting them, since their obvious aim is to deceive us and confuse us as they are in the process of communicating to us things that are contrary to what the Bible teaches us about Jesus and God. Their ultimate goal, obviously, is to turn us away from the Jesus of the Bible. And to do this, they often masquerade, as we are told they would, as 'angels of light' (2 Cor 11:14)."

 What's Missing From Jesus Calling? 

Jesus's mission was not social justice, nor was it primarily to model to us how to live a good life (i.e., the social justice "Jesus," the emergent "Jesus," the liberal "Jesus," the Jen Hatmaker "Jesus").

Jesus's mission was not to give us our best life now, or to give us practical life skills in order to enhance and enrich our lives (i.e., the Word of Faith "Jesus," the seeker sensitive "Jesus").

Jesus's mission was not to give us ooey-gooey feelings about Him or about ourselves (the Ann Voskamp "Jesus," the Beth Moore "Jesus," the pop-psychology "Jesus").

Jesus's mission was not to lend his name to the vague New Age term "Christ consciousness," which in the New Age, is the term used to describe a person who is evolving spiritually on their own, through various New Age practices. (i.e., "Robert developed his 'Christ consciousness' through meditation, vegetarianism and learning to avoid bad relationships.")

The Jesus of the Bible is the eternally existent God-man who chose to leave his glory above and be born of a virgin into this sin-sick world in order to undertake a very particular mission, a mission for which "He set his face like flint" (Luke 9:51) in order to accomplish it. His mission was to fulfill all righteousness on the behalf of sinners, and then to offer up his perfect life, by dying on a Roman cross, as a sacrifice for sin. This was his mission, and it is anchored in history both by the historical accounts in the Bible and by extra-biblical accounts form historians living at the time of Jesus. Jesus was a real person, and he incarnated for a very specific purpose, and that was to save sinners.

Proclaiming God's holy, righteous wrath against sin and sinners, and calling sinners to repentance and saving faith in his finished work on the cross was the primary focus of Jesus's earthly ministry.

All of these things are important to bear in mind when evaluating any ministry, any website, any book or any teacher. How is Jesus talked about? What about the cross? What about the gospel message, of how it is that sinful man is reconciled to a high and holy God? Is this front and center in the ministry? Or is it barely mentioned, a sidenote, a cameo?

All that to say this: God's righteous wrath against sinners and the cross do have a cameo appearance here and there in the book Jesus Calling, but only in the way that, say, a movie studio might heavily advertise a well-known actor who has a cameo in a movie. Did you blink? You might have missed his screen time. Well, that's how much screen time sin, God's righteous wrath against sinners, the cross and the atonement get in Jesus Calling. Don't blink, or you'll miss it.

 Final Thoughts 

"And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light." (2 Cor 11:14)

We've written before about the fact that deception is, well, deceptive. Isn't that the whole point of deception? Deception doesn't announce itself, and give warning that something is afoot. Spooky music won't be playing in the background. Deception can take place anytime and anywhere. It can happen:

......while you are sitting in the cozy nook of your favorite Bible study area in your own home; 

.....through a book recommended by your best friend or Bible study teacher;

...... in Christian bookstores, because the same bookstores that carry Bibles and wonderfully edifying Bible commentaries and study guides also carry books by false teachers who preach "another Jesus" (2 Cor 11:4) and "another gospel" (Gal 1:8, 2 Cor 11:4).

Deception is tricky......cagey......clever.....beguiling: deceptive. We must remember that we are in a spiritual battle, and that Satan is a roaring lion, prowling the earth seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). We must therefore study the Bible diligently in order to present ourselves approved unto God as those who are able to accurately handle the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15). This means that we must be prepared to hold up all things taught in the name of God to the actual word of God. And these biblical exhortations to test all things include even runaway bestsellers like Jesus Calling. Christian women, be on guard.

 Additional Resources 

Jesus Calling by Sarah Young: WUI (Writing Under the Influence) (Marcia Montenegro)

Toxic Devotion: A Review of Sarah Young's Jesus Calling (Critical Issues Commentary, Pastor Bob DeWaay)

Sarah Young's Bestseller Jesus Calling: An Overactive Imagination or a Demon? (Sola Sisters)

Warning About Bestseller Jesus Calling (Sola Sisters)

Tim Challies Reviews Jesus Calling (Challies)

Beth Moore Recommends Jesus Calling Book (Apprising)

Justin Peters on Jesus Calling (10 minute YouTube video)

What Is Automatic Writing? (Wikipedia)

What Does the Bible Say About Channeling? (Got Questions?)

What Does the Bible Say About Divination? (Got Questions?)

"Another Jesus" Calling (book by former New Ager Warren Smith)

Thomas Nelson Publishers Creatively Edit Jesus Calling (Stand Up For The Truth)

Is Jesus Calling A Wrong Number? A Book Review (Stand Up For The Truth)

Changing Jesus Calling: Damage Control For a False Christ (Stand Up For The Truth)

Jesus Calling: Whitewashing The Red Flags (Stand Up For The Truth)

Is Deception Calling? A review of Jesus Calling by Sarah Young (Stand Up For The Truth)

 Interviews With Sarah Young 

Question and Answer Session with Sarah Young (Christian Broadcasting Network-CBN) (more about God Calling here)

Meet Sarah Young (Christian Retailing, Aug 18, 2010) (Young cites the New Age book God Calling as influential)

Sarah Young: Amid Suffering, Devotion (Publishers Weekly, Nov 14, 2012)

 Sola Sisters Facebook Wall Discussion Threads 

Jesus Calling Storybook for children - Mar 18, 2013

Former New Ager Warren Smith discusses Jesus Calling - Nov 18, 2013

False "Jesus" flatters in Jesus Calling - Dec 14, 2013

Deceptive nature of demons, Jesus Calling - Dec 30, 2014

Jesus Calling: An overactive imagination....or a demon? - Dec 31, 2014

The demonic "voice" of Jesus Calling, friends don't let friends read Jesus Calling - Mar 11, 2015

Jesus Calling, occultic practice of Automatic Writing - Mar 11, 2015

Jesus's mission - Mar 12, 2015

The "voice" of the "Jesus" in Jesus Calling vs. the "voice" of the Jesus of the Bible  - Mar 13, 2015

Sarah Young's Bestseller "Jesus Calling": An Overactive Imagination or a Demon?

Posted by Sola Sisters

Ladies, have you received a copy of the bestselling book Jesus Calling as a gift from a friend? Perhaps you have even bought and given out this book yourself? If so, please continue reading this article, along with the links below so that you can be aware of the serious spiritual problems with this book.  Sarah Young, author of Jesus Calling, has characterized her book as "first-person messages from Jesus." In fact, the devotional reads in a conversational manner, albeit a one-sided conversation, in which "Jesus" is purported to be communicating directly to the reader through daily devotionals.

Sarah Young, the author of Jesus Calling, describes the unusual way in which this book came about in an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network:

"My journey began with a devotional book (God Calling) written in the 1930's by two women who practiced waiting in God's Presence, writing the messages they received as they 'listened.' About a year after I started reading this book, I began to wonder if I too could receive messages during my times of communing with God. I had been writing in prayer journals for years, but this was one-way communication: 'monologue.' I knew that God communicates through the Bible (and I treasure His Word), but I wondered what He might say to me personally on a given day. So I decided to 'listen' to God with pen in hand, writing down whatever I sensed He was saying. Of course, I wasn't listening for an audible voice; I was seeking the 'still, small voice' of God in my mind/heart." (Q and A with Sarah Young, CBN)

But the Bible does not tell us to sit quietly and attempt to hear words from God. In fact, what is being described above by Sarah Young is an extremely occultic practice known in occultic circles as "automatic writing." Wikipedia describes this practice thusly:

"Automatic writing or psychography is an alleged psychic ability allowing a person to produce written words without consciously writing. The words are claimed to arise from a subconscious, spiritual or supernatural source." (online source)

We know from God's word that He detests any form of divination, which is what this practice is.

"When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you. 13 You must be blameless before the Lord your God." (Deut 18:9-13)

Now, it is true that God communicated through words in ages past through the prophets of his choosing, but in Hebrews 1:1-2, we are told that:

"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." 

What this means is that God's communication to us found its complete and final and greatest fulfillment in the final Prophet of his choosing, his own Son, Jesus Christ. After Jesus's earthly ministry, death and resurrection, the biblical office of prophet was forever closed. Could any human prophet after Christ add to his perfect, prophetic ministry? Absolutely not. And yet, there have been myriads of those over the centuries who have claimed to receive revelation from God, and to speak authoritatively (prophetically) on his behalf. That is the case with Sarah Young, though in some interviews, there has been waffling on this when she has been pinned down. Well, she can't have it both ways. Either Jesus is speaking authoritatively through this book to us, or he is not. Which is it? And, if he is, then we all need to get out our Bibles and start stapling these prophetic utterances to the backs of our Bibles, right after the end of Revelation. Does anyone else see the problem with this? I, for one, most certainly do. I see the problem, in fact, in the final words of Revelation:

"I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll." (Rev 22:18-19)

 The "Voice" of the "Jesus" in Jesus Calling 

The following question was asked in a thread on our Facebook ministry page in which the bestselling book Jesus Calling was being discussed. I thought it was a great question, and I also think it's one that (rightly) occurs to believers when trying to evaluate whether battles are of the flesh/mind or have a more spiritual/demonic component to them. I have therefore written this standalone article highlighting the question and our answer, in the hope that this exchange is edifying for anyone who might have also had this question. Also, I have posted a number of entries from the Jesus Calling devotional that need to read only with great discernment.

QUESTION: How do you distinguish between something fabricated by an overactive imagination and something truly demonic?

OUR RESPONSE: That's a great question, and one that ultimately we can't really know the answer to. However, when I see the ferocity with which professing believers defend the false "Jesus" of Jesus Calling, I tend to strongly suspect that there is a demon or Satan involved, and thus a spiritual component to the battle. Spiritual warfare is a battle of words, concepts and propositional truths, and those who want to defend the false "Jesus" of Jesus Calling are arguing AGAINST Bible truths with worldly concepts (like pragmatism....."It 'worked' for me!") for the right to cling to their false "Jesus."

Also, the "voice" the false Jesus speaks in is remarkably similar to the demonic spirits I was in touch with while in the New Age. Deception isn't always obvious. In fact, I think it's rarely obvious......else, it wouldn't be deceptive, right? When I was communicating with demons as a New Ager, they (obviously) didn't identify themselves as such. Spooky music didn't start playing and green smoke didn't ooze under the door when they showed up, like we see in the movies. They had beautiful names, and they professed to me to care for me and to desire to help me grow spiritually. They had a very smooth, soothing way of communicating. (The more Bibley term for that would be "ear tickling.")

They would often say "Trust me" or "Trust us," a phrase ("Trust me") that is also often used by the false "Jesus" in Jesus Calling. If you read through the book, you will see that phrase used repeatedly, yet that is not something that Jesus uttered on a regular basis during his earthly ministry or elsewhere in the Bible, even though we are to trust in the Lord. I think the repetition of this phrase is used by demons to lull humans into, well, trusting them, since their obvious aim is to deceive us and confuse us as they are in the process of communicating to us things that are contrary to what the Bible teaches us about Jesus and God. Their ultimate goal, obviously, is to turn us away from the Jesus of the Bible. And to do this, they often masquerade, as we are told they would, as "angels of light" (2 Cor 11:14).

"Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light." (2 Cor 11:14) 

"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 Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough." (2 Cor 11:3-4)

"Satan was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies." (John 8:44)

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8)

"For the time will come when people 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." (2 Tim 4:3)

[NOTE: I have posted below a number of entries from the Jesus Calling devotional to show how often the false "Jesus" of Jesus Calling urges the reader to trust him. Please pray before reading these, and please exercise discernment while reading these entries]

 Additional Resources 

Warning About Popular Book Jesus Calling (Sola Sisters)

Former New Ager Warren Smith Explains That The "Jesus" of Bestseller Jesus Calling Is Not The Jesus of the Bible (Sola Sisters)

Jesus Calling By Sarah Young: W.U.I. (Writing Under the Influence) (Marcia Montenegro, former New Ager and professional astrologer who is now a Christian researcher)

Tim Challies Reviews Jesus Calling (Challies.com)

Toxic Devotion: A Review of Sarah Young's Jesus Calling (Critical Issues Commentary, Pastor Bob DeWaay)

Beth Moore Recommends Jesus Calling Book (Apprising)

"Another Jesus" Calling (book by former New Ager Warren Smith)

Thomas Nelson Publishers Creatively Edit Jesus Calling (Stand Up For The Truth)

Is Jesus Calling A Wrong Number? A Book Review (Stand Up For The Truth)

Changing Jesus Calling: Damage Control For a False Christ (Stand Up For The Truth)

Jesus Calling: Whitewashing The Red Flags (Stand Up For The Truth)

Is Deception Calling? A review of Jesus Calling by Sarah Young (Stand Up For The Truth)

False Teachings About Hearing Audible Words From God Taking Even Deeper Root in Today's Church (Sola Sisters)

Bestseller "Experiencing God" Misleading Christians With "Soft" Mysticism? (Sola Sisters)

 Interviews With Sarah Young 

Q and A with Sarah Young (Christian Broadcasting Network) (more about God Calling here)

Meet Sarah Young (Christian Retailing, Aug 18, 2010) (Young cites the New Age book God Calling as influential)

Sarah Young: Amid Suffering, Devotion (Publishers Weekly, Nov 14, 2012)

 Sola Sisters Facebook Wall Discussions 

Discussion about Jesus Calling on the Sola Sisters Facebook wall - Mar 18, 2013

Discussion about Jesus Calling on the Sola Sisters Facebook wall - Nov 18, 2013

Discussion about Jesus Calling on the Sola Sisters Facebook wall - Dec 14, 2013

Discussion about Jesus Calling on the Sola Sisters Facebook wall - Dec 30, 2014

Discussion about Jesus Calling on the Sola Sisters Facebook wall - Dec 31, 2014

What Is Spiritual Formation?

Posted by Christine Pack (originally published 10-25-10)

While I recognize that the graphic that accompanies this article is shocking, it was used intentionally and purposefully to illustrate the dangers of Spiritual Formation, the Trojan Horse through which Contemplative Spirituality, a "Christianized" form of mysticism, is flooding into our churches today. Contemplative Spirituality is primarily coming into the church through the teachings associated with Spiritual Formation (also known as Spiritual Disciplines). But make no mistake: Contemplative Spirituality is a mind-altering practice that is as spiritually dangerous as a drug. And much like a drug addict, the Spiritual Formation addict will have to keep coming back to the contemplative practice for "hits," continually seeking the elusive spiritual highs once attained from the practice, but which can no longer be found. You think I'm exaggerating? Don't take my word for it: Roman Catholic mystic Thomas Merton once compared Contemplative Spirituality Mysticism (CSM) to the same powerful experience generated by mind-altering drugs.

"Isn't it a pity that people are going into LSD to have spiritual experiences, when we have a tradition in the Church [contemplative prayer] which no one knows anything about?" (Thomas Merton, from  a letter he wrote to fellow mystic Matthew Fox)

Now, you might be wondering why the opinion of a deceased Roman Catholic mystic on an obscure sounding practice should matter to us today. It is for this reason: Contemplative Spirituality Mysticism, as noted above, is literally flooding into today's churches through practices that have positive sounding names, like "Spiritual Formation" and "Spiritual Disciplines." Spiritual Formation is being promoted in many of today's evangelical churches as a way for Christians to draw closer to God. Christian leaders who are teaching Spiritual Formation often understand that the word "mysticism" has a negative, eastern connotation, and try to draw a distinction between "bad" (eastern) mysticism and "good" (Christian) mysticism. Obviously, to those pleading this case, "bad" mysticism would be occultic, and eastern in origin. But "good" mysticism (like Spiritual Formation, say its proponents) would be a type of mysticism that is Christian, biblical, and necessary for spiritual development. They make this distinction between "good" and "bad" mysticism based on a quote by the founder of the Spiritual Formation movement, Richard Foster, who said in his 1978 book Celebration of Discipline that:

"Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind. Christian meditation is an attempt to fill the mind"(Celebration of Discipline, p 20).

The problem is that the Bible makes no such distinction between "good" and "bad" mysticism, which is a form of occultism. In fact, Spiritual Formation teaches the same "technique" for corralling and emptying the mind as that employed in eastern mantra meditation. To be clear, let me restate this: the technique used for silencing the mind in Spiritual Formation is identical to classic occultic meditation practices taught in Hinduism, Buddhism, wicca, paganism, etc. The technique goes something like this: find a quiet spot to sit or lie down, breathe deeply, and begin to focus on something for the purpose of stilling your thoughts. (The "something" can literally be almost anything: a candle, a word, a phrase, repetitive music, drumming, one's own breath, etc.) After about 20 minutes of practicing this technique, which is simple to do, a person will enter into an altered state of consciousness. In this altered state of consciousness, the mind is no longer active and critically engaged, and able to assess data. In this state, the mind is passive, its God-given barriers down; it is able only to receive information, much like a radio receiver. Mystics from all faith traditions the world over often report ecstatic experiences of becoming yoked to some spiritual energy, leaving them feeling refreshed, energized, and peaceful after engaging in their mystical practices.

So exactly how does this pagan practice manifest itself in Christian churches today? It looks something like this: instead of repeating a Buddhist mantra or the name of a false god, the Christian practitioner of Spiritual Formation would use something like the Jesus Prayer.....

"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner."

or they might repeat a short Scripture.....

"Be still and know that I am God."

or they might simply repeat one name.....

"Jesus" or "Yahweh"

But it is not the words or phrases themselves in so-called Spiritual Formation that somehow magically switches the dial from being "occultic" to being "Christian." Nor does the intention of the practictioner somehow magically protect one from danger. The words or phrases used are completely irrelevant.....they are merely the device by which one corrals one's thoughts for the purpose of entering into an altered state of consciousness (among those who would claim to be "Christian mystics," this altered state of consciousness is known by many different names: "the Silence," "practicing the presence of God," "the cloud of unknowing," etc.)

But the God of the Bible is very specific about how we are to "draw closer" to Him, and it is not through using techniques for the purpose of entering into an altered state of consciousness. True born again believers draw close to God through the blood of Christ (Hebrews 10) and through the means of grace as taught by Scripture. And yet most religions outside of Christianity have some version of mysticism that they practice for the specific purpose of drawing close to God. So the question must be asked: if these faith traditions are outside of Christ, are they getting to God? We know the answer to that, and it is obviously, no, they aren't getting to God. We may not be getting much in the way of deep doctrinal teaching in our churches today, but we at least know that much, right? We know that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no-one comes to the Father but by him. However, we also know from the testimonies of mystics that they are experiencing something, so what is it? It is a "counterfeit Holy Spirit experience" which "feels" very real and very spiritual. In fact, what they're experiencing is spiritual.....only, it is not from God.

As a former mystic, the biggest blind spot I see in today's Christian culture is almost an innocence about spiritual deception, a thinking that as Christians we can't be deceived. A belief that if, spiritually speaking, something were "off" about a teaching or practice, somehow we would just "know" it because it would "feel wrong." But even more than that, there also seems to be this idea that only we, as Christians, have true spiritual experiences, that somehow these mystics must not be having "real" experiences, that it's all smoke and mirrors. This is absolutely not true. What these mystics are experiencing is real, and it is spiritual, and mystics wouldn't have been doing these things for centuries if they weren't connecting to.....something. But God, in his loving-kindness and mercy, has graciously given us many warnings so that we would know how to defend ourselves against spiritual deception. We are warned that Satan himself can masquerade as an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14). We are told that we must test all things (1 John 4:1), because none of us are beyond being deceived.

So how do we "test all things?" What is our measure for testing? Is it our own hearts, our own emotions? In today's culture, we have a tendency to "test" things through our thoughts and feelings ("I didn't have a peace about it"). No, we must not do that, for we know that our hearts are deceitful and desperately wicked above all things (Jer 17:9). Scripture is our standard for testing all things, Scripture is what we must use in determining whether or not something is acceptable to God.

Let's look at one of the most powerful biblical warnings there is against incorporating pagan practices into our worship of God. Spiritual Formation, which is a blending of Christian terminology and occultic mysticism, is very similar to what the Israelites did in Exodus 32 in the story of the golden calf. What most people don't realize is that this well-known incident wasn't about straight up paganism. No, this story records how God's chosen people blended together (1) what they had been taught to do by God with (2) pagan practices that were familiar to them from their years of captivity in Egypt. They knew about altars and making offerings to God. And they knew about pagan animal worship from their exposure to Egyptian culture. When Moses delayed returning to the people from atop the mountain where he was speaking with God, the people decided to create their own tangible way of worshiping God. So they set up an altar, added a little Egyptian flavor in the form of cow worship, and called it a festival for the Lord:

"When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the LORD.” " (Exodus 32:5)

And God saw this, and was very pleased?  Not exactly.  This is what the Bible records:

"Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, 'These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.'  'I have seen these people," the LORD said to Moses, "and they are a stiff-necked people. Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.'"  (Exodus 32:7-10, my emphasis)

God was not pleased - and only Moses' intercession on their behalf saved them from being completely destroyed by God. As if that weren't a clear enough warning against mixing pagan worship practices with worship of God, we are also warned in Deuteronomy against spiritual syncretism:

"The LORD your God will cut off before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess. But when you have driven them out and settled in their land, and after they have been destroyed before you, be careful not to be ensnared by inquiring about their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods? We will do the same.' You must not worship the LORD your God in their way..." (Deut, 12:29-31a, my emphasis)

God is quite clear on how we are to worship and approach him - and it is not through blending our worship of him with pagan practices. But this is exactly what Spiritual Formation is: a blending of Christian terminology with occultic mysticism, and calling it Christian. I recognize that it is very popular in today's global, syncretized culture to meld different things together. We are most certainly an experience-driven culture, always seeking the fresh, exciting, "new" thing. And we also like our smorgasbord religions, with a little of this, a little of that. But we have clear mandates from Scripture about how we are to worship and approach God.  We are to be set apart from the world - not syncretized with it - so that God's truth will shine like a beacon in the darkness.

If you know anyone who is being drawn into the deceptive practices of Christian mysticism, Spiritual Formation, and Contemplative Prayer, please warn them. These things look spiritual and sound spiritual, but they are occultic and will lead into a dangerous spiritual realm. We must be diligent to guard our hearts and minds: after all, it is the Lord's honor and glory which are at stake. When we become just as pagan as the world, how is God revealed, exalted and glorified? And not only must He be rightly exalted, it is mockery to blend worldly pagan practices into our worship of Him. The Lord will not be mocked, and He will discipline those He loves:

"When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf they had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it." (Exodus 32:19-20)

If you yourself have done these things at the leading of your pastor or church group, I urge you to repent so that you do not find yourself drinking ground calf juice - or whatever the modern equivalent of that judgment might look like today. Innocence concerning the "pagan-ness" of a practice will not protect a believer, especially when it comes to the area of the occult. This is Satan's domain, and we must flee from it. Those "ecstatic experiences" reported by mystics of other faith traditions? Having once been a mystic myself, I can attest that the mystical experiences may start out this way, but if continued, will lead to a very dark place.  The Bible speaks about those who practice occultism as starting out seeking knowledge, but ending up in a place of distress, darkness and anguish:

"And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into thick darkness." (Isaiah 8:22)

My heart is broken for those who have been led into these unbiblical practices through church leadership, but it is never too late to fall at the foot of the Cross. The Lord is mighty to forgive and restore.

photo credit: jp512 via photopin cc

photo credit: daveblume via photo pin cc


 Additional Resources 

Mysticism: A Counterfeit Holy Spirit (Sola Sisters)

Interview With A Former Mystic (Sola Sisters)

What Is Contemplative Prayer? (Christine Narloch)

Contemplating Contemplative Prayer: Is It Really Prayer? (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

Out Of Your Mind: Meditation and Visualization (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

Meditation and Psalm 46:10 ("Be still and know that I am God.") (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

The "Be Still" DVD Featuring Beth Moore: An Ode To Silence (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

The Labyrinth: A Walk By Faith? (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

Lecture and Meditation Session Led By Roman Catholic Trappist Monk Thomas Keating (Christian Answers for the New Age, Marcia Montenegro)

What Is New Age Eschatology? (Herescope, Sarah Leslie)

Conversations With (an Occult) God - a critique of Neale Donald Walsche (Crossroad, Berit Kjos)

Conversations With (an Occult) God - quotes from Neal Donald Walshe's books (Crossroad, Berit Kjos)

Can Mysticism Lead To God? (Christian Answers)

Barbara Marx Hubbard - What does she believe? (Stand Up For The Truth)

What Is Mysticism? (Sola Sisters)

What Is Mysticism? (5-Part Series by Pastor Gary Gilley) - Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5

Mystical Youth Ministry (Southern View Chapel, Pastor Gary Gilley)

Rob Bell Recommends New Age teacher Ken Wilber to His Readers (Crossroad, Berit Kjos)

How We Are Sanctified: The Means of Grace (Bob DeWaay, Critical Issues Commentary)

Et tu, Jars of Clay?

Posted by Christine Pack

"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

It used to be that professing Christians, even the more liberal ones, knew that unrepentant sin was not okay. But no longer. In today's finger-in-the-air, blow-with-the-trends evangelicalism, it seems that those who call themselves "Christian" today must be stopped at the gate for a definition-of-terms check. Affirms Jesus as the Son of God? Check. The substitutionary atonement as payment for sins? Check. Jesus raised from the dead as proof of his satisfactory work? Check. Gives a pass on homosexual sin in the name of ultra-tolerant love? Not so fast, buster.

Which brings me to my subject for today. The lead singer of one of my all time favorite Christian singing groups, Jars of Clay, recently began tweeting out his support for same sex marriage, and then expressed dismay that other Christians would challenge him on this, while claiming that the Bible has nothing to say on the matter of morality.

I can't say I'm completely surprised at this stance taken by Dan Haseltine. Not to be unkind, but CCM artists are hardly known for their strong doctrinal positions. However, Jars of Clay released a hymns album (Redemption Songs) back in 2005 that really ministered to me one summer early in my Christian walk. The reworked hymns contained beautiful doctrinal treatises on God's holiness, the seriousness of sin, and man's wretchedness and inability to save himself that really helped ground me as a new believer struggling in a mainstream evangelicalism that had just begun to go squishy and liberal. Maybe Dan Haseltine needs to go back to that wonderful hymns CD the group did, and listen to some of the theology that they so beautifully set to music, and remember that (1) unrepentant sin is serious to God and (2) that God clearly spells out for us in Scripture what is sinful, and yes, unrepentant homosexual sin is on the list.

I'm not saying that homosexual sin is specifically named in any of the hymns done by Jars of Clay (it's not), but true Christians who know the Word of God know that the Bible teaches clearly and unambiguously that unrepentant homosexual sin is wrong in God's eyes. That's not to say that a person might not struggle with homosexual urges....they can and surely do, in the same way that someone else might struggle with pride or anger or covetousness. But to attempt to normalize that sin, and shaming those who won't? No, no, no. For shame, Dan Haseltine. I'm calling you, as your sister in Christ, to repentance. I pray that God will grant you Godly sorrow over your public comments on this issue.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

From the beautiful hymn Hiding Place, originally composed by John Hyatt Brewer (1856-1931), and recorded by Jars of Clay on their Redemption Songs CD. Surely a plain reading of this hymn reveals God as the giver of moral standards, as well as man's inability to save himself through his own ideas of truth or his own attempts at righteous works:

Hiding Place

You know the vileness of my heart
So prone to act the rebel's part
And when You veil Your lovely face
How can I find a hiding place 

How unstable is my heart
Sometimes I take the tempter's part
And slight the tokens of Thy grace
And seem to want no hiding place 

But when Thy spirit shines within
Makes me feel the plague of sin
And how I long to see Thy face
'Tis then I want a hiding place 

Lord Jesus, shine and then I can
Feel sweetness in salvation's plan
And as a sinner plead for grace
Christ, the sinner's hiding place.

 Additional Resources 

The Folly of Same Sex Theology

Dan Haseltine Responds to Media Frenzy Over His Support for Same-Sex Marriage

A Biblical Response to Matthew Vines ("God and the Gay Christian") by Dr. James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries

Jars of Clay Lead Says of Christian Upbringing: I'm Not That Way Now."

World Vision Affirms Same Sex Marriage [UPDATED]

Posted by Christine Pack

(UPDATE: About a day after their announcement that they would begin hiring professing Christians in same sex marriages, World Vision made a statement reversing this new policy change, calling it a "mistake." While I am glad for this reversal, my prediction is that World Vision will eventually reverse this reversal, only they will do it quietly next time, without any kind of grand public statement. I think they learned their lesson, especially after immediately being called out by Franklin Graham and Dr. Albert Mohler, and others. Our Facebook wall was also flooded with comments from readers expressing that they could no longer in good conscience partner with World Vision. So sadly, the lesson I think World Vision learned was not to have greater fidelity to God's word, but to "manage" their liberalism more covertly. I could be wrong about how this plays out, but time will tell. I think that liberal churches and organizations [and yes, I'm counting World Vision among them] are just biding their time until such time as same sex marriage is legal in all states. At that point, I predict they will be straight up same sex marriage affirming, and will feign shock and dismay that "certain" Christians [and we know who they are, right?] still refuse to affirm homosexuality as lawful and good in God's eyes. The law is the law, right? I can just hear it now. Be prepared for World Vision to go all Romans 13 on us at that time, it's coming.)

Richard Stearns, U.S. President of World Vision, announced today that the organization would reverse its previous policy of requiring their employees to abide by marriage as defined in God's word as one man and one woman, and would begin hiring professing Christians who were in legal same-sex unions. From the article:

World Vision's American branch will no longer require its more than 1,100 employees to restrict their sexual activity to marriage between one man and one woman. 

Stearns asserts that the "very narrow policy change" should be viewed by others as "symbolic not of compromise but of [Christian] unity." He even hopes it will inspire unity elsewhere among Christians.

(Online Source: World Vision: Why We're Hiring Gay Christians in Same-Sex Marriages)

At the same time, World Vision claims to be distinctively Christian. From their website:

We are Christian: We acknowledge one God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In Jesus Christ, the love, mercy and grace of God are made known to us and all people. From this overflowing abundance of God’s love, we find our call to ministry........We bear witness to the redemption offered only through faith in Jesus Christ. The staff we engage are equipped by belief and practice to bear this witness. (online source)

Sorry, but World Vision can't have it both ways. If World Vision is going to reject the authority of God's word, it would be better for Christianity if, going forward, they would simply proceed purely as a relief organization, and not as an organization claiming any Christian distinctives. After all, for true believers, Scripture is our guideline in all matters of faith and practice. And the Bible is not unclear on what it says about unrepentant homosexuality, so it's not a matter of interpretation, but one of obedience. World Vision simply can't claim to be a Christian organization, but then deny the Bible in practice where it speaks clearly and authoritative on matters, as it does on unrepentant homosexuality.

 Bending To the Culture 

Caving on the same sex marriage issue is a very "cultural" stand for World Vision to take. By explicitly making a public statement that they will, from now on, be hiring into their organization homosexuals who profess to be gay, then they are accepting, as valid, a profession of Christian faith from practicing, unrepentant homosexuals. And again, by doing so, World Vision is rejecting the authority of the Bible, which condemns unrepentant homosexual sin (along with all other unrepentant sins).

 Administering ONLY Relief to The Needy Will Merely Make Them Comfortable on Their Way To Hell 

Richard Stearns stated in his interview with Christianity Today that:

"...when Christ left, he gave us the Great Commission [to make disciples] and the Great Commandment [to love others as ourselves], and we're trying to do just that."

But is this accurate? Is this how World Vision operates? Are they seeking to preach the gospel message to the lost, that there is a holy God who made them and to whom they are beholden, and who commands all people everywhere to repent and believe on Christ's atoning death for forgiveness and reconciliation? If so, I could not find any evidence on the World Vision website of the gospel message being a part of the World Vision ministry.

"World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice." (online source)

Unless I missed something, from looking at the World Vision website, it seems apparent to me that World Vision sees their primary focus as being one of bringing relief to the needy. Nowhere on the site did I find a statement attesting to the  desire to bring lost sinners into a saving relationship with their Creator, who made them and who has a righteous claim on their lives. And while there is nothing at all wrong with ministering to the poor and needy, and a whole lot good with doing so, Christians need to remember that ONLY doing benevolent acts for the disenfranchised is not the same thing as preaching the gospel to them. While growing up in a very liberal mainline denomination, one thing I heard often was this quote (often wrongly ascribed to St. Francis of Assisi):

 "Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary." 

This quote makes me cringe today. The gospel cannot somehow be mysteriously conveyed by kindness or good works. The gospel is a distinct message, communicated with words. Of course, kindness can and should enhance the message of the gospel, but the gospel is a MESSAGE. It's a message comprised of actual words which convey the truth of our Savior, Jesus the God-man, who lived a perfect life that He offered up as an atonement for the sins of wretched, sinful man. Kind actions cannot convey that message.

"For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." (1 Corinthians 2:2)

Going into third world countries with medicine and blankets, and digging wells, and building infrastructure are good, benevolent and loving things to do. But such actions are not a SUBSTITUTE for speaking the actual gospel message. Thus, if an organization claims to be Christian, but does not proclaim Jesus Christ and him crucified for the forgiveness of sins, then they really ought to rethink their mission statement. I contend that if Richard Stearns and World Vision are only ministering to the physical needs of those in need, and not their greatest need, their spiritual need, then they really ought not to identify themselves as a Christian organization. It only muddies the waters for the rest of us who don't mind taking heat from the world for giving the gospel that offends and for taking stands that aren't popular, such as the hotly raging same-sex marriage issue.

Let me close with this exhortation: To my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, please don't be under any illusions that if you give $$$ to World Vision that you will be participating in the unadulterated gospel message going forth into the world. Jesus did not turn a blind eye to sin (homosexual or otherwise), nor did He bend to cultural trends.


 Additional Resources 

On World Vision and the Gospel

Pointing To Disaster — The Flawed Moral Vision of World Vision 

Franklin Graham's Statement on World Vision