Thursday, September 23, 2010

John Ortberg and Dallas Willard Teach a False Gospel

from Chris Rosebrough's "Museum of Idolatry"


In this video John Ortberg and Dallas Willard attack the Biblical Gospel and the Biblical teaching on grace and replace it with a false gospel and false doctrine of grace.


Catalyst West 2010: Dallas Willard Part 1 from Catalyst on Vimeo.


Compare what you just heard these two men say to these passages of scripture:

“Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” (Romans 3:19–25)
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—” (Ephesians 2:1–5)
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)


 Additional Resources 

Is Dallas Willard is a Universalist?

Monvee: Mysticism For The Masses

Is Dallas Willard A Christian?

Roman Catholic Monastic Mysticism

Mysticism: A Counterfeit Holy Spirit

Fighting For The Faith Interview

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Dr. Jason Lisle Gives Proof of Young Earth Creation

Dr. Jason Lisle of Answers in Genesis does a great job on a recent program of refuting those who would argue against the existence of God and the biblical account of creation.  Dr. Jason Lisle, an astrophysicist with a PhD, refutes the evolutionary account of origins, using his strong science background.

Dr. Lisle starts out by quoting Dr. Werner Gitt, one of the world's foremost experts in Information Science, who has said:
"There is no law of nature, no known process and no known sequence of events that can cause information to originate by itself in matter."
In layman's terms, this just means that information doesn't create itself....and even given enough time, information will not create itself.  Information always involves an active, outside force acting upon disordered systems to make them become ordered and informational.

And that's just the start. Give this program a listen and see if Dr. Lisle doesn't open your eyes to the problems with Darwinian evolutionary "science."

And just as a side note......I absolutely love the work they're doing over there at Answers in Genesis.  They have some of the brightest and best minds of today on staff, and they are literally turning on its ear the argument that anyone who believes in Young Earth creation simply can't be very educated.  I think when the atheists, the secular humanists and the Darwinian scientists wake up at night grinding their teeth it's because they've been having nightmares about AIG. The thing I absolutely love about AIG is that they have burst onto the scene in such a major way and have become such a burr under the saddle for people who want to "scientifically reason away" a sovereign Creator God. Answers in Genesis just simply won't let them.


See also:

Fighting For The Faith Radio Program with Dr. Jason Lisle

Fighting For The Faith

Answers in Genesis

Some Modern Scientists Who Have Accepted the Biblical Account of Creation

Friday, September 17, 2010

Forgiveness Better Than Cheap Thrill of Mysticism

Reader Question: Mysticism is not primarily about practice. It is about insight. Practice or practices, techniques, disciplines are all secondary. They're pedagogical tactics, used because people won't see when you tell them 'see!'

The question is not whether we foolish humans think something is okay or not.....the question is what does the Bible say about such things?

Nowhere in the Bible do we have the instructions:
"If by plain teaching a man will not see the truth about God, then please attempt to reach him through whatever methods seem appropriate."
No, it never says that, and in fact, Paul rebuked the Colossians for chasing after empty, mystical visions after having laid hold of Christ:
"Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind." (Col 2:18)
The entire book of Hebrews also addresses this raging controversy of mysticism quite comprehensively.  Humans have constantly gone after the tangible, the substantive in religious practices...because absent being in a real relationship with God, what has someone got? Bells and whistles.  Icons and incense.  Whipped up mystical states, whatever the vehicle might be: whether it is in the privacy of one's own room repeating a mantra to empty the mind, or in a concert hall swaying to throbbing, hypnotic music, repeating choruses over and over and thereby achieving the same mind-emptied state.

But as Christians, we have something far better than whipped-up mystical experiences: we have God's Word.  Astonishing that such a thing could even exist, and astonishing that access to the mind of God is given to such as us.

Reader Question: "If man doesn't find God in his soul, 'totally depraved' as it may be, he won't find it anywhere."

This is the same argument that I pleaded for a number of years with my own father when he was witnessing to me and trying to help me see that my mystical experiences as a practicing Hindu were NOT from God, but were in fact, as stated above, whipped up mystical states (which is what the lost mind will resort to when it does not have God).  No, I was convinced I had found God in my own soul, no better or different than what my father was claiming as a Christian.

Here's the bottom line on that: if in fact it is true that a man can find God in his own soul, then what is the point of the Cross?  If I could get there as a Hindu, if mystical Jews can get there through Kabbalah, if Native American Indians can get there through Shamanism, then why the Cross?

I would submit to you that there is something even greater than whipped up mystical states demonically designed to comfort and lull the lost soul into thinking he knows God when in fact he is far from God......and that is forgiveness of sins.  After that, who needs the cheap crack high of a mystical state?

photo credit: Stig Nygaard via photo pin cc
photo credit: sashapo via photo pin cc

 Additional Resources 

Thursday, September 16, 2010


Posted by Christine Pack

Thank you to Linda Harvey of Mission America for recently having me on her radio program.  I briefly gave my testimony and told why we write the Sola Sisters blog. We also discussed spiritual disciplines, and how these Christian sounding practices are not Christian....and are covertly bringing Roman Catholic monastic mysticism and eastern meditation practices into churches today.


 Additional Resources 

Mission America

The Dangers of Spiritual Formation and Spiritual Disciplines

Unbiblical Teachings on Prayer, Mysticism and "Experiencing God"

The False Claims and Practices of "Christian Mystics"

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Redeemer Elder Proves He Is Not Equipped to Fulfill Role of Elder

Tim Keller's Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City continues its surprising slide into mysticism with a new quote from one its elders.  We've previously documented several instances of new age mantra meditation practices being promoted or even taught at Redeemer, including a recent class offering called "The Way of the Monk," which taught attendees how to practice Roman Catholic monastic mysticism.  When questioned about these practices, one elder responded:
"We at Redeemer are focused entirely as a church on our audience in the Center City. Our conviction is that this audience can discern among the incredible variety of sources for their spirituality and reason what is good and what is not. We believe we can draw on and refer to sources that may be outside of the core beliefs of orthodox Christianity historically and our audience can benefit from it without getting sucked into any heretical parts of that source. We believe this for the non-Christians that attend, who are completely contending within the world with all of the diverse input they might be getting, as well as for the believers." (Elder at Redeemer Presbyterian, NYC)
In making this statement, this elder at Redeemer has abdicated his right to serve as an elder.
"An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer is entrusted with God's work, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it." (Titus 1:6-9, my emphasis)
We need our elders to guard the flocks entrusted to them, "holding firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught."  This means that elders must not allow sound teachings mixed with error to be brought into their churches, but should "refute those who oppose" sound doctrine.

Also, contrast this elder's statement to the life of the Apostle Paul, who basically spent his entire ministry calling out and refuting false teaching:
- Gnosticism (Ephesians)
- Secular philosophy, eastern mysticism & strict ascetism (Colossians)
- Jewish legalism (Galatians)
- Fanaticism (Thessalonians)
- Those denying the resurrection of Jesus (Corinthians)
What we need today are sober-minded, Godly men who take seriously their charge before God to guard their flocks, to bar the door, if need be, and say, "You will not bring false teaching into this church!" Where are such men?


 Additional Resources 

The Need for Elders Who Guard Their Flocks

Does Tim Keller Endorse New Age Teachers?

"The Way of the Monk" at Redeemer

Testimony of a Former Roman Catholic Priest



 Additional Resources 

Far From Rome, Near to God

The Berean Beacon 

A Chart With Christian/Catholic Views Side-By-Side (courtesy of former Roman Catholic priest Richard Bennett)