Desiring "A" God Attempts To Bully Biblical Christians Into Accepting LGBT In Their Churches Again

"The truth is that sin is sin, temptation is temptation, and “men who have sex with men” is listed right alongside greed, drunkenness, deception, and slander as worthy of exclusion from the Kingdom (1 Corinthians 6:9–10). All equally damnable. Who among us is innocent?" ~Desiring A God ministries on "homophobia" in the church and he goes on to bully Christians into accepting sodomites and all of LGBTs in the churches and start loving them (because apparently we don't love).

But does God equalize all sin? Scripture says that there are various sins and various levels of punishment. Moreover, sodomy is highly offensive and is actually the rock bottom of human depravity according to Romans 1 and Genesis 19.

Gen 18:20 And the LORD said, "The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is EXCEEDINGLY GRAVE.

God destroyed entire cities for their sodomy which btw, included children and old people. To equalize all sin is reject the righteous justice of God (reflected for example, in the Law--murder was NOT equated with rape or stealing). To be tempted by the same sex shows an extraordinarily dark heart b/c it goes against the very nature God has given us as males and females and our order of being attracted to the opposite sex. Sodomy is rebellion against HIS order. Sodomy is absolutely of a particular wickedness.

Sodomy is a perverted desire and cannot biblically be sanitized as a mere "struggle" like someone struggling to not eat chocolate. God labels it for what it is: perverted passions and unnatural (that is, NOT according to nature--His created order). 

Romans 1 labels homosexuality as: lusts of their hearts, impure, dishonorable passions, consumed with passion, unnatural, contrary to nature.

This beating the sheep into false guilt and false hatred, perverting the natural and right reaction of disgust for sodomy is becoming the war cry of Desiring A God ministries, particularly their sodomite-in-residence, Nick Roen. 

The enemy might try to be subtle, but it's not undetectable. The downgrade of Desiring "God" (or Desiring A God) and today's Calvinists is obvious. Folks, this article is nothing but an attack on what should be a normal response to such hideous sexual perversion, along with trying to divorce what is a NORMAL and RIGHT reaction (perversion should disgust and anger us as it does God), from a mere "definition of marriage". This is a clarion call by Desiring "God" yet AGAIN, to affirm homosexual Christians AND embrace them in the church...something church discipline is supposed to weed out. Total rebellion against God and incrementalism of accepting sodomy (they bought into the lie that sodomy comes by way of DNA which is wholly UNbiblical and unsubstantiated by any true science and it will never be proven b/c it is at heart, a SIN issue, a SPIRITUAL issue--Romans 1). Between white guilt and homophobia, Desiring A God ministries is quite the tool for demonic doctrine and practices now.

In the article Roen makes some audacious, unbiblical, and awful assumptions:

"Simply put, homophobia means a fear of homosexuality and, more specifically, homosexual people. And while it is not the same as loving, biblical opposition to certain behaviors or beliefs, this fear-based attitude often leads to unhelpful stereotypes, prejudice, and even cruel mistreatment."

Honestly consider your own heart in the following examples:

• Is your belief that same-sex sexual activity is sin based finally on solid biblical exegesis? Or is it really based on the fact that you don’t understand how someone could be attracted to the same sex, and this unknown seems to you just plain creepy?
• Is your opposition to so-called same-sex marriage based on a principled biblical definition of marriage? Or is it more influenced by a fear that same-sex couples might signal the unraveling of comfortable cultural norms and usher in the end of a once-pristine “Judeo-Christian society”? Or maybe your fear is more that one such couple might move in next door, and you might actually be pressured to befriend them?
• Does your opposition to homosexual practice include the ability to lovingly welcome LGBT people into a Sunday service or other gathering with other Christians? Or does opposition for you mean that you wish they would just stay away so you aren’t made uncomfortable by their very presence?
• In standing for Christian sexual ethics, do you encourage and support those SSA believers within the church who are striving to remain faithful to biblical teaching by welcoming them into full participation in church life? Or does standing for biblical sexuality mean that they can come to church, but they can’t grow in influence or serve the body through teaching, and they should probably stay away from the youth group?
   End quote.

The subtle attacks are there. Presuming people are fearful (using an example of a man who actually was indeed attacked by a sodomite). Straw Man argument. Unless you want to rightly say we are to fear in being associated with such heinous sin; fear in compromising and becoming desensitized to such perversion. That kind of fear is biblical. Here is how Jude puts it:

Jud 1:22  And have mercy on some, who are doubting; 

Jud 1:23  save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh. 

"Is your belief that same-sex sexual activity is sin based finally on solid biblical exegesis? Or is it really based on the fact that you don’t understand how someone could be attracted to the same sex, and this unknown seems to you just plain creepy?"

Understanding how someone can be attracted to the same sex (a wholly perverted desire) isn't the issue and since Roen brought it up, no, how can a normal person who's heart isn't hardened to such an extent possibly understand something so utterly grotesque? It's worse than creep; it's abominable, grave, and unnatural sin.

Next Roen states:

"Is your opposition to so-called same-sex marriage based on a principled biblical definition of marriage? Or is it more influenced by a fear that same-sex couples might signal the unraveling of comfortable cultural norms and usher in the end of a once-pristine “Judeo-Christian society”? Or maybe your fear is more that one such couple might move in next door, and you might actually be pressured to befriend them?"

There we go again with the "fear" attack. His subtle attack is indeed on the unchanging order of morality, marriage, family, and society.  The worldview of the homosexual activists has indeed already changed not only our society, but our churches and Roen's a glaring example. What's wrong with hating such changes away from a biblical worldview, anyway? That should indeed be our grief. We shouldn't accept it as ok, normal, or neutral.

The presumption by Roen here too, is that sodomites WANT to befriend Christians. They want nothing of the sort once you identify yourself as a biblical Christian and as you stand firm on the Truth (and you don't even have to mention sodomy---other issues come up which will divide--their politics, psycho-heresy, Post-Modernism, pragmatism, healthcare, personal responsibility versus socialism--take your pick--that will cause the great divide to be clearly marked out--I know, I've lived through this very thing in my extended family).

Furthering his diatribe to justify his own perversion, Roen continues:

"Does your opposition to homosexual practice include the ability to lovingly welcome LGBT people into a Sunday service or other gathering with other Christians? Or does opposition for you mean that you wish they would just stay away so you aren’t made uncomfortable by their very presence?"

First of all, Roen's view of the church is way off. The churches, by very definition are the eclessia, the called out ones gathering together for worship of the triune God in spirit and in Truth. Church discipline is to weed out those in unrepentant sin--which sodomy is.

Considering that these are people who are attracted to the same sex, a perversion of desires, showing a dark heart of rebellion, they're attraction is going to exist. Who wants to be on that end of the perversion? It's  disgusting. 

Why should the church accept rebels, especially those who claim Christ? Such people are already buying into psychology which is another prohibition by God. Eph. 4 states that we are to reject the thinking of the unbelievers and their worldview and their impurities, not accept them.

Col 2:8  See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. 

Eph 4:17  So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 

Eph 4:18  being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 

Eph 4:19  and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 

Eph 4:20  But you did not learn Christ in this way, 

" Or does opposition for you mean that you wish they would just stay away so you aren’t made uncomfortable by their very presence?" Roen lobs at us. Well, think about this. Is he not trying to make US feel uncomfortable? Is he not trying to sanitize sodomy (soften it and relabel it as "SSA") and condemn biblical Christianity? And could it not be that the discomfort is normal because sodomy is so abnormal? Couldn't it be that the discomfort is from the fact that rebellious sinners are in our midst, and 1) likely they are here to spy out our biblical views and practices, ie criticize and test our biblical stands, 2) that they are sodomite activists here to push their views on us despite our statement of faith and preaching from the pulpit, or 3) they might act out on their perversion, 4) they are about to create a division between "us" and "them" - something Roen is involved in doing, by virtue of their identity and twisted lusts? The billy club wielded at Christians by sodomites is an evil one. Some of us know what the nature of all of this is: spiritual warfare. Biblical Christians don't want the enemy of Christ dwelling among us because they are not of Christ nor in Christ. They are dividers, instigators, activists. Why seek out a church when you know they won't agree with your wicked desires? There's only one answer: to beat them into acceptance of their wickedness and thus change the church.

Lastly Roen says:

"In standing for Christian sexual ethics, do you encourage and support those SSA believers within the church who are striving to remain faithful to biblical teaching by welcoming them into full participation in church life? Or does standing for biblical sexuality mean that they can come to church, but they can’t grow in influence or serve the body through teaching, and they should probably stay away from the youth group?" [bold, my emphasis]

Sexual ethics? Let's be clear, deviant sexual desires are SINFUL and rebellious  and spiritual in nature, not a mere moral issue to theorize about, and therefore by definition no biblicalChristian and no Christian church can support such a thing. Nor can we support such a community of rebels. Remaining faithful to biblical teaching necessitates starting with Genesis which clearly states that God created all things in six literal days by the power of His Word, that God created humankind as either male or female and that they should be attracted to each other and that sexual activity is to remain solely within biblical marriage. Further biblical teaching states that sodomy is so grave that God destroyed entire cities for it; that Jesus upheld that righteous judgement; that God condemns sodomy throughout all ages and throughout all Scripture and throughout all cultures, as see in the patriarchs (Genesis 19:1-28) - In the Law of Moses (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13) - In the Prophets (Ezekiel 16:46-50) - In the New Testament (Romans 1:18-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Jude 7-8).  Remaing faithful to biblical teaching would necessarily then accept the Word, not argue against it, or get angry against it's declarations (James 1:19,21) that psychology, a philosophy is a doctrine of demons (James 3:15; 1Tim. 4:1-2), that sodomy and it's desires are sinful, and that evolution is false.

Why would we want rebellious people who are full of perversion and darkness want to influence the sheep? Moreover, why would the sodomites seek to do so? I appeal to my points up above numbers 1-4. The fact that he admits they want to be involved and influence others merely states my point. And my concern.

There is something else that I want to point out, as I have done so in other articles upon this topic. Scripture makes it clear that once we are born again by God, that is, given a new heart, made a new man in Christ, we are no longer identified with the old man, the enslaved man, the rebel against Christ. Rather we are now submissive under His kingship, we identify as saints, those who have new hearts, a renewed mind, understanding of biblical truth, a new will, new desires, and the indwelling HOLY Spirit who convicts us of our sin and causes us to walk in righteousness as we abide in Christ and the Word.

Be fearful of Him who WILL cast both body and soul into hell; He is the all-knowing, all-seeing God who does in fact see your perverted, rebellious, enslaved heart. Moreover He hears you slap HIS holy name onto such perverted desires, mocking and blaspheming HIS holy name and He is not to be trifled with. You ought to be fearing the Living God.

1Co 6:9  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, 1Co 6:10  nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

1Co 6:11  And such WERE some of you.  BUT you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.  [Note that the identification is no longer with any of those sins like homosexuality, but solely with Christ--we are now saints, set free from the bondage of sin.]

Jude 1:7  just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Most "Christians" today use humanity as the sin-equalizer, rejecting the particular sins God has set forth as especially egregious. This itself is sinful, and ignores the severe warning of those who either commit sodomy or defend it. It treats such a sin and desire as a medical issue just like the lie of "alcoholism", claiming it's genetic (it is not). Therefore such a view by "Christians" makes the sodomite of the heart, a person who is enslaved to that unnatural, perverted sin a matter of the physical instead of the spiritual.. It denies God's judicial verdict of such a heinous crime against HIS holiness and HIS law. And it rejects true agape love that tells the sodomite of his enslavement to sin and it's just wage of death, as well as the only hope OUT of it which is by salvation in Christ alone (this means abandoning that sin altogether, which is what we do in Christ--we are, after all, more than victorious in HIM).

Such articles as Desiring A God is pumping out by Nick Roen, denies the Holy Spirit's victorious work in breaking the enslavement of sin as well as identifying with Christ in His life, death, resurrection, Who set us free from the bondage of wickedness and sin, causing us to say no to ungodliness (which by the way, starts in the heart/mind) (Titus 2:12).  

"The truth is that sin is sin, temptation is temptation, and “men who have sex with men” is listed right alongside greed, drunkenness, deception, and slander as worthy of exclusion from the Kingdom (1 Corinthians 6:9–10). All equally damnable. Who among us is innocent?" Roen also states.

No, not all sin is equal before God. But all sin is equally wicked before the thrice holy God.

It must be stated that homosexuality is a heinous crime against God. It is first of all, a sexual sin, and secondly, it violates natural law to a great degree. Homosexuality (together with pedophilia, beastiality and necrophilia etc) are considered extremely debased sins (cf Rom. 1:24-27), worse in degree compared to other sins like theft. Now of course, we admit that all sin is sinful before God. Yet there are graduations of sin. For example, it is definitely better to lust than to engage in rape, although both are sinful. Likewise, it is better to covet than to commit a robbery. The failure to understand that there are horizontal graduations of sin is what gives us the generic "evangelical" eisegesis of Mt. 7:1, and the false idea that no one can judge sins (yet ironically they judge the one who judges as committing a worse sin). It gives rise to the specter of the sinner coming before God and praying, "Dear Lord, I thank you that I am not a judgmental person like those Pharisees. I sin openly and proudly, since I know that your blood covers my sin, unlike those self-righteous, narrow-minded and bigoted people."

~Daniel Chew

We're sinful, thus prone to yielding to temptation and entertaining sinful desires. Believers are forgiven, thus have a new nature, and are able to 1) resist the temptation to have sinful desires and 2) repent when we choose not to resist. Christ, although tested as we are, resisted temptation and did not sin, either in thought or deed. All these temptations are "such as are common to man", per James. Homosexuality is not in this category.  It is an abomination that arise only in the hearts of those who are wholly in rebellion against God and have thus been " given over" to such desires.  It is not just "a sin" that any believer will be prone to be tempted to. A born again person now has a new heart that more than acknowledges God, but worships and loves Him. This is not the case of sodomites according to Romans 1.The problem comes when homosexuality/"SSA" is moved out of its rightful context in Romans 1, into the context of James, or Matt 5.

I'm tired of people making humanity the trump card that equalizes sin and demands respect for sodomy and its participants. The thing about "humanity" is that our human nature is dead in its sins and trespasses and is naturally hostile and rebellious against God (Rom. 1, 3, Eph.2). It is precisely because of man's sin that some choose sodomy. Respect for a person being a human being is limited in scope and application. I suggest reading the Old Testament and Revelation to see how much emphasis God places on these people He made in His image and whether that affected His judgement against them or deflected His holy wrath.

Gen 18:20  Then the LORD said, "Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave

Jude 1:7  just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Ignoring the heinous crime of sodomy which is ultimately against God because it's His law that is being violated, professing Christians minimize the gravity and the consequence of certain sins.

Homosexuality

Sodomy isn't confusion in the mind of a person. It is outright rebellion against God's creative order.

The Truth

Psa 145:18 The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. 
Psa 145:19 He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He will also hear their cry and will save them.

Joh 17:17  "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.

Joh 4:24  "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." 

Eph 4:20  But you did not learn Christ in this way, 
Eph 4:21  if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 
Eph 4:22  that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, 
Eph 4:23  and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 

Eph 4:24  and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. 

God does not hear all prayers nor is He near to all people. Neither can just anyone worship Him--it must be by a new spirit, through the Holy Spirit, and in the Word of Truth.

The Centrality of the Word

If you doubt God's Word, beginning with the Beginning or with the End, you will doubt His Word in between. How can you be sanctified then? Where will you get wisdom,knowledge and insight?

Joh 17:6 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your WORD.
Joh 17:7 "Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You;
Joh 17:8 for the WORDS which You gave Me I have given to them; and THEY RECEIVED THEM and truly UNDERSTOOD that I came forth from You, and they BELIEVED that You sent Me.

Joh 17:14 "I have given them YOUR WORD; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

Joh 17:17 "Sanctify them IN THE TRUTH; YOUR WORD IS TRUTH.
Joh 17:18 "As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
Joh 17:19 "For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be SANCTIFIED IN TRUTH.

The Word the disciples received was all the doctrines Christ taught which included:

Creation by His Word
Who the Father is
Who Jesus is
Who the Holy Spirit is
Jesus' deity
Jesus' salvation
Jesus' lordship
Jesus' resurrection
Jesus' glory
Jesus' exclusivity of salvation
Man's total depravity
Warning against the leaven of Herod and Jews (a little IS deadly)
Our new creation and identity in Christ.
Put off the old man
Knowing the Word
Obedience to the Word of Christ.
His return to gather the saints
His return as Judge over all the earth in a final battle (Day of the Lord)
Destruction of heaven and earth
How a church is to be/not be (like in Rev. 2-3)
Morality and warnings against homosexuality
God's wrath
Marriage
Literal Heaven and Hell
Church discipline
Giving
What love is and how to love
How to worship God
Promises of and how to view trials, insults, and persecutions
Nature and object of hope
Worry
Trust

Dealing With Sin As If It Is Physical And Not Spiritual Is Unbiblical

To think that there is such a thing as "mental illness" or  homosexuality is in part due to DNA or just physical things, necessarily means one doesn't need to deal with such as spiritual issues, but rather deal with these matters according to the flesh. Yet what God says is this:

2Co 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
2Co 10:4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
2Co 10:5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,

Romans 1 and Phil. 4 says these are indeed spiritual issues. 

Col 2:8  See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

Heb 4:12  For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 

Heb 4:13  And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. 

Eph 4:17  So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, 18  being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; 

Devotion to Christ and His Doctrine: science sets itself up against the Truth

To even consider that sin is the result of the physical, that is, to accept even partially, "science's" claim that sodomy is due in part to DNA is to have started to wander from the simplicity and purity of biblical Truth and to become persuaded by "plausible" arguments that have set themselves up against Christ.

Col 2:2  that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, 
Col 2:3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 

Col 2:4  I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument. 

2Co 11:3  But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. 

2Co 11:4  For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. 

2Co 10:3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 

2Co 10:4  for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 

2Co 10:5  We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 

Which God Do You Have In Your Mind?

"The sinner’s ignorance and unconsciousness of his enmity against God are due to the false conceptions which he entertains of His nature and character. If he were better acquainted with the God of Holy Writ, he would be more aware of his hatred of Him. But the God he believes in is merely a creation of his own fancy. The true God is ineffably holy, inflexibly just. His wrath burns against sin and He will by no means clear the guilty. If mankind likes the true God, why is it that they have set up so many false gods? If they admire the truth, why have they invented so many false systems of religion?"

~ Arthur Pink, "The Doctrine of Man's Impotence"

We Must Look At These Things Spiritually

I'm finding lately that more and more "Christians" are looking at things from a man-centered, worldly law-of-the-land view, instead of the biblical view. 

To portray a woman who desires to kill her baby as a mere victim or accomplice and not a murderer is to ignore Jesus' own words about murder in the heart. Within aborting a baby is unbelief, self-idolatry, sexual immorality, anger, hatred, feminism, etc. To ignore the reality which is defined as truth as God has set forth in Scripture (and vice versa: truth is the reality that God has set forth in Scripture), that these things are spiritual in nature, is to miss the devastation and guilt of sin according to God.

*Abortion and **politics are spiritual in nature. To look to man's law to define reality and then deal accordingly is going to miss the ultimate issue as well as the best way to not only view these things, but how to deal with them. While righteous laws are tools of God in which to rule a nation temporarily, they are still man-centered and do indeed fluctuate with the current culture and will only have a temporal impact at best. The Jude isn't a man in a black robe sitting in a court. The Jude is God Himself, who judges not only man's actions, but his heart as well.

*For the record, both T"G"C's Joe Carter and Al Mohler both think women are not the murderers of their babies, but really just victims.

** 

When false teachers (Kenneth Copeland, Glenn Beck, and Mike Bickle) are pushing a man as anointed by God for president, that is to say, when Satan is pushing such a man to lead this country, it is clear this is a spiritual issue. When a candidate uses God, the Bible, Christianity,the pulpit, claims of words from God, and the churches to gain votes, asks for or is involved in prayer on his behalf or on the behalf of this country, it is a spiritual issue. When a candidate is immoral, lies, is underhanded, it is a spiritual issue. When a candidate accepts and parades around heretical or compromising leaders that support him as a means to gain votes, it's a spiritual issue. When a candidate who is involved in or uses Word of Faith/dominionists it is a spiritual issue. When a candidate is of a false religion like the RCC or LDS, it is a spiritual issue. When a candidate doesn't fear God it is a spiritual issue. Such candidates do not honor God in leadership and therefore earn His wrath. God demands all kings,rulers, etc to fear Him and follow Him. To GOD it is all a spiritual issue.

Isa 45:18  For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), "I am the LORD, and there is none else. 19  "I have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, 'Seek Me in a waste place'; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, Declaring things that are upright. 

God Never Changes

Mal 3:6  "For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. 

Where has the courage of godly men gone?

Where has the courage of godly men gone?

~ Dr. Henry Morris III

Baptism Bonded To Doctrine

Baptism is bonded to many doctrines such as the Trinity, teaching of doctrine, the Lordship of Christ, repentance, the atonement, and sanctification.

Mat 28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

Mat 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

To ignore the doctrine (and practice) of Baptism is to ignore the very command Jesus gave to baptize believers in His proclamation of having ALL AUTHORITY over Heaven and Earth. Unbiblical baptism is NO baptism and to relegate the issue as a "non-essential" IS to relegate HIS authority and HIS command as "non-essential." That is to say, it IS to be anti-Lordship and be in rebellion against the King of kings and Lord of lords.

See also Rom. 1:1-12, Acts 2:36-42, Acts 8:12, Acts 10:36-42, Matt.3:12-17

To separate the doctrine of Baptism from the other doctrines by creating a doctrinal triage, one is actually divorcing it from them. Divorce is, after all, man separating what God has joined together.

Not Easter, But Resurrection Day: the whole point is the risen Lord Jesus Christ. Have you met Him?

The Reason For The Season: remembering the resurrection of Jesus Christ

Rom 1:1  Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,
Rom 1:2  which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures,
Rom 1:3  concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 
Rom 1:4  who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,

Teddy Bear Christianity: religious political correctness and spiritual terrorists

2Pe 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; 3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

"Our security services and our police, hamstrung by political correctness, are just as interested (or more?) in rounding up Twitter “hate speech” offenders than criminal, rapist, or terrorist migrants. Our borders are as porous as our brains. We refuse to realise that there are now literally millions of people amongst us who hate us. Who hate our way of life, and who will, one day, dominate our public life." - Raheem Kassam, Breitbart, "Enough With the Teddy Bears and Tears: It's time to take back our civilization" on the West's repeated reactions to terrorists attacks like Brussels'

This can be said spiritually too. Church discipline is hamstrung by "religious pc" (aka the idol of graciousness and tolerance, aka "fair and balanced"). "Christian leaders" are more interested in silencing "hate speech"( aka ungracious speech, aka judgmentalism, aka unloving or unkind speech). Our doctrinal borders are as porous as our brains. Christians refuse to believe that there are enemies of the cross who secretly have crept in among us, among our own church elders, among the famous celeb Christians (teachers/speakers/bands/authors), those who really do hate Christ but have camouflaged themselves as "brothers"--- not so much to "spy out our freedom" but to spy out biblical obedience to the laws of Christ Jesus. Like our politicians unwilling to call Muslim terrorists, terrorists or jihadists, even refusing to call a jihad by its name but rather scale it back to "workplace violence" by "lone rangers", Christians refuse to call false teachers as such, but merely brothers who differ in doctrine and/or practice--someone with some bad theology, but someone who's not that bad. In both arenas, without identifying the enemy, we won't deal with the enemy appropriately. We live in a Teddy Bear Christianity, a Love Boat, if you will. Christians and their leaders demand we all co-exist. But by the time the doctrinal explosion has been detonated and it's fall out of sinful living has spread like a virus, horrific damage has been done to the souls of men, but worse, to the name of Christ and the Scriptures. Some might wander around shell-shocked ("How could he say that?" or "How could he do that?"), it's too late. Had they listened to the intel of the spiritual profilers (aka discerners), they could've avoided a church split, false teaching cancer, huge building debt, stealing of funds, plagiarism, public humiliation of the fallen pastor, the take over of an entire church. But like the West, and specifically, America, Christians think that spiritual terrorists won't attack their church, nor could they ever infiltrate their elders or "worship leaders". Arrogance both politically and spiritually is deadly. And avoidable.

Rom 16:17 Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. Rom 16:18 For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.

Mat 7:15  "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16  You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Mat 7:17  So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.

2Co 10:5  We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, 

Doctrinal Divorce

Doctrinal triage is doctrine divorce. It’s a severing of doctrine by man when in reality all doctrine is married not only to each other, but to God’s very nature. His doctrine is true reality and reveals His mind (1Cor. 2:16).

It is interesting that Scripture doesn't allow for giving false teachers/ apostates a platform,nor says they have some truth that we can learn from. It states just the opposite. The claim of "who has perfect doctrine" is destroyed in this passage, as is the anti-Lordship salvation view:

On the qualifications of elders [caps, my emphasis]:

Tit 1:9 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.
Tit 1:10 For there are many REBELLIOUS men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,
Tit 1:11 who MUST BE SILENCED because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain.
Tit 1:12 One of themselves, a prophet of their own, said, "Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons."
Tit 1:13 This testimony is true. For this reason REPROVE THEM SEVERELY so that they may be sound in the faith,
Tit 1:14 not paying attention to Jewish myths and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.
Tit 1:15 To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled.
Tit 1:16 They profess to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and WORTHLESS for any good deed.

Indeed, myths and dogmatic teachings of men weren't harmless things they could hold to along with truth. Additionally a godly life is in direct correlation to sound doctrine (v. 9-16). Charismaticism is demonic and earthly, it is gnostic and fleshly. So to accept it as valid is to violate Titus 1.

Doctrinal fidelity in all doctrine proves one's fidelity to Christ Jesus.

2Co 11:3 But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.
2Co 11:4 For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.

Deu 13:3  you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the LORD your God is testing you to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4  "You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him. 

Doctrinal triage also divorces doctrine from practice (sanctification), so the practice of some sin is ok (as shown above) like fellowship with Belial or darkness via gnostics or false teachers even (2 Cor. 6). 

When people use a doctrinal triage, they are divorcing sanctification from salvation, etc, which rejects the whole point of salvation which is that: we are God’s handiwork (Eph. 2:8-10), created for the end of our salvation (Eph. 1:3-4,10-12; 1 Peter 2:12; 4:10; Titus 2:14; 2Thes 1:11-2) which is for His full glory, magnifying His grace in full praise for these attributes of His, according to His decree, purpose, plan, and will (1:4,9-11;2:6-7) and power (Eph. 1:19). We also are saved to the end of salvation for an inheritance (Eph. 1:1,4,18; 5:5; Col. 1:12, 3:24; Heb. 9:15). All of this demonstrates God’s power and Christ’s glory over all (Eph. 1:20-23).

1Th 4:7 For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. 8 So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

The Yoke of Christ: favor with the Lord necessitates being out of favor with the world

Deathbed Conversions?

"If nothing more than the fear of death or horror of Hell prompts the sinner to call upon the Lord, he might just as well call upon the trees. The Almighty is not at the beck and call of any rebel, who, when he is terrified, sues for mercy... The only calling upon His name which the Lord heeds, is that which issues from a broken, penitent, sin-hating heart, which thirsts after holiness."

~ Arthur Pink, "Studies On Saving Faith"

Andy Stanley: people who love small churches are small minded people

Recently, Andy Stanley ***accused Christians who prefer small churches with the sin of selfishness:

When I hear adults say, “Well I don’t like a big church, I like about 200, I want to be able to know everybody,” I say, “You are so stinking selfish. You care nothing about the next generation. All you care about is you and your five friends. You don’t care about your kids [or] anybody else’s kids” … If you don’t go to a church large enough where you can have enough middle schoolers and high schoolers to separate them so they can have small groups and grow up the local church, you are a selfish adult. Get over it. Find yourself a big old church where your kids can connect with a bunch of people and grow up and love the local church. Instead… you drag your kids to a church they hate, and then they grow up and hate the local church. They go to college, and you pray that there will be a church in the college town that they connect with. Guess what? All those churches are big.

~as reported in "Christianity" Today

This lambasting diatribe by false teacher Andy Stanely (who has a dog in the race--his own branch of megachurches) actually speaks out of ignorance on one level. According to a recent study by Duke University  by researcher David Eagle at Duke's Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research, megachurches have less people involved than smaller churches.

Quote:

Research published last week by the American Sociological Association's journal Socius found, according to its abstract, "a negative relationship between size and the probability of attendance for Conservative, Mainline, and black Protestants and for Catholics in parishes larger than 500 attenders."
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/megachurches-less-involved-members-than-small-congregations-duke-study-finds-157080/#VLBDSwMuY4xqbrU4.99

Research published last week by the American Sociological Association's journal Socius found, according to its abstract, "a negative relationship between size and the probability of attendance for Conservative, Mainline, and black Protestants and for Catholics in parishes larger than 500 attenders."

"The addition of control variables does not change these patterns. These results support the theory that group cohesion lies at the heart of the size-participation relationship in churches," continued the abstract.

"With the rapid growth of megachurches in the United States, a negative relationship between size and frequency of attendance could serve to accelerate aggregate declines in attendance.

Eagle told CP that he believed three factors were generating this trend: megachurches having an inherent appeal for those who do not want to regularly attend church, megachurch attendees struggling to form social connections, and megachurch attendees having more members with high incomes than smaller congregations.

~ Excerpts from "Christianity" Today

More importantly, Stanley is pushing for dividing families IN the churches. While I'm not a proponent of "Family Integrated Worship", I do believe that his view is divisive not just with families but with the church. He is borrowing from the secular government school model where all children are divided up by age and that is all they associate with. They become divisive among themselves (6th graders wouldn't be caught dead being seen talking to much less playing with a 3rd grader!), developing a "us versus them", "we're in, you're SO out" clique mentality inside the churches as well as families. This is, ironically, the very heart of selfishness--the thing Stanley wants to accuse small-church members of.

Moreover, it shows Stanley's lack of maturity, that he never grew up out of the government elementary school/high school mentality himself. Scripture however, says that the various ages are a good thing.

Tit 2:3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, 4 so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,

Jas 2:1 My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism....Jas 2:4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?

Jas 2:8  If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF," you are doing well. 9  But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

There is no wisdom from among one's young peers--and if ever this passage holds great warning for such views as Stanley, this is it: 2Ch 10:6 Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, "How do you counsel me to answer this people?" 2Ch 10:7 They spoke to him, saying, "If you will be kind to this people and please them and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever." 2Ch 10:8 But he forsook the counsel of the elders which they had given him, and consulted with the young men who grew up with him and served him.

2Ch 10:9 So he said to them, "What counsel do you give that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, 'Lighten the yoke which your father put on us'?" 2Ch 10:10 The young men who grew up with him spoke to him, saying, "Thus you shall say to the people who spoke to you, saying, 'Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter for us.' Thus you shall say to them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's loins! 2Ch 10:11 'Whereas my father loaded you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.'" 2Ch 10:12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had directed, saying, "Return to me on the third day." 2Ch 10:13 The king answered them harshly, and King Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the elders. 2Ch 10:14 He spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, "My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions."

Rebellion and lack of wisdom among peers is often the case and causes more rebellion.

Pro 22:15  Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of discipline will remove it far from him. 

So how can a mere child grow into maturity with other immature kids, especially since it's likely that most of whom aren't even saved, as the road to destruction is Broad and that these megachurches are deliberately attracting unbelievers?

The selfishness of children, developed and emphasized by the world, teaches these children to have a haughty attitude of not associating with younger children. Cliques are the epitome of selfishness.

And frankly, it reveals Stanley's desperation to create a problem (selfishness and lack of loving their children) and then offers the solution, megachurches like his.

From my own experience, it is true: it's easy to hide in a large church but it isn't so easy to hide in a small church. How is wanting accountability and fellowship "selfish" anyway? How is wanting to actually know the people selfish? How is wanting to know who teaches your children and who is influencing them (and yourselves) "selfish"? Such accusations are those of a slanderer who is actually guilty of the thing he accuses others of being. To desire the best for a child and the family is the heart of agape love and parental authority. Stanley claims the opposite.

Back in 2013 I reported about Andy Stanley's view of churches and pastors. This is key to understanding how horrible his recent slander and attacks on Christian are: Quote: Andy Stanley who denies "shepherd" is a right term for pastors in his interview with "Leadership Journal":

There's nothing distinctly spiritual. I think a big problem in the church has been the dichotomy between spirituality and leadership. One of the criticisms I get is "Your church is so corporate." I read blogs all the time. Bloggers complain, "The pastor's like a CEO." And I say, "OK, you're right. Now, why is that a bad model?"

So what's the principle behind the CEO model?

"Follow me." Follow we never works. Ever. It's "follow me." God gives a man or a woman the gift of leadership. And any organization that has a point leader with accountability and freedom to use their gift will do well. Unfortunately in the church world, we're afraid of that. Has it been abused? Of course. But to abandon the model is silly.

Should we stop talking about pastors as "shepherds"?

Absolutely. That word needs to go away. Jesus talked about shepherds because there was one over there in a pasture he could point to. But to bring in that imagery today and say, "Pastor, you're the shepherd of the flock," no. I've never seen a flock. I've never spent five minutes with a shepherd. It was culturally relevant in the time of Jesus, but it's not culturally relevant any more.

Nothing works in our culture with that model except this sense of the gentle, pastoral care. Obviously that is a face of church ministry, but that's not leadership.

Isn't shepherd the biblical word for pastor?

It's the first-century word. If Jesus were here today, would he talk about shepherds? No. He would point to something that we all know, and we'd say, "Oh yeah, I know what that is." Jesus told Peter, the fisherman, to "feed my sheep," but he didn't say to the rest of them, "Go ye therefore into all the world and be shepherds and feed my sheep." By the time of the Book of Acts, the shepherd model is gone. It's about establishing elders and deacons and their qualifications. Shepherding doesn't seem to be the emphasis. Even when it was, it was cultural, an illustration of something.

What we have to do is identify the principle, which is that the leader is responsible for the care of the people he's been given. That I am to care for and equip the people in the organization to follow Jesus. But when we take the literal illustration and bring it into our culture, then people can make it anything they want because nobody knows much about it.

End quote.

~ my article, "Shepherding: Andy Stanley Vs Scripture and James White"

Contrary to this false teacher, Acts indeed does continue with the biblical model of shepherding (ironically Acts 20 connects shepherding God's flock of believers in relation to protecting them from wolves like Stanley): Act 20:27  "For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God. 
Act 20:28  "Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. 
Act 20:29  "I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;
Act 20:30  and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.
Act 20:31  "Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears.

As well, Jesus Christ who is God the Son, identifies Himself as the Great Shepherd over His sheep of believers:

Heb 13:20  Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord,
Heb 13:21  equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Jesus combined the two in John: Joh 10:1  "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. 
Joh 10:2  "But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. 
Joh 10:3  "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 
Joh 10:4  "When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 
Joh 10:5  "A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers." 

The true shepherd (versus the hireling) owns the sheep and therefore has a personal interest in their well-being. A CEO much less Fuhrer Elder does not own the sheep and has no personal vested interest or love for the people. 

Also the Shepherd/sheep model describes our sin and rebellion against Christ and His authority over our souls:

1Pe 2:25  For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls. 

1Pe 5:1  Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,
1Pe 5:2  shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; 
1Pe 5:3  nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.
1Pe 5:4  And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

As you can see, Stanley's view of the local church has been unbiblical and worldly for years. It's no wonder he slanders Christians who see the value in a smaller flock where they can know the undershepherds (elders) and the sheep (believers).

*** Apparently Stanley had to walk back his careful and deliberate sermon and apologize for his harsh words. Despite his messy attempt to justify his words, it did in fact reveal his heart. His apology was self-contradicting too: he acknowledges his teaching is heard and read by people all over the place and then said that his remarks were "only" for the adults in his church (a church which, again, is full of ungodly people and led by a false teacher--himself) which followed, ironically a weekend sermon to middle school kids called "Walking Wisely". There's much to criticize in this interview of Stanley trying to patch up his reputation and words, but I won't do that here.

Don't Even Greet False Teachers

2Jn 1:10  If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; 11  for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.

"greet":

chairō
khah'ee-ro

A primary verb; to be full of “cheer”, that is, calmly happy or well off; impersonal especially as a salutation (on meeting or parting), be well: - farewell, be glad, God speed, greeting, hail, joy (-fully), rejoice.

The Christian is not to treat a false teacher as a brother in Christ and offer fellowship to him, much less give him, quite literally, aid and comfort. Of course many would say this is harsh and unloving (the false brother being the loudest to decry such behavior, no doubt), but our loyalty is to Christ alone. When He limits our hospitality to those who are of the household of God and not those who are teaching falsely about Him and the Scriptures, we are to obey Him and not feign a "better" compassion than He has. To give a warm approval of false teachers is to be guilty of their wickedness and is to help in their deception in the eyes of other Christians, thus misleading them as well. Purity in doctrine and practice is commanded by God.

Mat 7:15  "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 

Mat 7:20  "So then, you will know them by their fruits. 

Mat 7:21  "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 

Mat 7:24  "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 

2Co 6:14  Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? 

2Co 6:15  Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? 

2Co 6:16  Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, "I WILL DWELL IN THEM AND WALK AMONG THEM; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. 

2Co 6:17  "Therefore, COME OUT FROM THEIR MIDST AND BE SEPARATE," says the Lord. "AND DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN; And I will welcome you.

Doctrine, Discernment, False Teachers, and Hospitality

2Jn 1:10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; 11 for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.

This letter is to a woman ("the elect lady") and the command is for her (and all) Christians to 1) know all the doctrine of Christ, 2) judge all who claim to be teachers of the Word, 3) stand on their own two feet b/c they will be attacked when alone --no appeal to hierarchy of church leadership but do one's own battling for Truth and against error, 4)discernment in hospitality -hospitality is not for all people, 5) no warmth or friendliness toward false teachers (no common ground, no excuses, no view of "I can withstand them and so I'll befriend them", no doctrinal triage, 6) see them as wicked workers, 7) don't even have an appearance of, much less actual approval of such men; not even the look of fellowship (see also Rom. 16:17).