Emerging Churches vs Emergent Churches

[Eternally]

Our SUnday School teacher said before the Emergent Church Movement, there was an Emerging Church movement with people like Andy Stanley, a McKinley guy in Seattle, and others, that were more 'missional' in doctrine and not swaying away from Truth. But then some in it like Rob Bell went astray and the movement split.

Emerging staying true to the Gospel and Emergent becoming ecumenical and mystical, etc.

Does anyone have data and facts?

This teacher is a great historical teacher when it come to the Bible, but he doesn't label things as severely as we do,

Like he doesn't feel Rick Warren's Purpose Driven was that bad, that there was GOOD merit and that Rick 'Does' teach the Gospel. :idunno that it just went too far afterwards....?

[JoelH]

He is typical of the middle-of-the-road-to-"progressive" end of evangelicalism. Mark Driscoll would be their hero in faith to emulate. As far as I can see, they subtly deny the unity of the extent of revelation in the Bible. I also found that they are less willing to preach of deathn and everlasting lake of fire as the cost of sin - even though they may still officially proclaim they believe the fundamentals of faith, including hell's existence. The emphasis is just liek Rick Warren and Joel Osteen, on the "positive side of the gospel" and the positives in this earth life.

These people also downplay the corruption of human nature due to sin, and deny that culture is human response to God;'s general revelation rather than general revelation itself. I would recommend reading a Chinese pastor, Samuel Ling's view of the Scripture - he didn't mention the Emerging Church, but from what he wrote he is against the humanistic evangelicalistic spirit and compromises with the world philosophies that mark the Emerging church:

http://www.chinahorizon.org/Articles/040502MeaningAndSignificanceOfInerrancy%20(E).doc

I also found that they emphasise a anthropocentric version of Jesus and downplay His most important work - the cross, and the most importantly, His status as God, His deity. This is not to say they deny Jesus's bodily resurrection at least on a glance, only that Jesus's "person and teaching" is uber alles for these preachers. Coincidentially there are very similar parallels between the beliefs of the Emerging church teachers and Friedrich Schleiermacher, a 19th century German humanistic theologian.

[Sing4Him]

Agree with JoelH

Emerging/Emergent= false teaching.

[JoelH]

In addition, Denise (Sing4Him) has also detailed about the impact of contemplative prayers on the postmodern self-declared-evangelical Emerging churches. I have read another article from Samuel Ling (it is in Chinese unfortunately) about some of the ECFs (early chruch fathers) which the Emerging Church people quite adore, and found that Clement of Alexandria's belief of reduction of faith into moral codes due to the influence of Greek philosophies' abstraction of God. Curiously, the reduction of faith into moral conduct also manifests in the modern times through:

1. mysticism in the name of meditation;
2. use of secular psychology and marketingm, and "cool methods" in church group discussions in place of the cross, sin, sanctification; and
3. church growth methodologies, which the Emerging Church people explicitly suppport.

In fact, reading about Clement of Alexandria probably helps understand the Emerging Church. Some people say we are witch-hunting and name-calling on this area but I fail to see so.

YBIC,

Joel

[Eternally]

y'all don't seem to be distinguishing between the two?

Has Andy Stanley gone astray too? And this McKinley guy?

[JoelH]

The reason we don't distinguish between the two is that both the Emerging and Emergent Church have departed from the biblical gospel, only the extent of apostasy is different. I believe there are some Emerging Church people that still hang the gospel to deceive believers, there are others who simply have gone astray in trying to outreach the unbelievers of our time - just like many early church fathers have gone off tangent.

It is a slippery slope and unfortunately many of the self-declared Emerging Church people have gone onn the other side fundamentally speaking. They may be well be believers, and may be they aren't, but their unsound worldview alone already warrants us to boycott fellowship with them.

[Sing4Him]

The reason we don't distinguish between the two is that both the Emerging and Emergent Church have departed from the biblical gospel, only the extent of apostasy is different exactly!

Yes, Andy Stanley is teaching falsely.
Andy Stanley Shares The New Evangelical Man-Centered Mantra

From the USA Today piece Study: Youth See Christians As Judgemental, Anti-Gay we get a good look at the inward focused on the self new evangelicalism espoused by one of its "stars," which also happens to be just as evident in the emerging church through men like Rob Bell:

Andy Stanley, senior pastor of North Point Ministries in Atlanta, suggested that churches should not focus solely on converting people, as has been the emphasis for generations.

"If we were able to rewrite the script for the reputation of Christianity, I think we would put the emphasis on developing relationships with non-believers, serving them, loving them, and making them feel accepted," he wrote. "Only then would we earn the right to share the gospel."

There’s every reason to think that Stanley’s broad-brush pop-art painting plays very well to our notoriously capricious culture but the fact is those of us who hold to proper Biblical theology don’t teach that churches should "focus solely on converting people." At the same time, that the "converting [of] people…has been the emphasis for generations" really shouldn’t surprise a pastor because it is the secondary aspect of local churches. The first being the building up of the Christian to maturity in Christ that the Lord may then use them in service as He wills.

Stanley also errs if indeed he thinks it is the mission of the Body of Christ to "rewrite the script for the reputation of Christianity." Obviously our glorious and majestic, great and mighty, Christ told us to love God and our fellow man–in that order. However, even as we share the genuine Gospel of Jesus Christ with unbelievers as gently, lovingly and patiently as we possibly can, we have zero control over how a person is going to receive it. And if we end up being so concerned with our presentation and not offending people then as Dr. Walter Martin used to say, "We’ll never get around to preaching the Gospel."

Now let’s put this seeker sensitive new evangelical and emerging church chestnut that somehow we must "earn the right to share the gospel" to beddie-bye once and for all from Scripture: So Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21). Now quite obviously the Master did not have the time to develop "relationships with non-believers, serving them, loving them, and making them feel accepted" in every single town where He preached His Gospel.

And no doubt Peter’s Pentecost sermon would also have been heard by many people in Jerusalem at that time for the Feast who wouldn’t have known Peter from Adam. Looks to me like God the Holy Spirit blessed this approach as well by converting 3,000 and then recording it in Scripture. As nice as he may be, I’m on solid ground to say that Andy Stanley never saw 3,000 people completely converted to Christ like that in his life. http://christianresearchnetwork.com/?p=3368==


Rick McKinley, who is the founding pastor of Imago Dei Community in Portland, Oregon. McKinley's church, Imago Dei Community is an emerging church with spiritual affinities similar to Doug Pagitt's.
http://www.imagodeicommunity.com/truth--meaning/-class-archives/spiritual-formation/

:tsk:tsk:tsk:tsk

[billiefan2000]

Agree with JoelH

Emerging/Emergent= false teaching.

I agree sing4him




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