Sing4Him
April 8th, 2008, 04:40 PM
AN EXAMPLE OF THE ETERNAL VALUE OF “THE THREE C’S”
As we begin this piece at Apprising Ministries, let me share a few words from the newsletter of The John Ankerberg Show, which is “a ministry of the Ankerberg Theological Research Institute” to set the stage. Although it was written in May 2005 the substance of Dr. Ankerberg says is dead on target:
A lot has happened since I wrote you last. Pope John Paul II died and his passing was mourned by over a billion Roman Catholics across the world. Then the world watched as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Dean of the College of Cardinals and the Vatican’s chief doctrinal watchdog for many years was chosen as the new Pope.
In light of these events, we are airing a series of debate programs between a Catholic priest and a Protestant scholar regarding nine unorthodox doctrines that the Roman Catholic church holds. My heart is saddened to see so many “professing” Christians unable to discern truth from error and believe a counterfeit Christianity instead of the genuine faith for which Christ gave His life (emphasis in original, copy on file).
How Can Unorthodox Also Be Orthodox?
Let’s stop here for a moment. I want to draw your attention to what Dr. Ankerberg has just said, and I’d like you to really focus on what he is saying. Remember now, Dr. Ankerberg had decided to do his nationally syndicated TV program on what he called those “nine unorthodox doctrines that the Roman Catholic church holds.” Simple logic tells us that if they are unorthodox, then they are also false beliefs because the word orthodox refers to having “correct” belief. And further Dr. Ankerberg says he is saddened that “so many ‘professing’ Christians [are] unable to discern truth from error and believe a counterfeit Christianity instead of the genuine faith.”
Here is the question at hand: If Roman Catholicism is “error” and a “counterfeit” of true Christianity—and it most certainly is, then it is in fact a religion which had to have been hatched by Satan himself. When will the average evangelical non-protesting “Protestant” finally understand this? We are not talking about some abstract theology here; we are talking about a real-life spiritual warfare—for real eternal souls—of real people and we are in a real battle with the actual enemy of men’s souls, the Devil himself! When in the world is the true Body of Christ finally going to wake up and say, “Enough!” Enough with trying to reform a church—which is not a Christian church—any more than the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a “Christian” church.
The truth is the evangelical community has become all soft and desensitized to sin through so many years of its adulterous flirtation with the gigolo that is the world. As one theologian put it a few years ago: Evangelicals have now become “of the world while not even being in it. What is needed today in the rapidly apostatizing evangelical camp is a good dose of spiritual reality. What we need in the Church of our Lord in so-called postmodern America today is to be formally re-introduced to our Bride Groom—Christ Jesus of Nazareth.
Beloved, hear Him as Jesus speaks to those religious leaders of His day who taught “unorthodox” and “counterfeit” doctrines of “error” that depended on the traditions of men (see—Mark 7:8). Thus our Lord speaks:
Ye are of your father, the devil,…He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God (John 8:44;47)… [Ye] bind heavy burdens, and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but [ye yourselves] will not move them… But all [thy] works [thou] do for to be seen of men:…[ye] love the uppermost rooms…and the chief seats in the [religious world] (Matthew 23:4,5a,6) … Woe unto you, [modern] scribes and Pharisees [espousing Roman Catholic dogma], hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Woe unto you, [new] scribes and Pharisees – [purveyors of Roman Catholic traditions], — hypocrites!…for a pretence make long prayers: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, [presumptuous] scribes and Pharisees [of the Church of Rome], hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves (vv.13, 14 footnote, 15)…
Ye fools and blind (v.17a)… Woe unto you, [modern] scribes and Pharisees – [spreading Roman Catholic superstitions], — hypocrites!…inside within [ye] are full of extortion and self-excess (v.25) … Woe unto you, [evil] scribes and Pharisees [of apostate Rome], hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness (v.27)…
Woe unto you, [self-appointed] scribes and Pharisees [of pernicious Roman Catholic superstitions], hypocrites! because ye…garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, – [some of whom ye murdered!] (v.29)… Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your [Roman Catholic] fathers! ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? (vv.31-33)
There! Do we remember Him now? Jesus Christ of Nazareth—the Lord of Glory is His Name! Truly God Himself in human flesh; or have we now also surrendered this truth to Satan as well? And here is what our Lord of Glory says to so many of our leaders within people-pleasing postevangelicalism and the postliberal Emergent Church, major pillars in the Ecumenical Church of Deceit today — “Get these false teachings perverting My love and your nauseating interspiritual compromise with the other religions and your worldly idol of Madison Avenue sales techniques to sell your own wares out of My Church! How dare you turn My House into a market!” (see—John 2:16).
The American Christian Church seriously needs a wake up—and right now! For the sake of our Lord; why do you think that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified? Was it really because He was so careful to make sure to “dialogue” with each and every false teacher so that the Lord could refine His approach so that it wouldn’t “upset” anybody? No! The Master Teacher—Whom we Christians profess to represent—knew what has all been lost in a deep, deep freeze of apathy in His very nearly spiritually comatose Church today: Sometimes a good ol’ spiritual two-by-four across the back is what is needed to awaken someone from the deadly poisonous venom injected by Satan—the serpent of death—the father of lies.
The Eternal Value Of The Three C’s
In closing, Dr. Walter Martin (1928-1989 relates an incident that happened early in his ministry. He was researching his doctoral thesis on the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society—better known as the Jehovah’s Witnesses—and he had gone to the headquarters of this non-Christian cult in Brooklyn, NY for some of their materials. Long story short, he met one of their overseers—Bill Cetnar—and they soon began to argue rather vociferously. As Martin left after this tough spiritual firefight he told Cetnar — “I’m going to write about you in my book!” He also said later that he felt Cetnar was the most hardheaded and obstinate person he’d ever met and that the witness ended up as a colossal waste of time.
However, after one of his lectures some twenty years later—during the question and answer period—a man would stand up and ask Dr. Martin a question, “Do you remember me?” It turned out to be Bill Cetnar, who told Martin that for years after that encounter the Holy Spirit used one particular Scripture that Martin had shared to force him to try and study to refute Martin’s teaching on it. Cetnar said that he finally realized that the Watchtower was wrong and he surrendered to God’s call and gave himself to Christ. So these two men—who had begun as such adversaries—would later embrace as Cetnar thanked his brother, Dr. Walter Martin, for being willing to make him angry enough to pursue the Truth.
Ah, but you see, the story doesn’t even end there, as Bill Cetnar went on to found his own work against the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Jesus would use Cetnar’s own “expertise” as a former Watchtower overseer to lead many other Jehovah’s Witnesses out of bondage and into the glorious liberty of the sons of God before he himself went home to be with his Lord. Men and women, only the LORD God Almighty knows how many people avoided an eternity in Hell because Dr. Martin was willing to confront Bill Cetnar with the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let me ask you; how many will be in the Kingdom of God through your lifestyle, and through your witness?
You need to understand that sometimes you will have to make someone angry enough with you that they will want to go to the Bible to prove you wrong. :nod And if I’ve done so with you; well, you just go right on ahead! For that’s just where God wants you my friend. Now, you may find this hard to believe, but I’ve actually seen this kind of thing happen in my own ministry. O yes, believe it or not—planting my tongue firmly in the cheek—I do ahave a critic or two, and have actually upset people with what I teach through the understated way in which I write. But as near as I can figure it, that puts me in the very best of company because my Master said — If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also (see—John 15:20). Now, what about you; how are you doing in this regard?
If you truly think that you are going to be a witness for Christ Jesus of Nazareth in this wicked generation bowing before their idol of “tolerance” without engaging in the “three C’s” of—confrontation—conflict—and—controversy, my friend, you are a dreamer. And you had better rub the sleep from your eyes and wake up—soon! Remember Jesus says — all the churches will know that I Am He Who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds (Revelation 2:23b). The wise person is going to ask himself; or herself: “Just what have I done for the Lord lately?”
Because if a person thinks that somehow God is understanding as we whine — “Sometimes I’m too busy to study the Bible” — or — “He knows that I’m just uncomfortable sharing my faith,” I’m afraid you have simply deluded yourself. And I exhort you to follow this Biblical advice — Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves (2 Corinthians 13:5). As has been well-stated elsewhere — “It’s a divine law that we shall become like that which is our most cherished object of affection.” Christ Himself put it this way:
You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:34-35)
As you can see, this is not exactly a seeker sensitive capitulation to some pouty postliberal mindset of Emergent Guru Brian McLaren which is exhibited here by the Master. And keep in mind the context is clear that Jesus was speaking publicly to the crowd as well, and not just to religious leaders in private. So I guess He missed the last “40 Days Of Purpose” seminar by Purpose Driven Pope Rick Warren or the Christian stand-up routine of rabbi wannabe Rob Bell. So take a good and honest look around; now how many genuine Christians do you actually see along that hazy Purpose Driven horizon of the postevangelical Emerging Church here in centered on the self America?
http://www.apprising.org/archives/2008/04/an_example_of_t.html
:amen:amen
As we begin this piece at Apprising Ministries, let me share a few words from the newsletter of The John Ankerberg Show, which is “a ministry of the Ankerberg Theological Research Institute” to set the stage. Although it was written in May 2005 the substance of Dr. Ankerberg says is dead on target:
A lot has happened since I wrote you last. Pope John Paul II died and his passing was mourned by over a billion Roman Catholics across the world. Then the world watched as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Dean of the College of Cardinals and the Vatican’s chief doctrinal watchdog for many years was chosen as the new Pope.
In light of these events, we are airing a series of debate programs between a Catholic priest and a Protestant scholar regarding nine unorthodox doctrines that the Roman Catholic church holds. My heart is saddened to see so many “professing” Christians unable to discern truth from error and believe a counterfeit Christianity instead of the genuine faith for which Christ gave His life (emphasis in original, copy on file).
How Can Unorthodox Also Be Orthodox?
Let’s stop here for a moment. I want to draw your attention to what Dr. Ankerberg has just said, and I’d like you to really focus on what he is saying. Remember now, Dr. Ankerberg had decided to do his nationally syndicated TV program on what he called those “nine unorthodox doctrines that the Roman Catholic church holds.” Simple logic tells us that if they are unorthodox, then they are also false beliefs because the word orthodox refers to having “correct” belief. And further Dr. Ankerberg says he is saddened that “so many ‘professing’ Christians [are] unable to discern truth from error and believe a counterfeit Christianity instead of the genuine faith.”
Here is the question at hand: If Roman Catholicism is “error” and a “counterfeit” of true Christianity—and it most certainly is, then it is in fact a religion which had to have been hatched by Satan himself. When will the average evangelical non-protesting “Protestant” finally understand this? We are not talking about some abstract theology here; we are talking about a real-life spiritual warfare—for real eternal souls—of real people and we are in a real battle with the actual enemy of men’s souls, the Devil himself! When in the world is the true Body of Christ finally going to wake up and say, “Enough!” Enough with trying to reform a church—which is not a Christian church—any more than the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a “Christian” church.
The truth is the evangelical community has become all soft and desensitized to sin through so many years of its adulterous flirtation with the gigolo that is the world. As one theologian put it a few years ago: Evangelicals have now become “of the world while not even being in it. What is needed today in the rapidly apostatizing evangelical camp is a good dose of spiritual reality. What we need in the Church of our Lord in so-called postmodern America today is to be formally re-introduced to our Bride Groom—Christ Jesus of Nazareth.
Beloved, hear Him as Jesus speaks to those religious leaders of His day who taught “unorthodox” and “counterfeit” doctrines of “error” that depended on the traditions of men (see—Mark 7:8). Thus our Lord speaks:
Ye are of your father, the devil,…He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God (John 8:44;47)… [Ye] bind heavy burdens, and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but [ye yourselves] will not move them… But all [thy] works [thou] do for to be seen of men:…[ye] love the uppermost rooms…and the chief seats in the [religious world] (Matthew 23:4,5a,6) … Woe unto you, [modern] scribes and Pharisees [espousing Roman Catholic dogma], hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Woe unto you, [new] scribes and Pharisees – [purveyors of Roman Catholic traditions], — hypocrites!…for a pretence make long prayers: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, [presumptuous] scribes and Pharisees [of the Church of Rome], hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves (vv.13, 14 footnote, 15)…
Ye fools and blind (v.17a)… Woe unto you, [modern] scribes and Pharisees – [spreading Roman Catholic superstitions], — hypocrites!…inside within [ye] are full of extortion and self-excess (v.25) … Woe unto you, [evil] scribes and Pharisees [of apostate Rome], hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness (v.27)…
Woe unto you, [self-appointed] scribes and Pharisees [of pernicious Roman Catholic superstitions], hypocrites! because ye…garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, – [some of whom ye murdered!] (v.29)… Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your [Roman Catholic] fathers! ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? (vv.31-33)
There! Do we remember Him now? Jesus Christ of Nazareth—the Lord of Glory is His Name! Truly God Himself in human flesh; or have we now also surrendered this truth to Satan as well? And here is what our Lord of Glory says to so many of our leaders within people-pleasing postevangelicalism and the postliberal Emergent Church, major pillars in the Ecumenical Church of Deceit today — “Get these false teachings perverting My love and your nauseating interspiritual compromise with the other religions and your worldly idol of Madison Avenue sales techniques to sell your own wares out of My Church! How dare you turn My House into a market!” (see—John 2:16).
The American Christian Church seriously needs a wake up—and right now! For the sake of our Lord; why do you think that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified? Was it really because He was so careful to make sure to “dialogue” with each and every false teacher so that the Lord could refine His approach so that it wouldn’t “upset” anybody? No! The Master Teacher—Whom we Christians profess to represent—knew what has all been lost in a deep, deep freeze of apathy in His very nearly spiritually comatose Church today: Sometimes a good ol’ spiritual two-by-four across the back is what is needed to awaken someone from the deadly poisonous venom injected by Satan—the serpent of death—the father of lies.
The Eternal Value Of The Three C’s
In closing, Dr. Walter Martin (1928-1989 relates an incident that happened early in his ministry. He was researching his doctoral thesis on the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society—better known as the Jehovah’s Witnesses—and he had gone to the headquarters of this non-Christian cult in Brooklyn, NY for some of their materials. Long story short, he met one of their overseers—Bill Cetnar—and they soon began to argue rather vociferously. As Martin left after this tough spiritual firefight he told Cetnar — “I’m going to write about you in my book!” He also said later that he felt Cetnar was the most hardheaded and obstinate person he’d ever met and that the witness ended up as a colossal waste of time.
However, after one of his lectures some twenty years later—during the question and answer period—a man would stand up and ask Dr. Martin a question, “Do you remember me?” It turned out to be Bill Cetnar, who told Martin that for years after that encounter the Holy Spirit used one particular Scripture that Martin had shared to force him to try and study to refute Martin’s teaching on it. Cetnar said that he finally realized that the Watchtower was wrong and he surrendered to God’s call and gave himself to Christ. So these two men—who had begun as such adversaries—would later embrace as Cetnar thanked his brother, Dr. Walter Martin, for being willing to make him angry enough to pursue the Truth.
Ah, but you see, the story doesn’t even end there, as Bill Cetnar went on to found his own work against the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Jesus would use Cetnar’s own “expertise” as a former Watchtower overseer to lead many other Jehovah’s Witnesses out of bondage and into the glorious liberty of the sons of God before he himself went home to be with his Lord. Men and women, only the LORD God Almighty knows how many people avoided an eternity in Hell because Dr. Martin was willing to confront Bill Cetnar with the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let me ask you; how many will be in the Kingdom of God through your lifestyle, and through your witness?
You need to understand that sometimes you will have to make someone angry enough with you that they will want to go to the Bible to prove you wrong. :nod And if I’ve done so with you; well, you just go right on ahead! For that’s just where God wants you my friend. Now, you may find this hard to believe, but I’ve actually seen this kind of thing happen in my own ministry. O yes, believe it or not—planting my tongue firmly in the cheek—I do ahave a critic or two, and have actually upset people with what I teach through the understated way in which I write. But as near as I can figure it, that puts me in the very best of company because my Master said — If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also (see—John 15:20). Now, what about you; how are you doing in this regard?
If you truly think that you are going to be a witness for Christ Jesus of Nazareth in this wicked generation bowing before their idol of “tolerance” without engaging in the “three C’s” of—confrontation—conflict—and—controversy, my friend, you are a dreamer. And you had better rub the sleep from your eyes and wake up—soon! Remember Jesus says — all the churches will know that I Am He Who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds (Revelation 2:23b). The wise person is going to ask himself; or herself: “Just what have I done for the Lord lately?”
Because if a person thinks that somehow God is understanding as we whine — “Sometimes I’m too busy to study the Bible” — or — “He knows that I’m just uncomfortable sharing my faith,” I’m afraid you have simply deluded yourself. And I exhort you to follow this Biblical advice — Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves (2 Corinthians 13:5). As has been well-stated elsewhere — “It’s a divine law that we shall become like that which is our most cherished object of affection.” Christ Himself put it this way:
You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:34-35)
As you can see, this is not exactly a seeker sensitive capitulation to some pouty postliberal mindset of Emergent Guru Brian McLaren which is exhibited here by the Master. And keep in mind the context is clear that Jesus was speaking publicly to the crowd as well, and not just to religious leaders in private. So I guess He missed the last “40 Days Of Purpose” seminar by Purpose Driven Pope Rick Warren or the Christian stand-up routine of rabbi wannabe Rob Bell. So take a good and honest look around; now how many genuine Christians do you actually see along that hazy Purpose Driven horizon of the postevangelical Emerging Church here in centered on the self America?
http://www.apprising.org/archives/2008/04/an_example_of_t.html
:amen:amen