Love and Truth

Recently I have been investigating the so-called “emerging church”. There are several things about it that I find disturbing. The prevalent idea in this "emerging church" movement is to make the church relevant to our modern culture. The emerging church seems to believe that in order to do that we must embrace the modern culture - including its relativistic and worldly viewpoints. The modern culture is nothing less than a "culture of death" and to embrace it will only take the emerging church down a pathway of death and away from the “testimony of Christ”. In other words toward apostasy!

From the beginning of time, starting with Adam and Eve, spiritual life and death have been the ultimate issues for humanity (see Genesis 2 and the tree of knowledge of good and evil). To flirt with the world and take on its culture is flirting with death and not life. I know the intentions of many of the emerging church leaders may be good and sincere. However, you can be sincere and sincerely wrong!

Among them there seems to be a departure away from “truth” which is mostly due to the modern acceptance of relativism. The emerging church wants to emphasize “love and community", which are good things, but they are willing to do so at the expense of “truth”! They make truth a relative and subjective thing. Abandoning moral absolutes.

Today the Catholic Church conclave voted for the pope who is to succeed John Paul II. They have selected Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger from Bavaria. He is now to be called Pope Benedict the XVI. Before Ratzinger became pope he had some very interesting things to say about truth and love in one of his recent homilies. First he said; “truth and love coincide". They are NOT exclusive of one another BUT coincide and are interdependent! That is, they are to work together hand in hand. Not one to the exclusion of the other. You CANNOT and should not choose between love and truth. We cannot choose love over truth or truth over love. He then goes on to say that "love without truth is blind and truth without love is like a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal". That is to say that love, which does not have truth as it's foundation, cannot see spiritual realities, and truth that does not have love as it motivation has nothing of substance to last and is just a lot of noise.

How profound and timely were Cardinal Ratzinger’s words. The emergent church seems to want love at the expense of truth. John Nelson Darby, one of the early Plymouth Brethren leaders, once said, “love at the expense of truth is not true love at all”! How right he was! Most people have no real concept of love. Love in the emerging church is "friendship and community" and making yourself and others "feel" good about themselves. No talk of sin or judgement. Could this be the "strong delusion" that Paul talks about in 2 Thessalonians 2:11-14? The emerging church also seems to want to downplay truth and they boast and take pride in the abandoning of truth. The result, in my opinion, is a lack of reverence for God, which results in worldliness, and death. Many emerging church leaders think nothing whatsoever of acting worldly even to the point of using course language in their Blogs when they feel it serves their purpose. Not at all considering "who" they represent here as Christ's ambassadors to a lost and dying world. Instead of the emerging church taking character after the "heavenly man" i.e. Christ, they are taking character after the earthly man and allowing the Adamic nature to have ascendancy (i.e. man's fallen, depraved nature). This type of thinking is ineffectual and dangerous in regards to reaping positive eternal results.

It seems to me that the objective of the emerging church is just to “fill pews” and have nice social programs. The state of peoples souls is not really an issue for them. They want to have their “loving communities” and they are having them but at what cost? I’ll tell you...it is the cost of person’s eternal souls and damnation! That is at what cost! How can I make it more clear? Souls are being lost while you play church and community. Developing your feel-good and supportive friendships without being honest about people’s behavior and eternal destiny. The emerging church is setting up a lot of people for a destiny in Hell. I know Hell is not politically correct to speak about today but it’s the truth and I will not compromise it.

Now, don’t get me wrong here! I am all for reaching our modern culture. Lord knows they are lost, but you cannot effect anything for eternity by using “carnal’ means, and that is what I am seeing with this emerging church movement. I hope that somehow, and in someway, God will begin to raise up some responsible leadership among them and show them the error of their ways.

The world is not looking for some “Christianized” alternative of what they already have but they are really looking for answers in ultimate spiritual truth and ultimate spiritual truth can only be found in three places.

1. In the Lord Jesus Christ. He is “The Way, The Truth and the Life”, and nobody comes to God the Father but through Him. Paul says in Ephesians that the “truth” is in Jesus. If you want truth look at Him because he was and is the embodiment of truth.

2. In the Church. Christ promised to send to the Church the Holy Spirit to dwell with us and that the Holy Spirit would lead the Church into ALL truth. Not some truth but all. All means all!

3. In the scriptures. The word of God is God’s revealed truth to man. All that we need to know on how to live righteously before God is revealed therein. Righteousness, doing what is "right" before God, seems to be far from the emerging church’s thinking. All they care about is relating to the world and whatever means it takes to do so is OK with them. This is an "end justifies the means" mentality.

Because of the prevalence of relativism within the emerging church's philosophy and worldview there are no absolutes and with no absolutes there are no “real” answers either. Only a kind of feel good, goose bumpy, pretended spirituality. They think because they go to a so-called church on Sunday, and raise their arms, and sing some doctrinally watered down choruses, that they are worshiping the true God. yet all the while they don't really care about what the God of truth has to say about how they are to live in a world that has rejected Christ! It is a very sad state of affairs.

Below is a link to an article by T. Austin-Sparks that I think is very helpful to what I have brought forward. Brother Sparks has been with the Lord for over 30 years now but he still speaks as fresh as he did when he was alive. If you have never read T. Austin-Sparks I would recommend that you read the other articles on the website and immerse yourself in what the Lord gave him for the church universal. He is head and shoulders above anyone I have read in the emerging church leadership.

Click here:

The Continuance of Divine Instrumentalities

Divine continuance is what we need and that continuance God provides through Christ, by the Spirit, in the church. His testimony will remain regardless of the apostasy on every hand. He will have a people for Himself even if it is but a few. I pray that you will have the strength to stand into the testimony of Christ and be “separate” not following and giving in to the course of “this present age” but holding on to truth and laboring in love until the Lord returns.

Your brother in Christ,

Philologus

HABEMUS PAPAM!!

Well, the Catholic Church has a new Pope!

The formerly Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger is now known as Pope Benedict XVI. Ratzinger is a conservative who served under John Paul II. He has written many of the doctrinal papers that have come from the Vatican. He was the Prefect of the Congregation Of The Doctrine Of The Faith under John Paul’s leadership.

One of Ratzinger’s best papers is called: “Considerations Regarding Proposals To Give Legal Recognition To Unions Between Homosexual Persons”. It is excellent and well thought out, and it should be studied by all Christians interested in the subject and what approach we, as Christians, should have towards this important cultural issue.

I half expected the Conclave to select Ratzinger as I didn’t think they wanted to deter course too far. Ratzinger will be a forward-looking Pope and yet will be sure to adhere to the established doctrines of the Church. He is a great theologian, thinker and communicator. He speaks several languages fluently, including English, and will undoubtedly be a good representative of the Catholic faith. If Ratzinger has any one problem it would be his age (I believe he is 79 years old). So, it’s unlikely that his service will be a long one.

If you are interested in knowing more about Cardinal Ratzinger I would refer you to The Ratzinger Fan Club site.

Blessings to all my Catholic friends!

Philologus

Silencing of the Internet Monk

I am really saddened that Mark had to write this piece that I blogged below. Rather than writing an article myself I decided just to blog Mark's article because he says exactly what I would have wanted to say.

For those who are curious let me comment with this....One of my favorite bloggers (Internet Monk) has closed his blog due to the frustration he found from radical extreme Calvinists (and others) posting comments on his blog. Christ said you shall know men by their fruit, and all those who are responsible for Michael's decision have shown what tree they are from and it's not of Christ. Harsh as that may sound it is the truth. I read many uncharitable and hostile comments by those who have deceived themselves into thinking they were "defending the faith". How sad that they were unable to discuss issues without personal attacks.

Michael,

If you happen to read this let me just say that I have found much help in the spiritual exercises you have been going through. Your site is one of the reasons this blog exists. I could never hope to replace you but perhaps some of your fans will find this site and gain some help from my own spiritual exercises. I also hope that you will re-open your website and not let the enemy triumph. You are an instrument through whom Christ is speaking to many of us out here. Those of us who have found the state of modern Christendom deplorable and who are questioning the esablished man-made system of western Christianity. Perhaps the book of Psalms would be a really good place for your private meditations at this time?

Below is the link to Mark Traphagen's excellent blog article about Internet Monk. I hope you will also take the time to read some of Mark's excellent articles.

*****UPDATE*****

I am pleased to announce that Michael has reopened his site!!

Sacred Journey - The Silencing of the Monk - Blog of Mark Traphagen


Blessings to all!

Philologus

Sites Unseen

If you are a Christian and enjoy reading various Christian websites then you should be sure to check out Sites Unseen.

Two Christian’s named Mike Morrell and Philip Scriber run Sites Unseen. They have researched hours and hours of Internet sites to bring you some of the best sites around. You could spend literally years looking at all these pages they have listed. If you are looking for common ministries like John MacArthur or Chuck Swindoll then you should use Google. BUT if you are looking for rare and lesser known sites then this list is for you!

I'd like to thank Mike and Philip who gave me permission to use their list on my Christian Message board about a year ago. Since that time they have really improved the look and layout of the list and also added hundreds of Christian blogs. Wow!.

If you have a Christian blog and it's not listed on their site I'm sure they would be happy to hear from you.

Your brother in Christ,

Philologus

Goodbye To Pope John Paul II

The passing of John Paul II has made me reflect upon the life and teachings of this great man. I was raised as a Catholic but am a Protestant. However, even as a Protestant I have been blessed and inspired by John Paul II. Surly, John Paul was not just any ordinary man in any sense of the word. He was an extraordinary human being who accomplished great things in his life. He was a holy person and was separated unto God. He desired to be here for God and he suffered much for Him. John Paul suffered physically in his final years but more importantly he suffered spiritually.

It has been said by many people that John Paul could often be heard in deep groans, as if in pain, while he prayed. When Christ saw Mary, and those with her weeping, because of Lazarus' death - He groaned in the spirit(John 11:33). In Romans 8 we are told that the creation groans and we likewise groan within ourselves awaiting the redemption of our bodies to be conformed to His glorious body. Romans 8 also tells us that the Spirit makes intercession "within" us with groanings. The thought of groaning brings up an image of one who is in pain or deep suffering. Christ groaned in the spirit because death had brought sorrow to those He loved. He identified with suffering mankind and truly felt deeply and inwardly the pain of death.

The apostle Paul also suffered much in many ways and in II Corinthians chapter 11 he lists some of the many things he suffered. Near the end of the list he mentions the suffering that was probably his greatest weight. He says:

“besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.”

Daily the Apostle had great concern for the churches. The state of the churches weighed heavily upon him. John Paul also must have felt the weight of responsibility God had placed upon his shoulders in caring for the Catholic Church. I'm sure at times it may have felt like it was almost more than he could bear. John Paul was a man marked by prayer and was deeply committed to seeing that God's will would be done in God's Church on Earth.

How it must have pained John Paul to see the flock God committed to him so divided. The Western church especially! He watched as the Western church declined and set a course down the slippery slope of modernism, secularism and outright rebellion against God! How John Paul must have "groaned" in his spirit and he must have thought many times of the passage in Proverbs 14:12 that says:

"There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death."

The Catholic Church in America is following and succumbing to the current "culture of death", which the world is characterized by today. The belief that the church should conform and allow women priests, gay priests, same sex unions, birth control, abortion, divorce etc. etc. only betrays how blind the American branch of the Catholic Church has become. If these are issues important to American Catholics, and are practices they want, then why don't they just join some "liberal" church that supports and allows these things? Instead they want to try and conform the Catholic Church to their wayward and lost ideas.

The Church does not need to conform to her people and their "worldly" and carnal thoughts! It is the people who should conform to God's "heavenly" thoughts and the teachings of the Church; because the church is "heavenly" in origin and nature! It's NOT of this world! (Philippians 4:20)

Christ, in Matthew 13: 24-31, gave us the parable about the "wheat" and the "tares". In the parable an enemy has come into the church, which is represented in the parable as the "kingdom", and the enemy has sown tares among the wheat. Wheat and tares look somewhat alike and sometimes behave alike but in reality they are not alike. The parable goes on to talk about allowing the wheat and tares to grow up together until the harvest and then the reapers will separate them out. It seems that we are getting to where we can clearly see who the tares are in the church! The harvest must be getting very close indeed!

John Paul II was a man who stood for truth. He would not be swayed by the world or by public opinion. He believed that what Christ entrusted to the church must be maintained and even fought for. If the Catholic Church loses most of the West, due to it's apostasy to the faith, then the universal Church can, and will, become more pure in the process.

I appreciate the stand that John Paul II has taken against the tide of modernism and secular humanism in the world. I have heard John Paul referred to as a "humanist" and he was a humanist but not in the way that many people think of it. Secular humanism and the humanist beliefs of John Paul are not even remotely on the same page. John Paul's humanism was based on the example of the only truly "real" human...the Lord Jesus Christ. He was true man and true God at the same time. He was the God-man! Christ showed us what it really means to be human according to God's mind and what God intended for humanity to be like in the divine intention. Christ's life and existence centered in the Father and we, taking Christ as our example, should have our life and existence centered in the Son. The Holy Spirit ignites and is the source of the humanism that John Paul II preached, and the Spirit elevates us to live here as heavenly men as Christ lived. Yes the world will hate us. Yes it will persecute us! Yes it will call us "intolerant", "Victorian", "out of step with the times", "bigots" and any other thing it can think of to demean and demoralize us and break us to their will.

The world wants us to believe that resistance to their cause is futile and everyday they are gaining more and more ground within the church. Protestants are just as guilty of this worldly thinking and behavior and perhaps more so than Catholics. All of us could learn something from John Paul's example of holiness and godliness.

I will miss John Paul. Whoever the next pope is he will have big shoes to fill. I pray that whoever God raises up that he will have the spiritual fortitude and resolve to stay the course.

If you are a Catholic, and have found this article today, and have found yourself buying into the lies of the world and our post-modern culture, I have a word for you.....REPENT!

Repent before it is too late.

It is not your Church that needs to change it is YOU my friend! I hope and pray that you will find the grace to do so.

If you are Protestant and have found this article today, and you too find that you have let yourself slip from the truth once delivered to the saints, I have one word for you....REPENT!

The church in general is characterized by apostasy. Apostasy simply means: "to fall away". Surly, the Western church is marked by apostasy today. The book of Jude's main teaching is about apostasy and in the book of Jude we are instructed to:

"contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints."

There is no other faith than the one that Christ gave to us through His holy apostles. It is called "the" faith. The one and only faith and we are charged to contend for it! That means there will be a battle. There will be conflict and pain and suffering. The world will not love us but we must stand for what is right and what honors the Lord's name. Not allowing human thinking and sentimentality to rule us! We must act in love being motivated by the love of God for us and all humanity. That means we must stand for righteousness and truth with steadfastness against sin. It is a "false love", a wordly, cowardly love that will not confront sin!

Again I say to all, including myself...REPENT!

With John Paul's funeral today it brings to close the end of an era. I hope and pray that the church, Catholic and Protestant, can learn from this great man and the understanding and conviction of truth he has left us. He left a great legacy because he was a man who was fashioned after Christ. May he rest in peace until the resurrection of all those who are the dead in Christ!

John Paul II, I love you!

Much love to all,

Philologus