A Little BackgroundPermit me to begin by mentioning that I have been in the field of apologetics, and involved in ministry to what the late Dr. Walter Martin called the “Kingdom of the Cults,” for the better part of 15 years. I also pastor Connecticut River Baptist Church, a small group of serious believers not too far from Keene State and Dartmouth colleges. In addition, I work in the local high school, and I am head coach of its varsity football team.
I would also like you to know that I write from an Evangelical position, with my theological belief system being what I see as a nice blend of the emphasis on the deeper life like A.W. Tozer, with the no nonsense approach to the Christian world view as shown by Dr. Martin. This would hardly place me in any “radical” fringe section of our Lord’s Church, nor thankfully, does it position me in the mainstream of it either. My point being, I am a Christian first, who just happens to work with the Southern Baptist denomination.
The Inherent Danger Of Man PowerNow, if one has become enamored with what’s become known in some sections of the Body of Christ as seeker-sensitive churches, they would no doubt be happy to see huge congregations like Willow Creek and Lakewood all thriving under the apparent blessing of God. However, it is time for a critical question to be asked: Is it actually God Who is blessing, or might it instead be that the Lord is simply standing back and letting man have his own way? Scripture shows us how, with distressing regularity, time and time again, this has happened in the history of His having to deal with the prideful creatures we are.
In fact, noted Bible teacher and pastor Ray Stedman was right on target when he pointed out just how important the Book of Acts is to correctly understand the Christian mission:
In the book of Acts, the Holy Spirit now begins to fulfill the designed program of God. He begins to carry on his work through the…body of…Christ---the church... That work began [some 2000] years ago,…[the problem is the] church has suffered for many centuries from a very wrong idea. Much of the weakness of the church is due to the fact that somehow over the years, through the traditions of men, a wrong concept has developed within the body of Christ…one of the favorite tricks of the devil,…[is] to hold up before Christian people the end that God has in view, and then suggest to them that they go about doing it their own way---trying to fulfill God's will in man's way.
[And so] Christ is often pictured as waiting up in heaven, earnestly watching to see what is taking place down here, hoping somebody will get with it and carry out his program. The idea is that the church must somehow plan all the strategy,…[however–it] was never the intention of the Lord that the whole job of planning the strategy of reaching out to the ends of the earth and of mobilizing the resources should fall upon the Christian. When the church attempts the work on this basis, the Lord simply folds his arms and lets us go about our busy ways…while he stands by and quietly waits until we get over it. (Ray Stedman, The Acts of the Apostles: AN UNFINISHED STORY, The Blue Letter Bible, CD Rom, caps in original).
There Is A Way That Seems Right…I am reminded of a time when I had a discussion with someone who called herself a “white” witch. Leaving aside that there is no such thing, she told me that she worshiped “the goddess” and that this deity would never ever hurt her. During this brief encounter she told me she was raised Roman Catholic, and as such, was familiar with the Bible. I asked her what the First Commandment was. She didn’t know, so I told her - “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3, KJV).
So I explained that to worship this “goddess” is a sin, and that is enough to warrant eternal death. Then I informed her, “The devil has blinded you already. And if he wants to, he could just give you the most wonderful life of riches and ease. But Jesus warns you, that on your present path, your life will end in Hell.” So, why would Satan even need to bother with her any more?
Do we not see? And, do we not remember Luke 4:5-8?
The devil led him [Jesus] up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours." 8 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.' "
,, And the danger of that way that seems right lies on that broad road of religion, the very path it would appear, that so many of these user-friendly churches have unwittingly stepped out upon. In his book Hard To Believe Dr. John MacArthur writes:
Listening to a seeker-sensitive evangelical preacher today, we’re likely to think it’s easy to be a Christian. Just say these little words, pray this little prayer, and poof! You’re in the club. According to the Bible, it doesn’t work that way. In Matthew 7:13 during the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus admonished His followers, “Enter by the narrow gate”… We can’t carry anything through it; we come through with nothing.
A wide religious gate also exists, and I am saddened to think so many preachers, and so many churches, are leading people through it. They’re saying, “You don’t have to do all that hard stuff to get into heaven. We’re open minded and inclusive, and we think everybody who wants to, should get saved.” (pp.12,13, emphasis added)
But the true message of the Gospel–and of following Christ–is self-denial and what Luther called “hatred of self” (95 Theses, no. 4), and no amount of fanciful, albeit well-intentioned, eisegesis by “inclusive” pastors is going to change this fact. And the man almost universally touted within the Christian Church as a “twentieth century prophet,” A.W. Tozer–writing in the 50’s–already saw this consumer oriented trend, which has loosely become known as the church growth movement, coming into the Body of Christ. And the watchman warned:
Christians habitually weep and pray over beautiful truth, only to draw back from that same truth when it comes to the difficult job of putting it into practice! Actually, the average church simply does not dare to check its practices against biblical precepts. It tolerates things that are diametrically opposed to the will of God, and if the matter is pointed out to its leaders, they will defend its unscriptural practices with a casuistry equal to the verbal dodgings of the Roman moralists…
Since Christ makes His appeal directly to the will, are we justified in wondering whether or not these divided souls have ever made a true commitment to the Lord? Or whether they have been inwardly renewed? It does appear that too many Christians want to enjoy the thrill of feeling right but not willing to endure the inconvenience of being right!
Jesus Himself left a warning – I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead [Rev. 3:1b] (Renewed Day by Day, May 2, emphasis added).
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