061112
THEME: Bob Edgar,
General Secretary of the National Council of Churches of Christ (NCC) in the
U.S.A, wrote a book claiming that liberal mainline churches (that he called
Middle Church) represent true Christianity. But the book is full of
contradictions and shows why liberal churches do not believe in the Bible and
are losing influence in the world.
QUESTIONS:
When is compromise an unacceptable solution to conflicts?
- When
it comes to the matters of truth, there should be no compromise. The NCC
is a typical ecumenical movement that compromise constantly at the expense
of truth.
Edgar says that the Bible does not contain much on abortion
and homosexuality. How did Mohler respond?
- The
Bible speaks clearly to the sanction of human life and to the priority of
protecting unborn life. The Bible mentions many times about homosexuality,
much more than the “only twice” that Edgar admits. But more importantly, the
Bible’s consistent judgment is that homosexual acts are inherently immoral
and sinful.
What is Edgar’s position about the Bible?
- He
does not believe that the Scripture is immutable and its words are
literal.
From what mistakes that Edgar makes can we know about his
knowledge about the Bible?
- He
states: ““The book of Revelation does speak of the Rapture, and the
portrait it paints is in fact quite fierce. But it’s equally important to
understand that the books of the New Testament are works of human beings.”
- Mohler
rightly comments: “In the span of two fairly short sentences, Edgar
manages to suggest that the New Testament is to be read as a merely human
book while moving the Bible’s text concerning the Rapture from 1
Thessalonians chapter four to the book of Revelation.”
What is the contradiction in Edgard’s opinion about making
moral judgments?
- Edgar
objects moral judgments by the Religious Right but his book is filled with
moral judgments—judgments about ecology, justice, racism, and a host of
other issues. But when it comes to sexuality, Edgar offers the facile
suggestion that moral judgment is “an enterprise in which we’re not
supposed to be involved anyway.”
- In
other words, when Edgar makes moral judgments, he’s not being judgmental.
But when others make moral judgments, they are being judgmental.
Should Christians avoid being judgmental?
- The
Bible does not say that we are not to make moral judgments, or that we are
not to judge moral behavior. Indeed, the Bible makes absolutely no sense
if that is the case.
- The
Bible—in both Old and New Testaments—is filled with moral judgment and
with advisement on how we are to make such judgments.
- Of
course, the judgments we are to make concern behavior, not the heart. We are expressly forbidden to judge
another’s heart.
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THEME: The recent
theological movement “Open Theism” is a major threat to orthodox theology and
may bring disaster to the church.
QUESTIONS:
What is the meaning of “Open Theism”?
Open theists argue for a new model of understanding God’s
knowledge—a model that insists that true human freedom requires that God cannot
know human decisions in advance. They believe that since the future does not
now exist, God cannot know it.
What is the problem for such belief?
- Open
theists deny that God can possess infallible and comprehensive knowledge
of the future. In essence, God is waiting with the rest of us to know how
any number of issues will turn out.
- They
believe that God can only direct the future in a “general” way.
Why did they hold such belief?
- Because
of the difficulty in answering questions about pain and suffering, they
thought that this kind of belief allows God “off the hook” when things do
not go as we had hoped.
- The
misunderstood biblical passages that speak of God repenting or changing
His mind.
How does this belief differ from orthodox Christianity?
- It redefines
the God of the Bible and denies the classical understanding of God’s
sovereignty, knowledge, and power.
- It
denies the Bible in which God speaks of His own unlimited power, sovereign
will, and perfect knowledge.
- In
the past, this kind of denial of divine omniscience have been limited to
heretical movements like the Socinians.
What interesting conclusion did Mohler make about theology?
- Theology
is too important to be left to the theologians. Open theism must be a
matter of concern for the whole church.
- [KH:
The liberal tendency in theology starts with theologians who, by studying
a lot, think they know more than other Christians.]
==============================
THEME: Religious
pluralists rejects Christian claim of exclusive salvation through Jesus Christ.
While they exert some influence even on the Roman Catholic Church and liberal
theologians, they will lead only to the loss of faith.
QUESTIONS:
What is religious pluralism?
- It
is the belief that all religions lead essentially to the same divine
reality and that one faith is, in effect, as good as any other.
What do they promote?
- They
promote dialogue and engagement between religions. With the dialogue, they
require that the religions surrender all absolute truth claims.
How did religious pluralism influence the Roman Catholic
Church?
- The
Roman Catholic Church, which had long claimed to be the only vessel of
salvation, now accepts the notion that persons may become Christians
unconsciously.
- Catholic
theologian Karl Rahner argues that these “anonymous Christians” are
following the light of other religions, but will eventually be included in
Christ’s work of salvation.
What saying by John Hick did Mohler describe as “sloppy
thinking and intellectual dishonesty that marks the pluralist movement?
- Hick
said: “It is the consensus of the great majority of the New Testament
scholars today that Jesus Himself did not claim to be God incarnate and
that his deification was the gradual work of the church.”
- This
is total dishonesty because of false statements about Jesus’ claim and
about the consensus of scholars. He knows they are false.
==============================
THEME: The
Presbyterian Church-USA (PCUSA) published a book by a liberal theologian
claiming that the 911 attacks were orchestrated by the Bush administration.
While the book lacks credibility, it reflects the regrettable trend of the
PCUSA toward liberalism.
QUESTIONS:
What reasons did Griffin support his claims that the 911
attacks were orchestrated by the Bush administration?
- Griffin
claims that the attacks were part of a “false flag” operation to provoke
war in the Middle East and expand the American global empire.
What did Griffin propose about the political world?
- He
believes that the United States is a demonic power and should be
overthrown. [KH:: He dares even to claim that Jesus was the original
political activist who tried to overthrow the Roman Empire and to claim
that Jesus’ claim that “my kingdom is not of this world” was a deceptive
claim.] He supports a one-world government. [KH: just like Babylon the
Great in Revelation.]
What is the greater problem with the publication of Griffin’s
book?
- What
makes his theory so disturbing is the fact that he drags a twisted view
Jesus into his fantasies — and that the Presbyterian Church publishers
would aid and abet him.
- The
bigger problem is the willingness of Presbyterian publishers to publish
such a heretical book.
What did the great Presbyterian theologian Machen say about
liberalism?
- In his classic 1923 book, Christianity and Liberalism, the great Presbyterian scholar
and Princeton Professor Jay Gresham Machen reminds us that people who deny
the fundamentals of the Christian faith are not just liberal Christians;
they belong to another religion entirely. When it comes to
liberalism, Machen wrote, Christianity “is battling against a totally
diverse type of religious belief,” rooted in naturalism. Despite its use
of Christian terminology, “liberalism not only is a different religion
from Christianity but belongs in a totally different class of religions.”
What is the common thread about these 4 kinds of heterodoxy
(deviation from orthodoxy) in these 4 articles: liberal ethics, open theology,
religious pluralism, and liberal theology?
- The
common thread is the denial of the authority of Scripture. [KH: That is
why this is the first line of defence for evangelical Christians to stay
in orthodox Christianity.]
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