In The Lord’s Want Ads—Needed: A New Type Of Preacher

Years ago Martin Luther said:

The negotiation about doctrinal agreement displeases me altogether, for this is utterly impossible unless the pope has his papacy abolished. Therefore avoid and flee those who seek the middle of the road. Think of me after I am dead and such middle-of-the-road men arise, for nothing good will come of it. There can be no compromise. [What Luther Says, II: 1019] (Online source, emphasis mine)

Well, I’m not a Lutheran and I’m sure no Luther; however, here’s a little news for ya: All of this so-called “conversation” in, and with, what is now becoming known as Emergence Christianity is a seeking the middle of the road and nothing good will come of it. Add to that the rejection of Sola Scriptura by mainstream evangelicalism to make way for their man-love of seeker sensitive methods, whether they be those of Purpose Driven Pope Rick Warren, Emerging Church icon rabbi Rob Bell, or the self-centered “best life now” of jolly Joel Osteen, and you are now on the broad road of compromise.

Yet this also is a sad sign of these tepid times in our Lord’s Church where we lack men with strong spiritual backbone. A tragically false—way over emphasis on the love of God—is now so ingrained in the American Christian Church that we have literally become afraid of our own spiritual shadows. I am very thankful that Dr. John MacArthur, who has been a real blessing to the Church of our Lord, has done a whole series on the lack of discernment within evangelicalism today. And with that lack of discernment has come an unwillingness to really speak out against the false teaching, which is now so rampant.

Instead of effete bending over to receive meaningless offerings—so-called “good points” of Reformation-reversing compromise—it’s time for us to come to see the bigger picture; because this new evangelical, postevangelical, Ecumenical Church of Deceit (ECoD) has nearly arrived in full upon the sad scene of timid American Christianity. And what needs to be further understood is that this is itself a Devil-designed serpentine vehicle in which to enable people in these later times to abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.

But these false churches making up the major sections of this ECoD e.g. Purpose Driven Church, Emergent Church, and Word Faith Church, are themselves part of 1 Peter 4:17 judgments upon the apostatizing evangelical community, which have been allowed by the Lord Himself—just as He permits the Church of Rome as mother of the ECoD with her apostate Roman Catholicism—to exist as well. That is, at least until all of this compromise finally serves the Lord God Almighty’s ultimate—completely sovereign—purposes. Remember you rebels, God does not sleep; nor will He be mocked.

Not so long ago I was in some eye-opening dialogue with brother and sister missionaries who are stationed in various parts of Europe; and sadly, they are already battling much more advanced versions of these terrible excuses for Christianity vomited out through the ECoD and its adultery of man-love. Men and women, it’s not like our Lord didn’t try and prepare us. For instance, back in the mid 50’s A.W. Tozer saw such supercilious compromises coming and wrote:

If Christianity is to receive a rejuvenation, it must be by other means than any now being used. If the Church in the second half of this century is to recover from the injuries she suffered in the first half, there must appear a new type of preacher. The proper, ruler-of-the-synagogue type will never do. Neither will the priestly type of man who carries out his duties, takes his pay and asks no questions, nor the smooth-talking pastoral type who knows how to make the Christian religion acceptable to everyone. All these have been tried and found wanting.

Another kind of religious leader must arise among us. He must be of the old prophet type, a man who has seen visions of God and has heard a voice from the Throne. When he comes (and I pray God there will be not one but many), he will stand in flat contradiction to everything our smirking, smooth civilization holds dear. He will contradict, denounce and protest in the name of God and will earn the hatred and opposition of a large segment of Christendom.

Such a man is likely to be lean, rugged, blunt-spoken and a little bit angry with the world. He will love Christ and the souls of men to the point of willingness to die for the glory of the One and the salvation of the other. But he will fear nothing that breathes with mortal breath.

Behold A New Reformation Of Love Has Arrived…A Love Of Self

But unfortunately, instead within this ECoD menace, we have actually seen the rise of almost the exact opposite type of “leader.” Now we see such a one who fears almost anything; and instead of defending the honor of God, he or she seeks rather to first please their fellow man as they seek to make friends with the world. The reason I mentioned my discussions with my fellow missionaries is because it has partially been through their correspondence that the Lord has enabled me to see the sorry state of the visible Church in this caprious country from a fresh perspective.

It’s actually been quite beneficial to have been talking with these over-seas missionaries as they share the perspectives they received having been in dialogue with many people there regarding the Emerging Church, and now even the evangelical embrace of Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster with his reimagined Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism. And what we see the Emergence of a delusion within this ECoD that God is bringing about a new reformation; what they don’t see is this one is to be a reformation of unity, love, and acceptance…of themselves (see—2 Timothy 3:2).

Unfortunately this is all still being met by evangelicalism with a dead orthodoxy—an “intellectual” Christianity—that has now numbed the Body of Christ into becoming so dull spiritually that Satan has now quite literally set up shop right within the visible church of our Lord using pathetic puppet pulpeteers. We need to remember that as we approach the end of the Age of Grace the Bible shows us there is going to be a marked increase of interest in being “spiritual.” Don’t you be fooled; this is not a seeking of the one true and living God, but rather, it’s really simply an increase of man’s bankrupt religious fervor. 

And still the Bible warns us that the love of Truth, the love for God, and for His Christ will grow cold…until finally Jesus asks — “when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth”  (see—Luke 18:8). You must understand that the Master knows full well there will be “faith” on the earth; mankind will have plenty of faith in his religion of selfish choosing. You see, our Lord’s melancholy question truly means: “When I return, will I find upon My earth, faith in the glorious and majestic LORD God Almighty; as actually revealed in the Bible?”

He who has an ear, let him hear…

See also:

ARE YOU WILLING TO TELL THE TRUTH?

NO-CONTROVERSY FOR THE NEW DOWNGRADE

THE COMING DIVISION WITHIN THE IDOL OF EVANGELICALISM

THE EMERGENCE OF POSTMODERN APOSTLES OF UNBELIEF

EVANGELICALISM HIGHJACKED BY CLOSET THEOLOGICAL LIBERALS

HAS GOD ABANDONED EVANGELICALISM?

FOR EMERGENCE CHRISTIANITY OUT GOES THE BIBLE AND IN COMES “QUEER CHRISTIANS”