Apprising Ministries presents the following to show you where the evangelical community within the visible church will be/is heading now that its largely rejected the all-sufficiency and final authority of the Bible i.e. Sola Scriptura to follow its lust for Contemplative Spirituality/Mysticism masquerading as Spiritual Formation as taught by Living Spiritual Teacher and Quaker mystic Richard Foster.

In the grand scheme of the egregiously ecumenical Emerging Church aka Emergent Church—morphing into Emergence Christianity—(EC) Zach Lind is not a major player. His actual claim to fame is being the drummer for the rock band Jimmy Eat World, though he is friends with many EC notables e.g. as Rob Bell and Dan Kimball.

Lind’s latest post # Gays in the Church Part 4: Scripture and Culture proves quite enlightening as to why mainstream evangelical denominations, in their lust for acceptance in the world, will soon begin following mainline denominations and start caving in on the issue of homosexuality; many of whom already ordain women in violation of Scripture.

As far as the issue of women elders Lind begins correctly by pointing out that the heart of the matter is the “always mysterious relationship between the culture we find ourselves in and the scripture we look to for guidance.” Then he says:

If we are to take Paul at his word, women must be kept from any kind of prominent leadership role in the Church. Despite Paul’s clear instruction, whole denominations are taking a different view in light of the culture we find ourselves in today. Women are being allowed to be clergy members, elders, and pastors over entire congregations. Whether or not this is appropriate is beside the point. (Online source)

Lind is partially right; it is beside the point, denominations that ordain women reject “Paul’s clear instruction” on the matter. But there’s a more important issue, which I recently discussed in Reclaiming The Bible As The Word Of God: It isn’t Paul’s instruction on the issue; no, they are rejecting God’s command. However, notice what Lind says next:

The point I’d like to make is that those who are coming to this conclusion aren’t doing so solely based on their interpretation of scripture. Churches or denominations didn’t begin scouring the scriptures to find some objective theological basis for women leadership. Rather it was a response to the culture and the culture’s evolving view of women that prompted a search for a theological basis to justify women in leadership. (Online source)

This is a tragic truth: Denominations rejected the timeless truths that transcend a given culture and instead bowed to our capricious “culture’s evolving view of women that prompted a search for a theological basis to justify women in leadership” ala speaking — from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them (1 John 4:5).

And here’s where Lind, and all who follow the spiritually blind, step off the cliff:

It is precisely because the women in our lives, the women who we experience on a day to day basis that we have side stepped Paul’s instruction to keep them from leading men. It has nothing to do with paper-thin, soggy hermeneutics like William Webb’s “Slaves, Women, and Homosexuals.” It is so simply because what Paul taught does not ring true today.

 The flaw with William Webb is his assumption that some instructions are “trans-cultural.” But the reality is that no idea, philosophy, or instruction transcends cultural influence. I think only when we do away with this assumption can we begin to have an authentic debate on the issue of women and homosexuals. Once we come to the conclusion that Paul’s instructions do not all possess timeless truths, we can then open the can of worms. (Online source)

So while Lind is correct that there are those unwilling to stand upon what Scripture (means God’s Word) says—as did Christ Jesus of Nazareth—the truth is, what Paul wrote under the direct inspiration of God the Holy Spirit rings true whether one in  given culture has ears that hear or not:

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NASB)

However, the spiritually fatal flaw of this type of thinking hasn’t just opened up a can of worms; no, what it has actually done is to open the door into the visible church for a whole vipers den of seducing spirits who’ve now slithered in with a plethora of doctrines taught by demons, such as women in the pastorate and denying that practicing homosexuality is sin.

See also:

THE GREATEST EXPERT ON THE SCRIPTURES AND HIS VIEW OF THE BIBLE

ROB BELL ABSOLUTELY WRONG ABOUT SCRIPTURE

DR. JOHN BATTLE: THE BIBLE CLAIMS VERBAL INSPIRATION

THE EMERGING CHURCH SOWING ITS NEO-ORTHODOX CONFUSION ON SCRIPTURE

JOHN MACARTHUR: EXISTENTIAL NEO-ORTHODOXY DENIES SOLA SCRIPTURA

EMERGENCE CHRISTIANITY—A POSTLIBERAL CULT SLITHERS INTO EVANGELICALISM

THE EMERGING CHURCH HIGHJACKING EVANGELICALISM