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What Is Rick Warren Thinking?

01/15/2011 25 Comments

I have to admit I have been hesitant to criticize Rick Warren. His book, The Purpose Driven Life,  encouraged me when I was a new Christian. I know there are a lot of folks at my church that like him too. But I can’t ignore this one.

Warren decided to lose some weight and do a major health promotion at Saddleback. Of course, everything is BIG at Saddleback so he wanted to get some top name physicians and health consultants. So does he draw from the top minds of evangelicalism? No… he went to the top of of the evil world system.

For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions. ( 2 Tim 4:3)

Warren put himself and now his flock under the care of Drs. Mehmet Oz, Mark Hyman, and Daniel Amen who have developed “The Daniel Plan.” Dr. Oz , an Oprah favorite, is the host of the Emmy-winning “Dr. Oz Show” and professor of surgery at Columbia University.  His medical qualifications aside, he openly admits that he is inspired by occultist Emmanuel Swedenborg.  Swedenborg was an 8th century cult founder who had elaborate conversations “Angels”  who dictated his apostate theology. There can be no doubt that they were fallen angels because he taught that all religions lead to God and denied orthodox Christian doctrines like the atonement of Christ, the trinity and the deity of the Holy Spirit. These aren’t excusable errors. Pastor Warren is knowingly putting his church under the influence of this New Age guru. Has he no discernment? What about shame?

He is also endorsing Hyman, a New York Times best-selling author who promotes New Age Buddhist style meditation via the Shambahala center. Amen is an advocate of Buddhist Tantric sex practices and the dubious brain science behind his diet plan Change Your Brain, Change Your Body has attracted the attention of Quackwatch.org.

Seriously, Rick Warren is supposed to be a Southern Baptist, what is going on? It seems that publicity and celebrity trump doctrinal purity and protecting his flock. Perhaps he should consider the warning from James…

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. (Jms. 3:1)

He might take a hint from Francis Chan as well. For more detailed information I suggest this piece by Lighthouse  Trails Research.

How does this match up with the book of Daniel? See Unpacking the Daniel Plan.

Filed Under Apologetics Tagged With Apostasy, Dr. Oz, New Age, Occultism, Rick Warren, Southern Baptist, Swedenborg, The Daniel Plan

Why Eschatology Matters Part IV: Postmillennialism

08/02/2010 32 Comments

continued from Why Eschatology Matters Part IV

II. Post-millennial View: The belief that Christ will physically return to the earth only after a non-literal millennium is completed. Postmillennialism is quite optimistic about the end times in that he essential idea is that the church will exercise a transformational positive social influence in history.[1] Thus, the world is allegedly improving morally and spiritually every year. This may have seemed to be so historically, as many of the reformers, early-American colonists and puritans shared this view. Most theologians have abandoned it in the twentieth century after the two world wars and subsequent nuclear age anxiety. Today this view has been appropriated by the charismatic movement and provides the impetus for dominion or “kingdom now” theology. Dominionists believe they have a mandate to impose the kingdom by earthly means. They even believe it is their responsibility to initiate the second coming of Christ.[2]

A. Basic Premises:

i. Millennium: Literally “after the thousand years.” Some suppose the era of peace is still in the future but the majority holds that it began with the first advent of Christ and is continuing until the gospel conquers the world. The word thousand is considered symbolic of a long period of time.

ii. Resurrection: This view also maintains that there is only one resurrection much like their amillennial counterparts. They employ the same strategy of spiritualization to Revelation 20:4-5.

iii. The Binding of Satan: Satan is currently bound by the power of gospel and cannot deceive the nations.[3]

iv. The Reign of Christ: Christ reigns now in the hearts of believers. Yet, Christians are to conquer the unbelieving world through the spread of the gospel, in the power of the Holy Spirit. However, there is a disturbing trend leaning toward the emphasis of nonspiritual means.

v. The Kingdom of God: The Kingdom is manifested now in the church and increasing in its positive influence over the earth. There is a popular movement today to reclaim the “seven mountains of culture” that is derivative of this idea.[4] Even more strident, Dominionists think they are to accomplish this by military or legal force if necessary.

vi. Israel: They argue that the New Testament church became the “Israel of God” of which Paul speaks in Galatians 6:16.[5] They use the same arguments for supersessionism as the amillennialist in that God’s Old Testament covenants were conditional and no longer binding. See Micah 4:8 vs. Replacement Theology.

vii. Hermeneutic: A very similar approach to the amillennialist is used. Prophecy is understood to be preponderantly symbolic and open to allegorical interpretation. For example, “Israel” now means the church and the word “thousand” simply means an indeterminate long period of time.

B. Points of Strength:

i. Postmillennialism’s greatest strength is its optimism regarding the kingdom of God and its ability to transform the nations of the earth before Christ returns.[6]

ii. The bible promises universal gospel proclamation (Matt. 28:18–20).

iii. They also argue that the word “thousand” is used symbolically in scripture (cf. 1 Chron. 16:15; Ps. 50:10).

C. Points of Weakness:

i. Again a simple reading of the biblical text does not lead to this conclusion. The postmillennial interpretation of Rev. 19-20 seems arbitrarily imposed upon the text.

ii. Jesus clearly taught that “many will fall away”, “lawlessness will be increased” and that “the love of many will grow cold” at the time world evangelization is completed (Matt 24:10-14). In the parable of the Tares in Mt. 13:36-43, Jesus taught that evil people will continue to exist alongside of God’s redeemed people until the time of harvest. The clear implication of this parable is that Satan’s kingdom will continue to exist and expand as long as God’s kingdom grows, until Christ returns.

iii. The Apostles taught increasing apostasy toward the end of the age (2 Thess. 2:3-4, 1 Tim. 4:1,2 Tim. 3:1-5, 2 Tim 4:3-4, 2 Pet. 3:3).

iv. As explained under amillennial weakness ii, the two resurrections of Rev. 20:5 and Rev. 20:13 are described as are bodily and distinct.

v. As stated under amillennialism, the word “thousand” is used literally in the vast majority of its occurrences in the biblical text. The fact that it is repeated 5 times in Revelation 20:1-6 should give pause.

vi. History and current events do not support the idea that things are getting better for Christians. In fact, quite the opposite is true. According to the World Evangelical Alliance, over 200 million Christians in at least 60 countries are denied basic human rights solely because of their faith. David B. Barrett, Todd M. Johnson, and Peter F. Crossing in their 2009 report in the International Bulletin of Missionary Research (Vol. 33, No. 1: 32) estimate that if current trends continue, by 2025, an average of 210,000 Christians will be martyred annually.[7]

vii. Postmillennialism undermines the NT emphasis on the church’s imminent expectation of Christ’s return.  It undermines the essential element of watchfulness to the NT church. See 1 Cor. 16:22; Rom. 13:11-12; Phil. 4:5; Jas. 5:8; 1 Pt. 4:7; 1 Jn. 2:18; Rev. 1:3; 22:20.

viii. The OT identifies the “golden age” with the New Heavens and New Earth which come only after the millennium of Rev. 20 (Rev. 21-22).

ix. Scripture never teaches the progressive and eventual wholesale reconstruction of society (i.e. 7 mountains of culture) according to Christian principles prior to Christ’s return.

x. The Bible teaches that when Jesus returns, he is at war. The idea that he returns to receive a kingdom accomplished by the church is simply incoherent.  “Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.” (1 Co 15:24, Zec. 14:3, 2 Thes. 2:8, Rev. 19:15)

xi. Postmillennialism minimizes one of the primary experiences that will characterize the church and all Christians throughout this present age, suffering with Christ (2 Tim 2:3, 1 Pet. 4:13, 2 Thes.1:5, Rev.6:10). For instance, Romans 8:18-25 speaks of creation groaning for redemption, and that we “wait for it with patience” not take it by political means or force. To the contrary, much like Christ at His first coming, the church actually wins by losing…

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height
nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the
love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Ro 8:36-39)

Next up Premillennialism

[1]Sproul, The Last Days, 9.
[2]Walter A. Elwell and Philip Wesley Comfort, Tyndale Bible Dictionary, Tyndale reference library (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001), 896.
[3] Hindson, Revelation, 86.
[4] Os Hillman. Reclaiming the 7 Mountains of Culture. 2010. http://www.reclaim7mountains.com/ (accessed 06 11, 2010).
[5]Sproul, The Last Days, 9.
[6]Geisler, Systematic Theology, 550.
[7]Unattributed. How Many Christians Killed for their Faith Every Year. http://www.persecution.net/faq-stats.htm (accessed 06/10/2010).

Filed Under Eschatology Tagged With Amillennial, Apostasy, Bible, End Times, Eschatology, last days, Millennium, Postmillennial, Revelation

Why Apologetics?

03/24/2010 6 Comments

I switched career paths from what would have been a  lucrative opportunity in IT to go to seminary.  Now I am passionate about studying theology, apologetics and philosophy. The number one reason is that I truly believe God called me.  I also think I know why I was… well, drafted.

It’s a war and “No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. ” (2 Timothy 2:4, ESV)

I truly believe we are in the very last days prior to the return of Christ. There are many compelling evidences for this; the primary being Israel’s reestablishment as a nation after nearly 2000 years of Diaspora.  The Bible warns us to expect widespread deception and a falling away from orthodoxy. For this reason, apologetics is now more important than ever.

In Matthew 24  Jesus characterizes the time leading up to his return as one of unprecedented deception and emphatically warns “See that no one leads you astray…”

Scripture is chock full of admonitions concerning the deceptive nature of the last days.

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. ” (2 Timothy 3:1, ESV)

“knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. ” (2 Peter 3:3, ESV)

“Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, …. ” (2 Thessalonians 2:3 a , ESV)

The word rebellion is rendered from ἀποστασία apostasia;  defection, revolt:—apostasy(1), forsake(1).  (New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries :  1998).

So is this occurring?

In the new American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) the percentage of people who call themselves “Christian” has dropped more than 11% in a generation. The report states “the challenge to Christianity … does not come from other religions but from a rejection of all forms of organized religion.” The percentage of Americans that claim no religion at all is 15%, up from 8% in 1990.

Back in 1994, Dr. William Lane Craig wrote concerning the trend toward postmodernism,

If the situation is not to degenerate further, it is imperative that we turn the whole intellectual climate of our culture back to a Christian worldview…our churches are filled with Christians who are idling in intellectual neutral. One result of this is an immature, superficial faith…The results of being in intellectual neutral extend far beyond oneself. If Christian laymen don’t become intellectually engaged, then we are in serious danger of losing our children, (William Lane Craig, Reasonable Faith, 1994).

So here we are in 2010, was Dr Craig’s prediction correct? In a 2007 Barna study, it was observed that Americans ages 16 to 29 were far more skeptical and resistant to Christianity than the same age group ten years before. Only 16% have a positive view of Christianity. Dr Frank Turek says we have a 75% rate of attrition,

What about those who haven’t left the church? The 2008 Pew Forum research indicated “Americans are very open. In terms of various paths to heaven, the majority tell us that there is not just one way to heaven. 70% of Americans including 57% of ‘evangelical Protestants’ believe this, while 68% believe there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their religions.”

Another revealing finding by the Pew Forum reflecting the dramatic postmodern turn is that 50% of Americans now say homosexuality should be accepted by society, while only 40% do not (“Massive Study Finds Most Americans Devout, Tolerant,” The Boston Globe, June 23, 2008). The recent decision by the Evangelical Lutheran Church to endorse openly homosexual pastors comes to mind.

In addition, Pew’s 2008 U.S. Religious Landscape Survey of 35,000 Americans also found a astonishing dismissal of orthodoxy: 70% said “many religions can lead to eternal life” and 68% said “there’s more than one true way to interpret the teachings of my religion.”  Unfortunately for the majority Jesus really did not leave that option open to us.

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. ” (Matthew 7:13–14, ESV)

This is spiritual warfare and the hour is late.

Filed Under Apologetics Tagged With Apologetics, Apostasy, deception, End Times, last days, spiritual warfare
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