Covenant Theology

The dog has returned to his vomit again (2Pet. 2:2...

2009-11-05T23:29:18.195-05:00

The dog has returned to his vomit again (2Pet. 2:2).

Part of this story is unclear. "...and a tray of d...

2009-11-05T01:21:27.071-05:00

Part of this story is unclear. "...and a tray of dog treats for the offering". So the dogs brought the treats as an offering? And hey, what about the cats!?

In all seriousness, this should be sobering reminder to keep our pastors and chuch leaders in our prayers.

Where else but California! I was raised in Califor...

2009-11-04T19:43:21.805-05:00

Where else but California! I was raised in California and my home church is very trendy. I don't think I would be comfortable there now and the sermons from there lack the substance of the preachers I grew up with.

Unfortunately, this problem is bigger than one man...

2009-10-30T08:14:35.289-04:00

Unfortunately, this problem is bigger than one man. It's becoming the mainstay of American Evangelicalism. You'll be hard pressed to find a modern sermon on the Song of Solomon that doesn't take this approach.

Im suprised Driscoll isnt behind this.

2009-10-30T02:52:17.534-04:00

Im suprised Driscoll isnt behind this.

I'm not sure what the point of your comment was, b...

2009-10-29T14:47:47.076-04:00

I'm not sure what the point of your comment was, but...

the answer to the first part of your post is that truth matters. Either Christ died save His people, or he died so that we could save ourselves.

In any case, Turner is neither. He is a humanist, and one with a soap box that needs to be called out. Christianity that refuses to engage the culture and is simply focused on individual conversion is tasteless sait. Turner is a false teacher, and all who heed his advice are led to "swift destruction". Some of us happen to think that this is rather important.

why does everything have to be either ARMINIAN, RE...

2009-10-29T11:27:51.511-04:00

why does everything have to be either ARMINIAN, REFORMED, ECT... ITS SAD, THIS IS A HUMAN WITH A LOST SOUL WE SHOULD TELL ALL TO PRAY FOR HIM , IM SURE SOMEONE PRAYED FOR YOU BEFORE THE lORD OPENED YOUR EYES.

Thanks B. I heard that interview with Phil Johnso...

2009-10-29T08:09:37.491-04:00

Thanks B. I heard that interview with Phil Johnson. Excellent stuff.

We need to once again build churches that know what their purpose is, led by pastors who know what their job is.

The pastor said in one of his “sermons” he/they “....

2009-10-29T00:14:22.301-04:00

The pastor said in one of his “sermons” he/they “...didn’t want to start a church just to cater to the needs of Christians”. Does this mean they support the local Salvation Army? Orphanages? Perhaps they do. Packing the church building full of unregenerate people and teaching them how to have a better love life is nonsensical.

If I may suggest, listen to John MacArthur’s “The Case Against the R-Rated Church”.

True, except in Arminian theology, Jesus does have...

2009-10-28T08:14:53.945-04:00

True, except in Arminian theology, Jesus does have a role to play. His sacrifice actually makes it possible for us to save ourselves, and now Jesus hopes that, with the faith that we obtain through our own virtuous resources, we can make the right decision. All the while He is cheering us on.

This is the logical conclusion of the Free-will do...

2009-10-27T22:22:42.713-04:00

This is the logical conclusion of the Free-will doctrine. Turner is just a run of the mill Arminian.

Does anyone know if Joel mentions Jesus, sin, repe...

2009-10-22T19:35:18.886-04:00

Does anyone know if Joel mentions Jesus, sin, repentance, and redemption in any of his updated "speeches"? I notice how he 'para-phrases' the Bible from time to time, scriptures taken w-a-y out of text to 'fit' what he 'thinks' those people wish to hear.
Also, some posted a video on YouTube(R) of Joel 'talking' about Jesus, but I've only seen him mention Christ once or twice since he's been on tv. What a sad and sinful shame on how the Gospel is being watered down, especially with those of the itching ears variety. God help and have mercy on those who don't truly know Christ for themselves.
I wonder just how many of them actually "read and believe" those Bibles that I see on their lives every Sunday?

Thanks Jeanne. If we haven't brought the unsaved ...

2009-10-20T19:47:00.095-04:00

Thanks Jeanne. If we haven't brought the unsaved person to the knowledge of his own sinfulness, we have not evangelized.

Re: 'Preaching and sin'. Praise the Lord for a ver...

2009-10-20T00:51:55.175-04:00

Re: 'Preaching and sin'. Praise the Lord for a very timely article, which should be posted in "every" church throughout the U.S., and the world as a whole. For 'every' minister preaching about sin and redemption through Jesus Christ, sadly there are many more who do not. We'ver truly become more 'men pleasers' then we are God pleasers. May the Holy Spirit help us to speak with boldness, including talking about sin, when it comes to those on their way to hell and for those of us naming the name of Jesus Christ.

Not only that, but if man under the law were able ...

2009-10-19T14:40:10.906-04:00

Not only that, but if man under the law were able to become righteous by doing righteously, then Christ's work at Calvary was totally unnecessary. God would have wasted the precious blodd of His only Son if it were only to purchase that which man could purchase for himself.

The law was given so that the whole world may be found guilty before God. Indeed, Dispensationalism has been weighed in the balances and found wanting. No wonder it has to reinvent itself every 10 years. But as we can see, the very roots of the system are rotten to the core.

What about Hebrews 11 then? By faith, Abraham.... ...

2009-10-19T14:31:18.802-04:00

What about Hebrews 11 then? By faith, Abraham.... We are justified by faith and then Christ's righteousness is imputed to us. OT saints looked forward to that promise.I don't think the Scofield system understands sanctification either.

Right on Dave, Earl, you are correct in that the ...

2009-10-17T16:28:56.074-04:00

Right on Dave,

Earl, you are correct in that the gates of Hell cannot prevail against the true church. When we say that the "church" has lost the centrality of the gospel, we are referring to the visible church, which does have a mixture of wheat and tares.

My concern is for some in the true church that have moved toward a seeker sensitive, pragmatic type of gospel, for even true churches are subject to error and prone to follow fads. It is my hope that this type of article/discussion can call such churches to repentance, and once again to a holistic biblical worldview. Judgment begins in the household of God.

There are many problems with articles like this an...

2009-10-17T09:52:13.080-04:00

There are many problems with articles like this and thread comments which utilize non-biblical definitions of the “church”. When we say things like: “the church at large which has lost the centrality of the gospel message”, and “the church at large which no longer believes that the gospel itself has the power to change lives”, or that “Our churches are and have been a mixed breed of wheat and tares”, or saying that “nowadays the world has essentially turned the church upside down”; when we say things like this it proves that we are thinking and operating under the worlds definition and concept of the church and not God’s definition and concept. This is very dangerous because it confuses the truth with the errors which are prevalent all around us. Be careful dear friends how you speak of God’s holy Bride.

The truth about God’s church is:
1. The church of God has been purchased with His blood Acts 20:28
2. There are no tares in the church. They are in the world Matt 13:38
3. The church cannot lose the centrality of the gospel message, because the gospel is the only way to get into the church. To say that we have lost it is to say that the church no longer has a front door.
4. The church is the only group which believes that the gospel itself has the power to change lives. Don’t say that she no longer believes this. That is not true.
5. It is totally false to say: “nowadays the world has essentially turned the church upside down”. The world has done no such thing. The gates of hell do not prevail against the church Matt 16:18
6. The church is the body of Christ which is His fullness Eph 1:22-23
7. Christ is, and always will be, the head and Savior of the church Eph 5:23
8. The church is subject to Christ and no one else Eph 5:24
9. Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it Eph 5:25
10. The church is sanctified and cleansed Eph 5:26
11. The church has no “spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing” Eph 5:27
12. The church is nourished and cherished by the Lord Eph 5:29
13. The church is Christ’s flesh and bones Eph.5:30
14. The church is a great mystery Eph.5:32
15. The church is the pillar and ground of the truth 1Tim 3:15
16. The church is the general assembly which is written in heaven Heb 12:23

With these truths in mind let us not speak of God’s Holy Bride in the way’s that the world and careless ministers speak of her. We must teach the truth about her, and not popular current opinions and myths hatched in the brains of men. The church is sacred, and we need to keep her that way in our speech about her. Say what God say’s, and not what human viewpoint says. Christ loves the church!

The early church turned the world upside down, and...

2009-10-16T15:03:32.828-04:00

The early church turned the world upside down, and it wasn't easy , they didn't give in to popular opinion,. but stayed the course in the word.

nowadays the world has essentially turned the church upside down.

It starts with doctrine, and scriptural authority, then leads out into life......

The danger here is not just that you might spend m...

2009-10-16T15:01:04.937-04:00

The danger here is not just that you might spend money on mclarens books, but our flesh loves unaccountability and flattery, ultimately the system that places man above God will lead back to that and you'll go down with the ship.

be careful

I find it funny that the people who like to talk f...

2009-10-16T14:37:56.223-04:00

I find it funny that the people who like to talk for Jesus never know what he already said.

Puritan is right, eventually it has to come down t...

2009-10-16T14:23:22.410-04:00

Puritan is right, eventually it has to come down to who that God is you follow, if you dont know him, its probably not God.

Thanks Joseph. You have definitely identified a h...

2009-10-15T08:33:33.781-04:00

Thanks Joseph. You have definitely identified a huge part of the problem. According to the 2006 Barna Research Group on Born Again Christians...

1.) Half of born again Christians (46%) agree that Satan is "not a living being but is a symbol of evil." (2007)

2.) 37% of born agains believe that if a person is good enough they can earn a place in Heaven. (2007)

3.) 26% of born agains agree that "while he lived on earth, Jesus committed sins, like other people," compared to 41% of all adults. (2007)

4.) Born again Christians are more likely than non-born again individuals to accept moral absolutes. Specifically, 36% of born agains said they believe in moral absolutes, compared to just 16% among non-born agains.

See Errors of the Church Growth Movement

The ironic thing about the church growth movement is

1.) The church isn't growing.

2.) That which is growing in churches isn't Christianity.

So we could write off the above stats as unbelievers finally being honest about their unbelief, and there is probably some truth in that.

On the other hand, we see that the number of atheists has remained constsnt. So it's not like the unbelievers are opposed to the idea of God in general terms. SO what role has the American church played in the decline of "Christianity" in America? The two most telling statements in the article to me are:

1.) Nearly a quarter of Americans in their 20’s profess no organized religion. I have to disagree with the author's conclusion that "catering to older believers is a recipe for failure; younger Americans are tuning out". I'm not sure how familiar the author is with modern evangelicalism, but that's all churches do today is "cater" to young people. Yet inspite of this, young people are leaving. I'm of the mindset that churches should cater to God, not please men of any age. I think the real problem lies here.

"Second, Americans are interested in God, but they don’t think existing institutions are helping them draw closer to God."

If the church merely offers us a watered down version of the world, why go? We need to show how we are different, and that means a renewed confidence in the power of the gospel itself to change lives, and in preaching as being the means by which the gospel is spread.

Very interesting. But perhaps we are finally and r...

2009-10-15T06:55:03.379-04:00

Very interesting. But perhaps we are finally and realistically seeing the fluff being separated from most polls about Christianity in America. If anyone believes that 76% are truly regenerate folk they need a reality dose. And to believe that the percentage in 1990 was 88% makes me think I am having LSD flashbacks. Our churches are and have been a mixed breed of wheat and tares and will be until Jesus returns. And there is nothing new about believing in a God made in our own image. We need faithful proclamation, earnest relationship building, a better sense of understanding our role in matters of social justice and stop playing politics in a way that gets identified with idiots like Rush Limbaugh.( I am a Doctrines of Grace, Baptist conservative). Most of all we need a heart cry that God in His providence would bring God-breathed revival. And if not, then live as we must resting in Christ and His promises as the all sufficient One and keep on keeping by His grace for His glory..

Good Ray. I think that one of the central problem...

2009-10-14T17:30:21.197-04:00

Good Ray. I think that one of the central problems is that the church at large no longer believes that the gospel itself has the power to change lives. As a result, we have reduced the doctrine of justification to the act of raising our hands, going forward to an altar, and repeating a prayer, all while the alledge "convert" is never presented with sin, judgment, atonement, and repentance. The word "repent" is slowly disappearing from the church lexicon. Add to this the idea that larger numbers of parishioners equals a spiritually vital ministry. (More often than not, the reverse is true.) As a result, truth has been replaced by subjective spirituality, worship has been replaced by entertainment, and preaching the Word has been replaced by pragmatic speeches on successful living. As a result, the church has sought to become more “relevant”, and yet has ironically made it irrelevant. Why should I get up early on a Sunday morning to get the same thing that I can get in a bar on Saturday Night, or on the Dr. Phil show on weekday afternoons? We can’t turn goats into sheep by feeding then goat food, and we can’t win the world by imitating the world. The world does worldly things better than the church does.

Most telling from this article is the percentage of youth who are turned off by church, despite the fact that most American churches go out of their way to present their services as "contemporary" and "youth oriented". Young people don't buy into the "bait and switch" evangelism. We need to present the entire gospel, which is relevant for both young and old.