The Fox is Officially in the Henhouse
Rom.16:17 - Now I beseech you, brethren, MARK THEM which cause divisions and offences CONTRARY TO THE DOCTRINE which we have learned and AVOID THEM.
Gal.2:5 - To whom we gave place by subjection, NO, NOT FOR AN HOUR, that the gospel might continue with you.
Tit.1:11 - Whose mouths MUST BE STOPPED, who subvert whole households, TEACHING THINGS WHICH THEY OUGHT NOT...
Gal.2:5 - To whom we gave place by subjection, NO, NOT FOR AN HOUR, that the gospel might continue with you.
Tit.1:11 - Whose mouths MUST BE STOPPED, who subvert whole households, TEACHING THINGS WHICH THEY OUGHT NOT...
A certain man had ten sons. One day he discovered that nine of his sons had come down with the flu while one son remained healthy. So desiring to see his nine sons healthy he placed all ten sons in one room, supposing that coming in contact with the healthy son would heal the other nine. But after two days the father realized his one son now had the flu also.
A year later this same father discovered that one of his ten sons had come down with the flu again. Remembering the previous year he theorized his mistake lay in the numerical disparity, so in an attempt to correct the situation he placed his nine healthy sons in a room with his one sick son. But after two days the father again saw that all ten of his sons had come down with the flu.
What I am about to write breaks my heart. This is meant as a humble but forceful warning. He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the church. I am in no way a shining example of anything, and my only glory is the cross. Jesus is my eternal Lord and I am his unprofitable servant.
We live in the most dangerous time in the history of the church. It would be impossible to innumerate the many worldly trends that are even now applauded within God's precious assembly, the holiness of God is now a joke. The whole world lies in the control of the Destroyer, and each day brings forth new evidence that we are in the last days. Matthew 24 reads like today's newspaper, and human perversion is widespread with even middle school children forming school sanctioned gay clubs. Children themselves are tortured and reduced to nothing more than lustful targets of demonic predators, and millions every year never breathe their first breath, having succumbed to the treachery of serial killers some call "doctors" who find their unsuspecting victims in a mother's womb, and actually handed over to the well educated murderer by the little boy or girl's own mother. Last days? To have made it this far is a wonder.
The church herself has lost all sense of direction since leaving the Scriptural compass, and now colossal evangelical movements have pulled up Biblical anchors and unfurled their sails to catch the winds of the world that propel them into waters that the prophets of old had warned about. And the ships that refuse to follow those departing vessels are unknowingly becalmed. And because of the lack of Spiritual depth within the Lord's people, and because of the dearth of powerful prophets fearing nothing but God, millions are looking for new and exciting and mostly entertaining ecclesiastical venues that are upbeat, appealing, and of course never reproving or convicting. And most of this massive shift has occurred in the past forty years as the Prince of the power of the air has used television, radio, and the printed page to spread falsehoods and create tens of thousands of fragmented representations of God's Word, many with more fragments than Word.
And God's remnant, those who haven't taken the postmodern mark, are content to hold the fort. With all the seriousness of the wicked things in the world and the church, would it not be safe to assume that faithful churches would be broken and passionately seeking the very face of the Lord Jesus, begging for God's power to use them as Spiritual beacons of permeating light, and transforming their lives with such an unmistakable glory that the world would have to exclaim "We have not seen it like this!"(Acts)? Against the backdrop of the enormous evil, would it be safe to assume that faithful churches would be open 3 to 4 nights a week in desperate and intercessory prayer, and on those rare occasions see God's glory and presence so manifest itself that it disproportionately changes their lives forever? As we witness the legions of our brothers and sisters leaving their first love and warming their hearts with strange fire, would it not be safe to assume that as faithful believers gathered on Sunday mornings many times people would be overcome with broken hearts and many tears, as we weep for the deception that has taken our brethren captive?
If you assumed those things you would be wrong. And as if this scenic panorama of Spiritual departure and lethargy isn't enough, we now see the first sign that the original ship is leaking. Dialogue is the new altar which draws the worship from all regions of doctrinal perspective, including the most fundamental. And to say there is more dialogue than prayer is akin to proclaiming the earth is round. And referencing my earlier illustration, as we all gather in the same room for a wonderful exchange of ideas and perspective about Jesus (He must be so proud of us), the invisible infection spreads and gains strength and credibility even from those who warn against it. And while we all rail against the emergent movement with its chameleon-like metamorphosis, even reformed icons like John Piper invite emergents like Mark Driscoll to speak at Desiring God conferences. Not dialogue, not to be reproved, not to answer questions, but to speak. I can just see Spurgeon offering his sacred desk to an emergent's ramblings, he would rather die. And most of the reformed blogs are silent, choosing to give Piper a pass based simply on his reputation. If Rick Warren had Driscoll speak at Saddleback there would have been a convenient outpouring of denunciation no matter what Warren claimed his motives were, but not Piper because he has "reformed credentials". Well God is no respecter of persons but many have been exposed as choosing their spots. I am a nobody, but I have spoken in open correction about the views and friendships of Billy Graham, and I came to Christ while watching him on television. Do you who have benefited from Piper's godly ministry owe him the same faithful warning?
Do you not believe that a man like Piper deserves a loving rebuke? Where are the wounds of a friend, gently but accurately correcting him? And Piper's example has opened the doors across the evangelical world to follow his leadership, while other brothers who see the futuristic implications of his actions dare not correct a man of his stature which may offend some of their own followers. And to that end I desire no followers.
A year later this same father discovered that one of his ten sons had come down with the flu again. Remembering the previous year he theorized his mistake lay in the numerical disparity, so in an attempt to correct the situation he placed his nine healthy sons in a room with his one sick son. But after two days the father again saw that all ten of his sons had come down with the flu.
What I am about to write breaks my heart. This is meant as a humble but forceful warning. He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the church. I am in no way a shining example of anything, and my only glory is the cross. Jesus is my eternal Lord and I am his unprofitable servant.
We live in the most dangerous time in the history of the church. It would be impossible to innumerate the many worldly trends that are even now applauded within God's precious assembly, the holiness of God is now a joke. The whole world lies in the control of the Destroyer, and each day brings forth new evidence that we are in the last days. Matthew 24 reads like today's newspaper, and human perversion is widespread with even middle school children forming school sanctioned gay clubs. Children themselves are tortured and reduced to nothing more than lustful targets of demonic predators, and millions every year never breathe their first breath, having succumbed to the treachery of serial killers some call "doctors" who find their unsuspecting victims in a mother's womb, and actually handed over to the well educated murderer by the little boy or girl's own mother. Last days? To have made it this far is a wonder.
The church herself has lost all sense of direction since leaving the Scriptural compass, and now colossal evangelical movements have pulled up Biblical anchors and unfurled their sails to catch the winds of the world that propel them into waters that the prophets of old had warned about. And the ships that refuse to follow those departing vessels are unknowingly becalmed. And because of the lack of Spiritual depth within the Lord's people, and because of the dearth of powerful prophets fearing nothing but God, millions are looking for new and exciting and mostly entertaining ecclesiastical venues that are upbeat, appealing, and of course never reproving or convicting. And most of this massive shift has occurred in the past forty years as the Prince of the power of the air has used television, radio, and the printed page to spread falsehoods and create tens of thousands of fragmented representations of God's Word, many with more fragments than Word.
And God's remnant, those who haven't taken the postmodern mark, are content to hold the fort. With all the seriousness of the wicked things in the world and the church, would it not be safe to assume that faithful churches would be broken and passionately seeking the very face of the Lord Jesus, begging for God's power to use them as Spiritual beacons of permeating light, and transforming their lives with such an unmistakable glory that the world would have to exclaim "We have not seen it like this!"(Acts)? Against the backdrop of the enormous evil, would it be safe to assume that faithful churches would be open 3 to 4 nights a week in desperate and intercessory prayer, and on those rare occasions see God's glory and presence so manifest itself that it disproportionately changes their lives forever? As we witness the legions of our brothers and sisters leaving their first love and warming their hearts with strange fire, would it not be safe to assume that as faithful believers gathered on Sunday mornings many times people would be overcome with broken hearts and many tears, as we weep for the deception that has taken our brethren captive?
If you assumed those things you would be wrong. And as if this scenic panorama of Spiritual departure and lethargy isn't enough, we now see the first sign that the original ship is leaking. Dialogue is the new altar which draws the worship from all regions of doctrinal perspective, including the most fundamental. And to say there is more dialogue than prayer is akin to proclaiming the earth is round. And referencing my earlier illustration, as we all gather in the same room for a wonderful exchange of ideas and perspective about Jesus (He must be so proud of us), the invisible infection spreads and gains strength and credibility even from those who warn against it. And while we all rail against the emergent movement with its chameleon-like metamorphosis, even reformed icons like John Piper invite emergents like Mark Driscoll to speak at Desiring God conferences. Not dialogue, not to be reproved, not to answer questions, but to speak. I can just see Spurgeon offering his sacred desk to an emergent's ramblings, he would rather die. And most of the reformed blogs are silent, choosing to give Piper a pass based simply on his reputation. If Rick Warren had Driscoll speak at Saddleback there would have been a convenient outpouring of denunciation no matter what Warren claimed his motives were, but not Piper because he has "reformed credentials". Well God is no respecter of persons but many have been exposed as choosing their spots. I am a nobody, but I have spoken in open correction about the views and friendships of Billy Graham, and I came to Christ while watching him on television. Do you who have benefited from Piper's godly ministry owe him the same faithful warning?
Do you not believe that a man like Piper deserves a loving rebuke? Where are the wounds of a friend, gently but accurately correcting him? And Piper's example has opened the doors across the evangelical world to follow his leadership, while other brothers who see the futuristic implications of his actions dare not correct a man of his stature which may offend some of their own followers. And to that end I desire no followers.
And I believe this is the last chapter in the final deception to alter the course of Biblical Christianity.
Don't worry, people from all walks of ecclesiastical thought are dialoguing about it, and our children and grandchildren will feel no mandate to avoid almost anyone who claims the Bible as any part of their belief system. And the former hens who left the henhouse and picked up the fox virus came back to the henhouse door wanting back in. They didn't have to burst in by breaking down the door, and they didn't have to sneak in through an open window. No, they talked (dialogued) their way back in, and men that were supposed to be guarding the door opened it "just to talk with them" mind you. And some opened the door to let them speak at the old time hen convention, but reminded them they had to leave the henhouse after they spoke. So they came in and talked and then left. They came in and spoke and then left. Eventually they came in...and never left. As a matter of fact they slowly took over, without a shot being fired.
I might have to find another henhouse.
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4 comments:
Yes, the visible church is full of foxes and wolves in sheep's clothing. The sheep folds are being run by hirelings who know-not the saviour. However, take heart. God has a remnant and He is holding each and every one of them in His hands and no one can snatch them away from Him. Our Saviour is praying for us. He and His Spirit are sustianing us.
These are dire times and what passes for Christinaity in the West is not. It is fake Christianity. I call it circus Christianity. It has captured many who I used to believe were real. However, we must remember that each of us still have a little fool living in our minds and hearts who loves idolatry. Unless we remain diligent and prayerful always looking forward to the promise then we can easily stumble into a pit of idolatry. Oh Lord, protect us from our own evil desires. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
In Christ
Mike Ratliff
What was Piper's response when you contacted him about your concerns?
Amen.
I praise God for men like Piper for being able to see clearly how God is moving. He made the right choice in allowing Driscoll to speak from his pulpit - no rebuke necessary.
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