The Journey Toward Apostasy

II Jn.9-11 - Whosoever transgresses and abides not in the doctrine of Christ has not God. He that abides in the doctrine of Christ, he has both the Father and the Son. If there comes any unto you and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: For he that bids him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

Before you read this post I would strongly suggest you go to the link I have provided at Apprising Ministries. In this article Ken Silva succinctly outlines an incredibly disturbing connection between different men which will give you just a glimpse into just how rapidly parts of the evangelical community are heading toward apostasy. And Silva's article is by no means exhaustive, but it does represent what is happening across the evangelical landscape. Not just shallowness and not just weirdness, but apostasy itself.

http://www.apprising.org/archives/2008/06/john_dominic_cr.html

Let us retrace some of the connections that Ken Silva has made. First of all no evangelical can consider Marcus Borg and John Crossan as anything but full blown and openly militant apostates. They deny the bodily resurrection of Jesus, the virgin birth, and the deity of Jesus Christ Himself. Both Marcus Borg and John Crossan completely deny the Biblical account of the gospel including rejecting any atonement in the cross. Neither man is a Christian, both are apostates in the clearest terms and anyone with the Spirit should and must believe that.

Now we move to an emergent teacher named Brian MacLaren. He is one of the founders of the emergent movement and has just written a new book titled “Everything Must Change”. Ken notes that when MacLaren is asked about his spiritual influences he mentions Borg and Crossan as positive and helpful in his new book. That makes MacLaren an apostate as well. The Apostle John tells us in no uncertain terms that anyone who bids these apostates “godspeed” is a partaker with them. And these men do not just say God bless you (God speed), no, they openly recommend their heresies to the sheep. They are hirelings of the very worst kind, those who actually lead the sheep to streams of eternal poison.

Borg and Crossan do not parse words, they are not being coy and elusive, they are blatant and clear in their apostasy. That is one aspect about which they have integrity, they are honest about their apostasy. I cannot stress enough how wicked these men are and how grievous are the teachings of these wolves. They are the very type of men that true shepherds are equipped to expose and to warn the sheep to steer clear from anything these heretics say. But that is not what we see even among men who up until now have been given some leeway concerning their own ministries.

Before I proceed, let us dismiss some disingenuous contentions that some have made. Some have defended men who recommend books and writings of apostates by asserting that those recommendations do not mean a carte blanche endorsement of all the writers espouse and teach. And in fact, that is true, it doesn’t automatically mean a unequivocal endorsement. Pastors and Christian writers who are strict Calvinists will, for instance, quote and recommend John Wesley even though they disagree with elements of his theology, and vice versa. That is quite another issue. That is one dedicated brother in Christ quoting another dedicated brother in Christ even while overlooking some doctrinal disagreements.

That is completely different than some pastor quoting and recommending reading material form a Christ denier. That is being a partaker of his apostasy and that act in and of itself disqualifies you from being a shepherd. You have left protecting and feeding your sheep and you are now not leading them beside the still waters of God’s truth, but you are leading them to an ocean of apostasy in which they will drown. The shepherd that does this knowingly has become the worst sort of guide, he has used his office in an ungodly and corrupt manner and has become complicit in injuring the very sheep he is supposed to protect. It is unconscionable and is a sin against the Spirit Himself.

Legion are those who run to the defense of these compromisers with the very shallowest of arguments. They suggest that reading these apostates broadens one’s world and religious views, and that renouncing any writings is akin to a book burning. Some books are well deserving of being burned, and everything Borg and Crossan and MacLaren write should find their God directed destination in the fires of destruction. Attempting to expand people’s minds by recommending apostasy is antichrist at its core, and these spirits of antichrist are now thriving within post modern evangelicalism. When men like Borg, Crossan, and MacLaren are recommended and quoted by so called evangelical leaders, you can be rest assured the spirit of antichrist is present and active.

And Brian MacLaren may just be the most dangerous apostate of them all since he is considered mainstream in many evangelical circles. This man has endorsed the “ministries” of Borg and Crossan, and he is a guest speaker in many pulpits around the nation. And he has also been a guest speaker at Mars Hill Church, pastured by a man named Rob Bell. There is no nuance here, and there can be no defense in not only recommending an apostate such as MacLaren, but having him actually come and feed your own sheep. A man like Bell, regardless of his obvious intellect, has now exposed himself solidly as a heretic and on a journey toward apostasy. When someone cannot recognize the utter apostasy of someone like MacLaren, and then even recommending books by apostates like John Crossan and new age unbelievers like Ken Wilbur, that man is no longer a shepherd, he has become a facilitator toward apostasy.

The entire emergent/emerging movement is now rushing toward apostasy, and even the more “conservative” wing is complicit with all the multi-faceted avenues of apostasy being generated by this new and abominable movement. It is beyond understanding how anyone who claims to believe the Scriptures and the historical gospel can willingly stay as a part of an amalgam of Bible destroyers and not realize that the same Scriptures they claim to believe tell us to reject heretics and have no dealings with apostates. The Scriptures even go further, we are commanded to reprove and expose such men and their apostate teachings. The days are evil and the apostate inertia has vanished, the rails are greased, and the teachings that the church would have rejected just one generation ago are now being sold in church lobbies.

This current deception is very strong, and it is evident that there is no productive value to dialogue at all. And if you think that there will be no rancor or malice when dialoguing with emergent and emergent leaning people, you will be unpleasantly surprised. The same unchristian verbiage that some attempt to confine to the orthodox crowd is openly displayed within the emergent “conversation” as well. Demeaning, condescension, dismissiveness, and the entire menu of unchristian discourse is rampant throughout the internet and I am sure it blossoms even further in private conversation among like minded people. So if you desire to affect some emergent people by having a congenial and somewhat dispassionate conversation you may find that not only will your words change nothing, but there will be other unpleasant residuals. For one you might experience some aspects of that dialogue that you did not expect. Secondly you will almost certainly uncover some astounding beliefs that you never realized these people espouse.

The only way to combat this journey toward apostasy is to remain devoted and close to Christ personally. Do not read anything by anyone who even entertains these people, and although we need to stay informed, do not let it consume you. However we must warn people who have not as yet been drawn to these heresies. Anything with the emergent/emerging moniker should be avoided like the plague it is. Apostasy is a serious business, it is a denying of the faith and there can be no deeper sin against the Holy Spirit. We must remain vigilant and yet humble, all of us could still be candidates for being swallowed into this stream of apostasy. There may be coming a new and more sophisticated deception, so continue to hold fast to the ancient landmarks established by the unchanging written revelation of God’s Word.

HT: Ken Silva