Jimmy Carter: Once a Liberal, Always a Liberal!

This article at American Vision shows that the worst President of my lifetime isn't very good at hermeneutics either!

Preterist Detractor May Have to Rewrite Book

I have made it no secret that I'm a Partial-Preterist (and a Postmillennialist) along the eschatological lines of R.C. Sproul, Gary DeMar, and Kenneth Gentry. A quick survey of the eschatological views of American Evangelicalism would, no doubt, confirm that my position is most certainly a minority view. As such, I understand that my view is controversial and there are many good Christians who will critique my it and believe it to be aberrant -or even heretical.

Yesterday morning I was perusing a website of a certain author who has written a number of helpful books and tracts concerning the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement other cultic/abberant movements in the United States. Unfortunately, this author has also placed Partial-Preterism within his crosshairs and attacks it in several articles online.

Do you know what's ironic?

Like most Futurist scholars, this gentleman has authored an eschatological book that may be a bit embarrassing for him now. You see, the author in question once speculated that Saddam Hussein was the "little horn" of Daniel 11!

Instead of using Scripture to interpret Scripture, the author used the goings on of our modern world to be his lens for interpreting passages of Scripture written (and most likely fulfilled) thousands of years ago. As always, speculative books such as this end up worthless after time rolls by and proves them to be the rubish that they really are. There's no doubt the bottom dropped out of any market there may have been for this book when Saddam was executed on Dec. 30, 2006!

These wild futurist speculations might sell lots of books when a certain world leader can be made to fit some weird eschatological profile, but inevitably, as we have seen time and time again, these speculations will be proven wrong. What we end up with is a Christian author who is essentially tale-bearing and tarnishing the image of someone who has absolutely nothing to do with prophecies that have already been fulfilled. (I can think of numerous times I have watched Hal Lindsey, on TV, hint that various world leaders might be the Antichrist.)

The author also wants to speculate that the fulfillment of the "Abomination of Desolation" (that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24) as being a future Islamic takeover and destruction of the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. Now honestly folks, could anyone in Christ's audience have possibly conceived of such a thing as he foretold those events? I doubt it.

Think about it for a second; what could have been a greater abomination to the Jews of Jesus' generation than for the Roman army to sack Jerusalem and totally destroy their beloved Temple? Certainly, an Islamic takeover and destruction of the modern Wailing Wall would cause a real ruckus, but I simply cannot see how it would be more of an "abomination" than what Titus and his legions did in 70 A.D.

It has become clear to me that Futurist authors will always end up embarrassing themselves as long as they (continue to be Futurists and) ignore the time indicators given by Christ in the Olivet Discourse and in the book of Revelation.

In Matthew 24:34 Jesus said "Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place." Was this some distant generation 2000+ years in the future? No! Did anyone in Christ's audience understand him to mean that the events would be thousand of years in the future? Again I say NO! (Furthermore, had you or I been in the crowd that day, we wouldn't have taken His words to mean that either!)

In the opening of the book of Revelation, John calls his book "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place." Thrice in the last chapter of Revelation, the Lord tells John he is "coming soon" (see Rev 22:7, 12, 20). I don't know about you, but when someone tells me something is "coming soon," I don't interpret it to mean 2000+ years in the future!

Did Jesus return "soon" as He told John? Yes, of course. He came in judgment upon Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Was this judgment coming the Second Advent? No it wasn't. That event is still future and will happen at a time only known to God. We have no business trying to determine when that will be...

Until then, let us refrain from wild-eyed eschatological libel against world leaders and be content to advance the Kingdom of God throughout the Earth!

So, You Wanna Be A Rock Star?

Imagine the feeling...

You walk on stage, the crowd is roaring, the smoke machines billow, the lights are flashing, the girls are screaming and fainting all over the place. You are the star of the show. It's all about you! This is your moment to shine! You're about to give the audience the show of a lifetime!

Now back to reality...

What I've described seems to be what some preachers are seeking these days. I've actually seen videos and heard audio clips of certain ministers taking the pulpit while the audience cheers as if Nickelback has just taken the stage. In fact, with some preachers it's obvious, they want the spotlight on them. They want denominational fame. They desire to have all eyes on them and to be the stars of the show!

A few years ago, before I left the Pentecostal movement, I attended a service at a very progressive Pentecostal church not far from here just to see what the buzz was all about. I was amazed at what I witnessed. Though it was a small church just outside of the city limits of a rural Georgia town, it had all the trappings of a secular rock concert. It was a real circus.

They had everything a despiser of God could want: flashing lights, smoke machines, loud music, and plenty of man-centered "praise and worship" that had little to no theology or true reverence for God. It was just awful. One thing that stood out to me was how the preacher was escorted to and from the pulpit flanked by ushers sporting Secret Service type communication equipment. It was obvious that this pastor was much too important to spend any time mingling with the commoners. Needless to say, I never returned...

If you're in the ministry and you desire to be the star of the show and have church services like I described above, let me give you some candid advice. If truly want be cheered by thousands of adoring fans, then Gospel ministry is not what you need to be doing! Go buy yourself a guitar, learn to play it, and then start your own garage band. Maybe if your real lucky, you might be a rock star someday, but whatever you do, don't waste your time pretending to be a minister of God.

God has called us to preach the Word and be a servant in His Kingdom. He hasn't called us to be the stars of the show. Whenever we begin to think we're the stars of the show, we have fallen into a grievous sin. I believe any praise we receive as ministers should immediately be directed to God, we have no right to it. We have nothing in which to boast. It's all about Him. It's His show. He's the Star. He should be the main attraction.

Brothers, we are not rock stars!

photo: from wikipedia

Your Best Life Now?

by Daniel Nuckols

www.danspulpit.com


(Hat tip: Way of The Master Radio)

New Baby, Eschatology, and a Book Contest

What on on Earth could a new baby, eschatology, and a book contest have in common?

Let's see if I can tie them all together...

As I write this, my wife is pregnant with our fourth child (our 3rd son) and she's in the early stages of labor. She's already experiencing minor "birth pangs" so our child's arrival is immanent. In fact, the doctor has said that if the baby isn't here by Monday morning, they will be taking her in for an induction procedure.

To celebrate the arrival of my 4th child. I want to give away a book called The Day And The Hour by Francis X. Gumerlock. This book contains hundreds of false predictions of dates for the Rapture and Christ's 2nd Coming, myriad speculations of the identity of the Antichrist and the Beast of Revelation, as well as a host of other eschatological tomfoolery that has been taught within the church by prophecy prognosticators of the past and present.

The chapters chronicle the details century by century. Of course, when the reader gets to the 20th century he will encounter the cream of the date setting crop with the rise of Dispensational Premillennial eschatology.

How can you win a copy of this book?

I will mail a brand new copy of The Day and the Hour to whoever guesses the exact weight of my new son, or comes the closest to the correct weight. It's simple as that!

You may leave your guesses in the comment box or email them to me at rhettswhips at yahoo dot com. Whatever method you choose to use, just be sure I there's a way for me to get in touch with you if you should happen to guess correctly.

Keep this in mind: Our smallest child weighed 7 lbs 12 ounces at birth and the largest was 9 lbs, 9 ounces. So I think the safest bet would be to stay above 7 lbs.

You've got to hurry if you want to have a chance:

The contest ends when the baby is born, so get your guesses in soon!

Surely he comes quickly!!

(If you are a Dispensationalist, you might have interpreted that the "immanent" arrival of my next son means that the baby could arrive within the next 5 minutes or in the next 5000 years, but I assure you, he really is coming quickly so get your guesses in ASAP!)

Modalism: The Last Volley of 2007

Before we get out of 2007, I want to fire my last volley into the ghastly beast which is the Modalist heresy.

I doubt it will be enough to put the monster out of it's misery, but I hope that my posts on the topic will have alerted some of my readers to the fact that this heresy is dangerous and not in keeping with the orthodox understanding of the Godhead.

For the uninitiated, Modalism or "Oneness" theology is that theology concerning the Godhead that denies the historical orthodox teaching that there is one true God who exists in three distinct Persons revealed in Scripture as the Father, the Son, and The Holy Spirit.

Modalists believe the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to be "manifestations" of the one true God whom they understand to be Jesus Christ alone. They see God as one in person, but manifesting himself in three forms. Their view can be illustrated with water, which can be in the form of a solid, liquid, or gas at different times. You may be familiar with this illustration as it is often used in ignorance by Trinitarians to explain the Trinity. Ironically, the water, ice, steam, illustration actually explains the Modalistic view of God -not the Trinitarian view!

To the Modalist, Jesus Christ isn't the Eternally begotten Son of the Father. Instead, they teach that Jesus is the Father, Jesus is the Son, and Jesus is the Holy Spirit: just in different modes or manifestations and appearing as each at different times. While they do not deny Jesus is God, what they do teach is just as bad because they actually deny the existence of the persons of God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Forms of this heresy can be traced all the way back to the middle of the third century A.D.

Modalists focus on the "oneness" of God. They see Trinitarian theology as teaching that there are three Gods, but this not the case. Trinitarians are not Tri-theists. We fully affirm that God is one God. Dr James P. Boyce explains:

"The doctrine of the Trinity is not opposed to the unity of God, but only enables us to form just conceptions as to that unity. It presents to us three Persons who are not three gods, but one God, and, as will hereafter be seen, shows us that the unity of God is to be found in his nature or essence and not in the personal relations in that essence, so that there is but one divine nature or essence, one being, one god, although there are three persons subsisting therein, who, by virtue of that subsistence, are each God.

We are not led by this doctrine of the unity of God, therefore, to adopt the Arian notion that the Father is Supreme God and the Son only a divine being in a subordinate sense. Nor is it proper to accept the Sabellian notion, that God is one person, manifesting himself sometimes as Father, sometimes as Son, and sometimes as Holy Ghost. 'Neither does it at all teach tritheistic unity by which these are really three gods, but considered one because they have the same nature, just as three men may be said to be one because of the same human nature.' See Gill, vol. 1, pp. 183, 184 from which this is condensed." (J. P. Boyce, Abstract of Systematic Theology, pp. 60-61)

Modalists also reject the words "Trinity" or "Person" as being unbiblical. They bolster their disdain for these words by pointing out that thee terms are not found in Scripture. To that point, I concede that these theological terms do not appear in the Bible. However, we must ask the question: Does the absence of these words in the Bible make them invalid for use in formulating theology? I shall allow John Calvin to answer the charges:

"Now, although the heretics rail at the word "person," or certain squeamish men cry out against admitting a term fashioned by the human mind, they cannot shake our conviction that three are spoken of, each of which is entirely God, yet that there is not more than one God. What wickedness, then, it is to disapprove of words that explain nothing else than what is attested and sealed by Scripture!" (Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 1:13:3)

In our day, the Modalist heresy is taught primarily by the United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) or other so-called "Apostolic" churches". Though forms of Modalism have been around for centuries, the UPCI doesn't trace their teaching back quite so far. The following quote has been cited as coming from the Forward of a statement of faith that was published by the United Pentecostal Church International:

"In the year 1914 came the revelation on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The pivotal doctrines of the absolute deity of Jesus Christ and baptism in his name became tenets of faith. God marvelously confirmed our message as the Gospel was preached in its fullness. The power which was hidden in the name of Jesus began to be revealed."

The quote is a clear declaration that what the UPCI teaches is actually a new "revelation", and not what the Bible or the Church throughout history has taught. Christians who don't affirm the closure of the Canon may not have a problem with such "new revelations", but as someone who is serious about affirming the closure of the Canon and the sufficiency of Scripture, I find this quote and their supposed afflatus to be about as authoritative as last week's grocery list.


When it comes to the "new revelations" proclaimed by cults and heretics, I fully agree with Charles Spurgeon who once preached:

"Do not think that the Spirit of God has come or ever will come among us to teach to us a new gospel or something other than is written in the Scriptures. Men come to me with their fudges and fancies, and tell me that they were revealed to them by the Holy Spirit. I abhor their blasphemous impertinence, and refuse to listen to them for a minute." (C. H. Spurgeon, The Indwelling and Outflowing of The Holy Spirit, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Vol. 28, No. 1662)

Mr. Spurgeon hits the nail on the head here. These "revelations" in which the UPCI and other cults look to in order to justify their aberrant and/or heretical teachings were never inspired by the Holy Spirit. God didn't inspire them, nor did He confirm them. Somebody is lying and I promise you it isn't God! One must beg the question, if the UPCI revelations are so important, and indeed vital to salvation as some of them claim, why did God wait until 1914 to reveal it?

The current UPCI website states something rather interesting:

"The UPCI holds a fundamental view of the Bible: 'The Bible is the only God-given authority which man possesses; therefore all doctrine, faith, hope, and all instructions for the church must be based upon and harmonize with the Bible' (Manual of the United Pentecostal Church, 19). The Bible is the Word of God, and therefore inerrant and infallible. The UPCI rejects all extra biblical revelations and writings, and views church creeds and articles of faith only as the thinking of men."

How ironic..! Here we have a group that embraces a heretical doctrine that was "revealed" to them in 1914, over and against the dominate Christian understanding of the Godhead for the last 2000 years, and now they want us to believe that the Bible is their sole authority?! Even if they do hold to that position now, they are still interpreting the Bible through the lens of the 1914 revelation!

In addition to Modalism, the UPCI teaches that in order for a person to be justified and saved, repentance and faith are not enough. They also teach that a person must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ (alone) and that speaking in tongues is necessary for salvation. Nowhere does the Bible teach that speaking in tongues is necessary for Salvation: orthodox Pentecostals disagree with the UCPI on this as well. This is faith + works theology pure and simple. It's what the Apostle Paul calls "another gospel." Therefore, even if we remove the Modalist heresy from the picture entirely, we still have more than enough Scriptural justification to "let them be accursed" because of their position on baptism and tongues! (See Gal 1:9)

Heresies such as Modalism and works salvation are bound to find a fertile ground in the evangelical world today. We live in a generation that has largely cast off the historic creeds and confessions of orthodox faith. Mention the words "creed," "confession," or "catechism" in some churches and you'll be tossed out on your head! Instead of trying to glean from the history of Christianity, many have cast aside the wisdom of the past generations thinking they have no need of it.

Our generation can be likened unto a young man who inherits the family business and decides to cast off everything his ancestors learned in order to run the business his own way. Within a short time the business is in utter bankruptcy. By ignoring the wisdom and learning of his fathers and setting out to do everything his own way, the young man reaps the fruit of his obstinacy. The UPCI and it's heretical doctrines are the tragic legacy of an era where many people cast off all historic creeds, confessions, and traditions thinking they were ridding themselves of past errors, and ironically, some ended up heaping onto themselves the worst kinds of heresies through new "revelations" and poor scholarship.

In conclusion, please do not think I am out here trying to anathematize people over theologically insignificant issues. Quite the contrary! The denial of the Trinity is about as serious as it gets and I'm trying to sound the alarm! I'm calling upon all who believe in justification by faith and the Doctrine of the Trinity to rise up! Pray up! Get in the Scriptures! Put away Your Best Life Now and break out some dusty old theological volumes and try to understand why these doctrines have been so important for so many centuries!

For more information on this subject, Matt Slick has a lots of of information and refutations at Carm.org.

Evangelists: Fools For Christ?

I was once a State Evangelist for the Church of God of Prophecy (COGOP) in Georgia. As State Evangelist, I wasn't very successful at getting bookings. I think I was only booked for one revival service the entire time I was on staff. In the annals of the greatest failures as Pentecostal evangelists, I'll certainly be ranked at the top!

Many reasons could be cited for why, but I will give four: (1) it obviously wasn't the Lord's will, (2) because I wasn't a member of one of a well known family in the Georgia COGOP, (3) I refused to stoop to the level of becoming a cheesy self-promoting conference hoping religious politician with a goofy grin on my face and a bunch of business cards in my hand, and (4) I'm just not a great preacher to begin with!

I was once told by a seasoned evangelist that the best way for me to get known was to "get in the back pocket of some of the Bishops in the church and ride on their coattails". Like many occupations in the world, I learned that the success of a COGOP evangelist really depended on who you knew -and just knowing Christ wasn't enough! It didn't take me long to realize that I wasn't going to be much of a State Evangelist unless I learned to be good at the fine art of schmoozing. Not long after this epiphany, I resigned the position of Georgia State Evangelist.

In 1 Corinthians 4:10, Paul told the church that the apostles were "fools for Christ's sake", but some folks seem to have taken that verse a bit too literally and applied it to evangelists as well. This morning I spent some time perusing through some websites of certain Baptist evangelists and some of what I saw really bothered me. Moreover, some of what I saw really pained my soul. In the name of "soul winning" some men have resorted to becoming more like court jesters than heralds and ambassadors of the Kingdom of God!

When you look at some evangelist websites, you will often see great claims about how many revival meetings have been conducted and "decisions made for Christ". When I see these numbers touted, I'm not impressed at all. Statistics have shown that modern evangelistic methods have a fall-away rate of about 90%, it makes the statistical boasting of some evangelists about as abominable as an Obstetrician claiming to have delivered thousands of babies, only to learn that 9 out of 10 of those births were stillborn. Modern evangelism and it's pragmatism is a tragedy, not something in which to boast!


When one considers all the magicians, comedians, clowns, and ventriloquists that churches bring in to conduct revival services, is it any wonder that the message of the Christ is not taken seriously and so many people fall away after a "decision for Christ"? Do we really believe that we can entertain people into faith and repentance?

Some will argue that these methods are needed in order to get people in church to hear the Word. Perhaps, but I'm of the opinion that the primary place of evangelism isn't within the church meeting, but in the world. We should evangelize sinners so they might be saved and come to church in order to be discipled from the Word of God. Trying to gear the church service to appeal to sinners is shortchanging Christ's sheep and bound to fill our pews with false converts and future apostates.

I recently heard (or read) somewhere that some full time evangelists are concerned about their future. I'm glad! Some of them need to be! Maybe it will goad some of them into forsaking the silly methods they employ. Frankly, there's a number of them that need to start preaching the unadulterated gospel or quit and get secular job! It's time to put an end results driven revivalism. If not reigned in, these man-centered evangelistic methods will continue too produce thousands of false converts who will eventually fall away.

Now, I realize what I have just written may have just ruffled more than a few feathers. Don't misunderstand, I'm not against evangelists, nor am I against people using their talents for the glory of God. In fact, I wish there were more Christian entertainers. It would be nice to take the family to a show or a movie where we could be entertained by someone using his or her talents for God's glory. However, I think these things have their proper place and that place isn't behind the pulpit.

I also know there are some evangelists who are faithful in preaching God's Word. I thank God for these men. They men need to be commended, supported, and booked for revivals. I have a hunch that many of the best evangelists are probably the ones who don't have to tell you how great they are, rather, they are the ones who's reputation for being used of God will far exceed any boasting or conversion statistics they can put on a website.

Let us make no mistake, the Gospel is powerful! It's the preaching of the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit that converts a sinner! It's not the Howdy Doody Show or some second rate side show attraction that the church needs to fulfill it's commission, rather, it's personal evangelism, the faithful exposition of God's Word, and the power of the Holy Spirit that we need.

Let us pray and seek God for a true revival!

(Images from and linked back to wikipedia)

Against Modalism...

In this latest installment on the popular heresy known as Modalism, I am linking to a some resources and articles, as well as quoting a few theologians who have written against the heresy. It is my hope that more people will be alerted about this growing threat to Christian orthodoxy.

(Now, I realize some readers will see this as a heresy hunt or a witch trial. If that's the case, I can only reply that it's sort of a family tradition. Ironically, my 10th great-grandfather was the Rev. John Jones, a Puritan minister born in England who migrated to the American Colonies and was later involved in the 1654 witch trial of Goody Knapp in Connecticut!)

Below are a links and quotes that I hope will be helpful to understanding why the Doctrine of the Trinity is so important to a correct understanding of Theology Proper -as well as redemption:

• First off, I want to recommend a book by Dr. James R. White. It's called The Forgotten Trinity. I have not read it yet, but I understand that it's an excellent treatment of the subject. It's definitely on my short list of books to be read in the near future.


• In this article by Dr. Michael J. Svigel of Dallas Seminary, we learn that all too often, even those who claim to be Trinitarians pray, sing, and illustrate the Godhead in ways that are more Modalistic than Trinitarian.


• Reclaiming the Mind Ministries has some great theological video sessions concerning the Trinity and early heresies concerning the Triune nature of God. I encourage everyone to watch Part 1 & Part 2 of a session that deals with early heresies in the church concerning the Godhead. (See especially part 2 as it deals with the Modalistic heresy from the beginning)


• In this lengthy article, James R. White explains why he "loves the Trinity." He also deals with the theological fall-out and issues surrounding the denial of the Trinity. Christians in our day may not fully realize it, but Dr. White is correct when he writes, "without the Trinity, you have no gospel." If you don't read anything else I've posted, please read this!

Let us now consider a verse of Scripture written by the prophet Isaiah and the comments of the Baptist theologian John Gill concerning it:

"Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD and his Spirit, hath sent me." -Isaiah 48:16 KJV

"Here is a glorious testimony of a trinity of Persons in the Godhead; Christ the Son of God is sent in human nature, and as Mediator. Jehovah the Father and the Spirit are the senders of him; and so is a proof of the mission, commission, and authority of Christ, who came not of himself, but was sent of God, (John 8:42), it may be rendered, "and now the Lord God hath sent me and his Spirit"; both were sent of God, and in this order; first, Christ, to be the Redeemer and Saviour; and then the Spirit, to be the Convincer and Comforter; (see John 14:26). " (from John Gill's Commentary on the whole Bible)

Wayne Grudem also has some valuable incite that goes to the very heart of why I believe this heresy is so dangerous:

"The fatal shortcoming of modalism is the fact that it must deny the personal relationships within the Trinity that appear in so many places in Scripture (or it must affirm that these were simply an illusion and not real). Thus, it must deny three separate persons at the baptism of Jesus, where the Father speaks from heaven and the Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove. And it must say that all those instances where Jesus is praying to the Father are an illusion or a charade. The idea of the Son or the Spirit interceding for us before God the Father is lost. Finally, modalism ultimately loses the heart of the doctrine of the atonement - that is, the idea that God sent his Son in our place, and that the Son bore the wrath of the Father in our place, and that the Father, representing the interest of the Trinity, saw the suffering of Christ and was satisfied (Isa 53:11)." (from Grudem's Systematic Theology ch. 14)

John MacArthur has this to say concerning the Modalist heresy:

"...I think it’s very important for us today to be aware of the fact that we need to uphold the doctrine of the Trinity. I am amazed at how much the Unity Movement has moved into Christianity. It’s really shocking. For example, the largest Pentecostal organization in the world is called the United Pentecostal Church and they deny the Trinity. ...Now beloved to deny the existence of the Trinity is a very serious cardinal error in theology. You are either denying the existence of God the Father, denying the unique existence of the Son, or you are denying the unique existence of the Holy Spirit. And to deny any of those, in my mind, is the ultimate in heresy." (From Q&A session) SOURCE

Indeed in addition to being horrible theology, Modalism makes a mockery of the Bible. Robert Lewis Dabney summed it up well in this statement from his Systematic Theology:

"...if these personal names, of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, meant no more than three influences or energies, or three phases of action of the same person, or three forms of one substance, is it not incredible that all these properties of personality, choosing, loving, hating, sending and being sent, understanding, acting, should be asserted of them? It would be the wildest abuse of language ever dreamed of." (from ch. 16 of Dabney's Systematic Theology)

Once again, I wish to express that my intention in putting the spot light on the Modalist heresy is to alert my fellow Christians to the fact that it's a growing problem. The Doctrine of the Trinity is a central tenet of the Christian faith and must be taught and defended.

When I was a child, sometimes I would tell my (late) father that I needed a new bike (or something else) because the one I had was "old". His reply to me was always, "son, if you don't take care of what you have already, how can I believe you'll take care of a newer one if I get it for you?"

Likewise in our day, lots of Christians seem to be constantly seeking new light or new revelation from God. The sad reality is that the majority of modern evangelicals haven't tried to understand the revelation God has given them already; nor those truths in which our Christian forefathers contended for -often with their very lives.

Like greedy children, many Christians want something new from the Father, all the while neglecting (and in some cases despising) that in which He has entrusted to them already.

May God raise up a generation of Christians in our day who will contend for and teach the historic and orthodox understanding of the Godhead.

Post Tenebras, Lux!

(All pictures from and linked back to wikipedia)

Modalist Music Video

Finally, a few Modalists who don't mask their heretical views like T. D. Jakes or Tommy Tenney. For all you who think Oneness Pentecostals are just Christians with a differing opinion on a difficult topic, pay careful attention to this video and then read this book!

John Hagee: Anti-Christ Televangelist [?]

Late Edit: After I posted this article, a friend directed me to this special message from Hagee about his book. Please read for Mr. Hagee's explanation of what he's saying in this video.

"It is not because you don't know the truth that I have written to you, but because you do know it, and because no lie has its origin in the truth. Who is a liar at all, if not the person who denies that Yeshua is the Messiah? Such a person is an anti-Messiah - he is denying the Father and the Son." --1 John 2:21-22 (The Complete Jewish Bible)

Modalism: Time to Take a Stand!

Sometimes Christians who are zealous for Biblical truth and sound theology, will "draw a line in the sand" and declare that a certain teacher or ministry is "heretical". When that happens, you can be sure that some well meaning Christians will get their dander up and scold that brother for taking such a firm doctrinal stance. You can do many things in Christendom today, but using the word "heretic" to describe a popular minister is not one of them!

Take for example Tommy Tenney and T.D. Jakes. These men are very popular within Pentecostal and Charismatic circles. Jakes is especially popular among African-Americans. Several years ago, when I was a minister in the Church of God of Prophecy, I actually read two of Tenney's books. However, what I didn't know then (and what most people don't know now) is that both Tenney and T.D. Jakes knowingly embrace a damnable heresy known as "Modalism" -sometimes refered to as "Sabellianism". Both of these men are "Oneness Pentecostals". That's right! These men deny the Trinity!

Instead of exposing and condemning these men and their heresies, many modern Trinitarians -who are for the most part ignorant of the implications of the Modalist heresy and the fact that has been condemned by the church for around 1800 years- don't see any problem with listening to these men preach, or attend their conferences, or reading their books.

After all, some might say, "T.D. Jakes preaches with such fervor" or "Tommy Tenney's God Chasers book was such a blessing to me". Sadly, in our day, discernment is at such a low that any heretic will be received with open arms just as long as he has a television ministry or was able to secure a big book deal.

T.D. Jakes' own website exposes his Modalism:

"God -There is one God, Creator of all things, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in three manifestations: Father, Son and Holy Spirit."

(emphasis mine)

In Christian orthodoxy, God is understood as described in the Athanasian Creed -that God is One and yet three Persons. The use of the term "three manifestations" is clearly Modalistic and also espoused by the United Pentecostal Church.

Tenney is harder to pin down. I can find no doctrinal statement on his website, however, his Modalism and other aberrant teachings have been documented by the Christian Research Institute.

How serious is this heresy?

Let me put it like this: Until I see that these men have openly repented of, and forsaken, their Modalistic beliefs, I will forever consider them heretics and outside of the Body of Christ. Sadly, many a modern Christian would be terribly offended for me making a statement such as this...

Christians who would never invite an unrepentant pornographer, a thief, a drunk, or a pedophile to teach in their church, will blindly embrace and sit under the preaching of people who believe and teach the Modalist heresy! Why don't Christians see that this heresy is just as serious -if not more serious- that the sins I have just mentioned?

Some may think I'm being too dogmatic over this issue... "After all", someone might say, "the Trinity is one of those mysterious things we may never fully grasp in this life". And I agree. However, there's a big difference in not understanding everything about a difficult theological concept, and conscientiously embracing doctrines that are opposed to the historic and orthodox understanding of the Trinity. Though Jakes and Tenney may sound somewhat orthodox and be commonly accepted in today's Christian world, these men are every bit as poisonous as Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons.

A more important question to consider is where exactly did the Apostle Paul draw the line while writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?

To the Galatians, Paul took a stand against those who taught that a person must circumcised in order to be saved -a seemingly insignificant doctrinal issue when one considers all the heresies that are prevalent (and totally acceptable) in our day!

Dr. James R. White recently composed a satirical letter that reflects the attitude of Christians in our day, especially those who will baulk over my refusal to accept Jakes and Tenney as brothers in Christ:

Dear Paul:

In reviewing your letter to the churches of Galatia, we, the modern men of the 21st century, have come to the conclusion that you truly missed the point in your very pointed and, may we say, unloving comments regarding the faithful brothers with whom you had but a minor theological difference. We are in particular offended that you would identify men who clearly confess faith in Christ and who have risked their lives for their faith "false brethren."

Who are you to make such a harsh judgment, in light of their many evidences of faith? These men are Christians, and to call them false brethren is a serious sin! You are bearing false witness against them! And to dare to read the intentions of their hearts so as to say they were "sneaking" into the fellowship is simply beyond the pale. You should be ashamed of yourself! All you disagree on is a minor point of theology! They believe in Christ! They believe in His resurrection! They simply believe one should be circumcised so as to be a part of the covenant people of God!

How narrow of you to exclude them from the fellowship of faith simply on the basis of such a minor thing as this! Why won't you focus upon the areas of agreement you have? Why focus only upon differences, the negatives? Don't you realize you will never win people to your views if you continue to act in this fashion? We seriously request that you apologize to the faithful brothers you anathematized in your ill-advised letter to the churches of Galatia. By this, true peace and unity might be achieved!

Paul took a stand against legalism. If we won't take a stand on something as essential as the doctrine of the Trinity, we should be ashamed of ourselves.

Unity at the expense of truth is no virtue -nor is it Christian!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Perseverance: Not a License to Sin!

Another helpful clip from the Amazing Grace DVD.



Hopefully you will see that true Calvinists are not teaching the modern version of "Once Saved Always Saved" -that a Christian is free to live like the devil and have hope of Heaven. It's also worth noting the similarities of the Arminian and Roman Catholic teachings on this issue.

Dan Barker: Apostate Faith Healer

Meet Dan Barker... He used to work with Kathryn Kuhlman, the mentor of Benny Hinn. Ironically, he has changed his mind about God and now he's an Atheist...



The clip is from the DVD "The Case for Atheism - There Isn't One" available from www.livingwaters.com . You can view the promo for the DVD here.

Todd Friel is the host of Way of The Master Radio -which I highly recommend!

Is The Baptist Church a Church of Christ?

The following article is transcribed from an article by Church of Christ minister, Erman Hagar. It appeared in the Metter Advertiser this past week and is just one of many of Hagar's diatribes against all who are not part of his little cult:

The phrase "of Christ" means that it by or from Christ. If anyone can show me that Christ built a "Baptist Church," then I would agree that it is a church of Christ. Friend, if you are a member of the "Baptist Church," don't get mad. However, you should make sure that you are ready to go to the judgment as a member of a church you cannot read about in the Bible. I used to be a member of the "Baptist Church," but when I could not find the name in the Bible I immediately became suspicious. And when the "pastor" could neither show me the name or the doctrine, I got scared. Then when I found out later that he had been lying to me, I was angry with him.

By the way, I was a young man, not knowing much Bible and this "pastor" could not even defend that which he taught to a novice. Now that I know a little more than I knew then, none of the Baptist preachers will engage me in a public debate. We all love our parents and family, but neither I nor you will be ready on the day of judgment to go to hell for them.

A few facts about the church Jesus built: (1) The Holy Spirit would guide the apostles into all truth (John 16:13). (2) We are to believe on Jesus through the word of his apostles (John 17:20). (3) Jesus gave them the power to [bind] and loose (Matthew 18:18). Pardon my bluntness, but don't say you believe the words of Jesus if you don;t believer Matthew 18:18. (4) If anyone teaches anything other than what the apostles taught, then they have a curse on them (Galatians 1: 8,9) The "Baptist Churches" teach many things contrary to what the apostles taught. I repeat, many things! Here's another thought you may apply directly to your forehead: If you are afraid to meet with me to discuss your religion, then you better be afraid of the judgment.


Minister Hagar publishes his email address with his articles: essapark@iglide.net.

Should we Call God Allah???

Roman Catholic Bishop Tiny Muskens thinks we should!

Express your opinion on the matter by here.

The Pope's Our Buddy, Right??

Nope...!

As Gojira has noted on his blog, the Pope doesn't even believe you're part of "the Church" unless have a Roman Catholic sign over your church door...

Fred -my pastor and former Catholic- has also written about this topic on the Metter First Baptist blog. Fred is excited about the dialog this will create. (So am I!)

If I were a betting man, I'd bet that a few of the signatories of the ECT are now crying out "Et tu, Brute?"

(In his defense, the Pope is only being consistent with centuries of Catholic dogma...)

---------------------
Speaking Ex Cathedra,

Rhett Kelley

Not a Satire...

I love good satire.

While the article I am about to link to might read like something from Tominthebox, it's not satire at all -it's for real!

Click to here to read the news article entitled, "I am both Muslim and Christian"

This is worse than Ergun Caner's "I'm not Arminian; I'm not Calvinist; I'm a Baptist" confession...

Pat Robertson Pop Quiz

In this photo, Pat Robertson is...


A. Trying to remember where he left his car keys.

B. Making yet another false prediction.

C. Headbanging to Metallica.

D. Praying in sign language.

E. Trying to make the Benediction gesture as seen in ancient Byzantine art.

F. Pledging allegiance to Satan.

G. About to suggest the CIA needs to assassinate Kim Jong-il



photo credit: these wackos

Charismatic Gifts: Let's Take Another Look...

In this article I want to address the issue of "charismatic gifts." I realize I may get myself into some hot water in doing so (perhaps kicked off of a few blogrolls and get an email from "Pastor Tony") but that's never stopped me before. So let's get to it! (Lord help me!)

Let me begin by saying that I have read materials that have been published by both sides of the controversy and both sides make very good points. After reading MacArthur's Charismatic Chaos, I am still nowhere near being convinced that Scripture supports Cessationism. I found MacArthur's explanation for the cessation of the gifts to be weak and lacking in Scriptural foundation.

Other than that, I agreed with much of the content of the book because MacArthur only seemed to go after after the most heretical members of the Charismatic movement. When it was all said and done, I came away retaining my longstanding opinion that Cessationist arguments are based upon tradition and church history and not a careful exegesis of Scripture.

One thing I do admire and respect about Cessationists is their steadfast dedication to protecting the Canon. These brethren are dedicated to Sola Scriptura and see modern "prophecies" as being a threat to the sufficiency of the Scripture. I get concerned about this issue as well because I have known some who seem to be more interested in a "fresh word" than the Word that is found in their Bibles.

I have personally seen this desire for "fresh" revelation lead to more than a little theological error as well (this can be seen in church history also). Ironically, it is my personal dedication to Sola Scriptura that will not allow me to "throw out the baby with the bathwater" when it comes to Charismata.

Having said that (and I've stated all this before), I do not believe that all we see taking place in the Pentecostal/Charismatic camp is legitimate. I think there is a tremendous amount of emotionalism, prognostication, mysticism, and in some cases psychosomatic experiences being touted as genuine spiritual gifts. Even some my conservative Pentecostal friends agree with me on this...

In spite of all the abuses I have seen and read about, I do not believe Christians should automatically discount the possibility of there being true gifts just because some overzealous people are faking and misusing them. (No more than we should stop using paper money because people are counterfeiting it!)

I really believe everyone -Charismatic and Cessationist alike- needs to take a step back, take a deep breath, and then take a fresh look at what the Bible (and the other side) actually teaches about Spirit Baptism and Charismatic gifts. I mean to say this gently, but I think folks on both sides of the spectrum are so bogged down in their tradition, experience, and presuppositions, until most of them cannot see the issues (or what the Bible actually teaches) very clearly at all!

I think it wouldn't hurt some Cessationists to read some of the works of Wayne Grudem, Sam Storms, or Vern Poythress on the issue. Likewise, it wouldn't hurt some Charismatics to read some scholarly works from a Cessationist perspective to gain an understanding of why they say the gifts have ceased. All the while, we all should "be a Berean" in comparing that which is written to the Word of God.

This is precisely why I read Charismatic Chaos. I wanted to see what the other position had to say. I didn't look for some scholar on the fringe that would be easy to disregard, I tried to get something from one of the better teachers and really see why the man believes what he believes. This is what would like to see people on both sides of the debate do as well.

Please understand that my desire is to pursue the truth about these issues. This is a call for a unified study of the Charismatic gifts and not an attempt to be divisive. I ask that all Christians reevaluate their positions in light of Scripture. I have a few that Cessationist friends who have been willing to do so, and for that I am very thankful!

Suggested Resources for further study:

• Are Miraculous Gifts for Today (Part 1), by Sam Storms
• Are Miraculous Gifts for Today (Part 2), by Sam Storms
• Signs and Wonders: Then and Now, by John Piper
• Modern Spiritual Gifts as Analogous to Apostolic Gifts:
  Affirming Extraordinary Works of the Spirit within Cessationist Theology, by Vern S. Poythress
• Showing the Spirit: A Theological Exposition of 1 Corinthians, 12-14, by D.A. Carson *
• Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology, (chapters 52 AND 53)`
• Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, by Jack Deere
• Are Miraculous Gifts for Today? 4 Views, edited by Wayne Grudem *
• Experiential Calvinism and the Charismatic Gifts, by Matt Slick
• Convergence: Spiritual Journeys of a Charismatic Calvinist , (book) by Sam Storms *
• Perspectives On Spirit Baptism: Five Views *

* Indicates that I am either currently reading, or have yet to read, but have heard it is very good.

The Enigmatic "Secret Rapture"

Of all the comments I have gotten here at Rhett's Rants, none have been quite as weird as that of the fellow we know as "Secret Rapture." Anytime I post an article dealing with Eschatology, I can always count on getting a comment from this fellow. It's always the same thing: an invite to view "MY INAUGURAL ADDRESS AT THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT OF THE DEAD."

Recently I decided to stop by the site and check out the "Inaugural Address." I found some interesting material to say the least. (It should probably be rated "R" though...) From skimming the material, I do believe that Mr. Secret Rapture is the sad result of Dispensational Eschatology combined with a large dose of LSD.

I would like to provide a few quotes from his "inaugural address" so you can get an idea of what kind of person we are dealing with here! I believe we may be dealing with an aspiring cult leader or something! I suspect he may even be a left-over from the "Heaven's Gate" cult or some other "UFO religion."

All quotes are directly from his website. I will strive to keep my comments to a minimum. Reader discretion is advised!

Some incite on his experience with the ladies:

"Actually, it wasn't so much that women turned me down, but that they simply ignored me. As a ghost, I can stand in front of a woman, and she looks right through me. They can't see me, and when I speak, they are startled to suddenly see someone standing in front of them!"

Now, I have to admit that I do like this idea:

"I'm going to save you a lot of tax money. I work for free. And the government that I will assemble will be a small fraction the size of the multimillion Federal Government. You'll no longer have to pay salaries for the one hundred Senators or the four hundred plus Congressmen and their thousands of support staff. The size of my Federal Government will be minuscule compared to the present one."

Confession is good for the soul:

"You should have noticed by now that I have a very immature, infantile view of women. This is simply because of the fact that I am an infant!"

I think I'll pass on this next idea:

"Once we get to the New Jerusalem, everyone will know what everyone is doing in the bedroom. This is not your private affair, or your own personal business. It is vital that everyone knows exactly what everyone is doing in the bedroom."

This might be a good thing. I believe in keeping the gene pool pure:

"I have no child, no issue.... no one will carry my genetic information in the next generation."

Now he's talking!!!:

"No one on the planet understands the tax code. I'm going to switch to a value added tax (the Fair Tax) with no more tax forms at all."

His blasphemous Christology:

There are inexhaustible ways to characterize Jesus, but the first way I would characterize him is as a stone age man – a cave man. The simple craftsman life in Galilee was too complex for him. More specifically he was a Stone Age Siberian style shaman. But secondly, he was a rocket man."

Secret Rapture's theory on the origin of cosmetics:

"It was the fallen angels who descended to earth because the women were fair who taught the use of cosmetics."

In an earlier exchange with this individual, I encouraged him to repent and be converted to Christ in order to avoid the torments of Hell, but in his reply, he informed me we are already in Hell!!?

Who is this mysterious "Secret Rapture?" On his website I have seen the name Alvin Miller, but I am thinking this is an alias to hide this person's true identity! For the past 48 hours I have been brainstorming who this mysterious person might really be..

Here's my list of suspects:

• Rosie O'Donnell
• Alec Baldwin
• Paul Ruebens
• Osama Bin Laden
• Elvis Presley
• Marilyn Manson

Please be sure to vote for your favorite in my comment section!