Top 5 False Doctrines To Avoid
- THE EMERGENT CHURCH -
I thought that I would take some time to put a list together of the top 5 false doctrines that the modern church world should avoid. I wanted to do this in a series and get to them, hopefully, daily. This list is by no means a doctrine of itself. I just compiled this information in order to present some of the more popular heresies that exist today and have a massive following. These movements are not what was intended by Christ or the early church. If you have problems with my list, please feel free to leave me a comment and we can discuss it civilly.
NUMBER 4 - THE EMERGENT CHURCH
Preface: I know I will probably get a lot of backlash about this one, but hear me out. The proponents of the Emergent Church will probably say that they have heard my schpiel over and over again, but nonetheless, I “schpiel” on.
— What Is This All About ? —
The Emerging Church is all about change. They vocalize that, as the culture and society of the world changes, so should the Church. The Word of God becomes less true to the Emergent Church because they want to bring unity to the world by compromising the scriptures in order to avoid any offense. There is deep thought to what God “really” thinks about sin and hell. There is much avoidance of mentioning that some other person’s religion might actually bring them down a path to hell. They like to read the scriptures with an attidude of:
“Yea, God did write about hell in the Bible, but how can a loving God actually send people to hell, if it even exists”?
They liken God to a parent who might threaten a punishment or make up the boggie man in order to get the kids in line, while all the while the parent never intends to follow through with the punishment.
— Who Is Involved ? —
Brian McLaren is one of the major mouth pieces of the Emergent Church Movement. You may have read a post on this website about some of his escapades. To read more about Brian McLaren read here and here.
— Why Should I Avoid Them ? —
The False Doctrine that the Emergent Church presents about inclusivism and the compromise of the scriptures is addressed as directly contrary to scriptures such as Revelation 2:14-17 where the church of Pergamos is addressed as preaching a False Doctrine. I think the bottom line is, the Word of God stands true now as it has always. We shouldn’t invent new ways to do God’s work. We should just “Do” what God says. We have to tell others about Christ and His Finished Work on Calvary. There is a literal Hell, and souls are going there daily. If the Emergents are right, and there is no Hell, and all roads lead to Heaven, then WOW! Great. But Why did Christ have to die? ….What if the Emergents are wrong??? What if in condoning sin and accepting all religions and celebrating them as on the same road to heaven, they are actually doing the souls of man no good. I am of the belief that Man is sinful and wicked. We are in need of a savior. In Christ we have hope and must accept him, or we will be held accountable for our sins and thus pay an eternal price. I wouldn’t want to be wrong about that one. Not when you are so close.
MATTHEW CHAPTER 7
13Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
15Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it
READ FALSE DOCTRINE #5 - THE NEW MYSTICS
Where False Doctrine and Heresy in the Modern Church World Get PWND
9 Comments, Comment or Ping
spike from Myrtle Beach Real Estate
The idea of a church that rejects parts of the Bible is self-contradictory. And it shows.
The mainstream protestant churches, many of whom are embracing “tolerance” (which really means “anything goes”) are losing members in droves, while the Evangelical Movement (which is largely fundamentalist/constructionist) is gaining by leaps and bounds.
The same is true of Islam. Many of the Christians who convert to Islam do so because few clerics waver from the literal interpretation of the Koran. Even if the converts disagree with most of it, they appreciate the tenacity and the zeal, and it draws them.
Ultimately, the “emergent church” is self-defeating. Much like pro-abortionists eventually kill themselves off by not procreating, so too does the “emergent church” kill itself off by driving away those seeking guidance, and not gaining any friends among the secularists who dislike any church.
Sep 18th, 2008
Tony from Seeking Things Above
There is more to the emergent church than a desire to be more inclusive. You’re right on that trying to open the gate wider by watering down the scriptures is false doctrine. However, why has this movement gained so much popularity?
The emergent church looks to reach the sinners that mainstream Christianity wants to call out from afar but not get down and dirty and love on. However, the emergent church has missed the point by watering down the scriptures.
It’s like they have forgotten that after Jesus healed he often said, “Sin no more”.
I guess my point is that our lack of compassion in the mainstream church may have contributed to this movement in the emergent church.
Grace and peace brother.
Tony
Tonys last blog post..Y-IKE-S!
Sep 18th, 2008
brad
I think generalizations and labels can confuse things instead of bringing clarity to what is a false doctrine. I disagree with most of what I have read attributed to McLaren, but I believe we need to be careful of binding McLaren and the so called emerging movement together and labeling it false - period. Labeling a specific doctrine like “there really is no hell” as false is certianly fair, but labeling a whole movement as false because of someone who claims to speak for it is not fair. Many who would call themselves ‘emerging’ believe in hell, have a traditional view of the Gospel, and believe that there is one way to be saved. Jesus! But these same people have been turned off by churches who have focused so narrowly inward on rules, traditions, customs, patterns, and religion itself missing the relationship. A deep and intimate personal relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ. Made possible only by His work on the cross. A relationship that changes us daily. A relationship that bonds us to others we would have never chosen in our flesh. A relationship that demands that we reach out to those who are struggling, hurting, and have been trampled on by society. A relationship that demands we stand up for the poor and the rejected. A relationship that demands we stand up to a society and culture that wants to throw away human life created by God. This relationship is primary in being a Christ follower. It informs our understanding of the very words from God in the Bible and CHANGES US.
“The Emerging Church is all about change.”
I believe the church is not perfect, just as we are not perfect. The church will be perfect when she is presented to Jesus as the bride at the coming wedding super promised in Revelation.
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” (Rev. 19:7)
The church needs to change to make herself ready. We, the church, should constantly change to become more like what God has shown us in his Word and his son Jesus.
Anyway, I very much enjoy your blog, and your difficult task of calling out false doctrine in a world where false information is flying all over the place, especially on the web. Keep up the good work!
peace in Christ,
brad
brads last blog post..022 | Righteous
Sep 18th, 2008
Tony
@ Tony
I agree with you on how mainstream christianity needs to “step up” their efforts on reaching the lost. The Emergent Church won’t be the last of the movements in these last days. There will be others that pop up that will think they are doing good, but compromise the message at the same time.
Sep 18th, 2008
Tony
@ Brad
Thanks for your comment! There was a generalization in my post about the Emergent church. I believe that in any movement, there is always a remnant that holds true to the truth.
My point on change is one that, Yes, we personally are to change to become more Christ-like. God the Holy Spirit reveals things about us that convict us in order to bring about change in our hearts/lives. But the Doctrine doesn’t need to change. Evangelism doesn’t need to change to a way that man has conceived will work. Modern movements are looking to the business world as a model on how to evangelize and reach the lost. It just doesn’t work that way. We have a message to tell, and God does the drawing. If we don’t even tell that message, we aren’t allowing the Holy Spirit to work properly. There will be those that come to the Lord in these movements, but that is just God doing what he does. He used a donkey before to get the message out.
Anyhow, I very much appreciate your input. I personally know a lot of people that are caught up in many types of movements and forget about the purpose of it all. They forget about the Cross and what Christ did there. They forget what our calling as christians are, so that they can follow the group instead of God. That is the point of this blog. I might generalize sometimes, but I hope that my point gets across. The message is simple already. We don’t need man inventing new ways and throwing away the Holy Spirit.
God Bless
Sep 18th, 2008
John Sullivan from
Hey Brother your really breaking it down and backing it up
You are providing a service to God and your fellow Christians
They need a wake up call not all BUT MOST.
Excellent
Sep 18th, 2008
Lorikate
I haven’t really heard of this one (prepare to receive comment from me on this whole series..) but if I had to choose, I’d say that this is the most dangerous. It’s sneaky - mix a little truth in with the lie and it’s more believable, especially to Christians. It’s so easy to be deceived these days.
Lorikates last blog post..ARGH
Sep 19th, 2008
guitar425
Here are a couple of names you left off the list, although lately they have been standoff”ish” about using the term: Doug Pagitt, and Rob Bell.
You can see that they focus mainly on social issues. Not that that is a bad thing, but that is the focus. LORIKATE has it right. It is very dangerous because they throw just enough truth to get people to stay, but then they totally downplay the scriptures. It is very difficult to reason with someone that is involved in this one. All we can do is share the law and the Gospel with them and let God do his work.
Sep 24th, 2008
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