Backlog of posts...

I have just finished two of my papers, leaving one. Anyway, being out of action for so long, I have noticed that I have lots of stuff to post about. Here are some of the things which are scheduled:

1) The Gospel and its presentation

2) Soteriology (with regards to Piper's view)

3) Something on Sola Scriptura (again!), and the main reason why can be seen here.

4) which brings us to the topic of .... Eldership: Ruling elders and Teaching elders..... ...

5) The doctrine of seperation

6) And if I have finished all this: Sola Scriptura and the Emerging church

Not to mention I have finished reading The Death of Death in the Death of Christ by John Owen, and I would like to post some quotes and comments on it, plus another book entitled The Openness of God by Pinnnock et al.. Yes, the authors are heretics, and they are promoting heresy, and I would like to expose their fallacious and heretical teachings in a review of their book.

Altogether, lots of things to do....

On Environmentalism...

Interesting article here which exposes the anti-Christian agenda behind the Environmental movement. Note that I am not saying that we should not conserve nor that we should pollute the environment; we should conserve and not pollute the environment. However, we should not sink to the type of hysterical fear-mongering these Christ-haters descend to, as if God is not in control of the earth.

[HT: Christian Research Net]

Announcements: Exams...

Sorry about this, but since exams are round the corner, I would be posting mainly after my exams, and after my short grad trip also (which makes it to around 6th May).

Worrying trend: Rick Warren may not be a Christian after all

Check out this article by my dear brother Pastor Ken Silva regarding the state of Rick Warren. Granted, we need to excercise extreme caution when talking about another's salvation, but Rick Warren has committed so many sins against the Church, against fellow Christians, against the Word of God, and against ultimately God Himself so blatently and without remorse for so long that it is evident that his heart is hardened against God, and thus it is right to question his salvation.

Since we are on this topic, I would like to post the summary report of my review of Rick Warren's sermon during his 'PDC tour' in Singapore 2006. Here it is:

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From this review of Pastor Warren’s message, many troubling signs can be seen. Warren’s promotion of the Neo-Apostolic heresy and his subtle hint of an embracing of Word-faith heresy are particularly disturbing. His revivalist tendencies reminiscent of the Pelagian arch-heretic Charles Grandison Finney, together with his neo-liberal socialist tendencies in promoting a new ‘evangelical’ social gospel exposes him as a false teacher. When one includes all the church splits he has indirectly caused by his Purpose Driven Church/Life and 40 Days of Purpose campaign, which implicates Warren of committing the Diotrephesian error (3 Jn. 9-10), there is very much cause for concern. One can only hope that the Church of Jesus Christ would open her eyes to the deception of this heretic and turn back to Christ alone.

With regards to Warren’s sincerity, it can clearly be seen that Warren seems to be passionate about serving God. At least in this sermon, Warren comes across partly as a humble servant of the Lord with God just blessing him with affluence and influence. He also did mention that he did not seek wealth, nor fame or influence, but God just gave them to him. Assuming he is what he has portrayed himself to be from this sermon, it is no wonder that many people who call themselves Evangelicals are fooled. As Christians who are called to be discerning, however, we are called by Christ to discern the fruits (Mt. 7:15-20) and not look on the surface at apparent piety. If discernment is properly and biblically exercised, even if Warren is sincere and means what he says, Warren, through his false teachings and beliefs and improper associations, could be seen to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Oh, he is sincere, but he is sincerely devoted NOT to Christ, but to a god of his own making; to a god whom he creates from reading the Bible through the lenses of his unbiblical worldview. He is serving that god, and NOT the true God of the Bible.

However, we do know from the words that he says elsewhere in secular interviews and speeches etc that Warren is not being true in his portrayal of himself in this sermon. On the one hand, he says that he says that he is not seeking fame and influence, yet if then, why should he be yearning to be the pastors of pastors, through setting up his pastors.com website and the Purpose-driven network? Why is he championing the HIV/AIDS cause but not championing the cause of the unborn? Worse still, why is he not championing the best way to solve the HIV/ AIDS crisis, which is for sexual abstinence before marriage, marital fidelity, an end to homosexuality and all forms of deviant sexuality, no drug abuse and thus no sharing of needles? Why would he be toeing the liberal line on fighting the HIV/AIDS crisis, unless of cause that truly standing up for Christ in this manner would make him unpopular with the elites in society? So from all this, we can see that Rick Warren is indeed seeking fame contrary to what he says in his message. At the very least, he is ashamed of the Gospel, and Scripture does tell us what the punishment of God is upon those who do such things (Mk. 8:38; Lk. 9:26). Since he is supposed to be a pastor, such action of his is sufficient cause for him to be removed from the pulpit altogether.

In conclusion, we can see the various errors embraced by and being promoted by Rick Warren. Therefore, Rick Warren is to be marked as a heretic and avoided (Rom. 16:17) because of his embrace and promotion of various heresies, and treated as such if and until he repents of his heresies and sin of schism.

Oh, and just to add one more point for the sake of fellow Christians, if you really care about Rick Warren, encouraging him in his apostasy is the more hateful thing you are doing to him, since he will continue to be convinced he is right. The most loving thing anyone can do for Rick Warren now would be to rebuke him for his errors and hand him over to Satan (1 Cor. 5:5), in the hope that God would break him and turn him back to Christ in repentance for his many heresies, like what God has done in the immoral man who repented (2 Cor. 2:5-8) after being given over to Satan previously. Since such is the case, and since many undiscerning Christians are supporting and even defending Rick Warren, Warren supporters are actually guilty of hating Rick Warren and allowing, and even facilitating him to slide into perdition.

Expose of CBE on Evangelical Feminism

Here is a mp3 archived program exposing the errors of so-called 'Evangelical Feminism' and the 'Council of Biblical Equality (CBE)'.

[HT: Christian Research Net]

Video: Jerry Falwell identifies Calvinism as heresy

Seems like Liberty University's president Jerry Falwell just identified Calvinism as heresy. Well... I have nothing much to say to such a deluded person, except to warn him that if he carries on blaspheming God's truth, he will have to answer to God for the serious offences he has done. And he should really stop believing in Substitutionary Atonement, unless he wants to be a universalist.

Song: Blessed Assurance

This was a nice hymn that ministered to me recently.

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Blessed Assurance

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood

Chorus:

This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

And in Chinese (Courtesy of CyberHymnal.org here):

有福的确据, 耶稣属我, 何等的荣耀 向我显明,
被救主赎回, 为伸后嗣(sì), 借宝血洗罪, 圣灵重生.

副歌:

这是我信息, 或讲或唱, 赞美我救主, 心里欢畅
常讲主慈爱, 并颂主恩, 赞美我救主, 昼夜不分.

完全顺服主, 我灵欢喜, 天堂的荣耀, 显于我心
仿佛有天使 由天降临, 报明主慈爱, 并住怜悯.

完全献与主, 万事安宁, 荣耀的圣灵, 充满我心
时刻仰望主, 儆醒等候, 不住地祈祷, 到主再临

I would have love to post the Japanese one, but my standard is not there yet; I can't understand the translated song.

Doctrines of grace: Interesting video

This video looks interesting.

Article: So you think you want to be a teacher

Not many of you should become teachers, my brother, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness (Jas. 3:1)

Check out this excellent post on Jas. 3:1 from Dan Phillips of the Pyromaniacs, on the gravity of teaching God's Word. Here are some of the choice sections:

... James very somberly warns [anyone], "You think you want to be a teacher? Oh boy, you'd better sit back down and give that one a second thought. You take that mantle on yourself, brother, and you are begging for stricter judgment."

...

So words are the stock-in-trade of the pastor. When he is at his best, he uses them to communicate God's truth. God holds him accountable for what he says. When he says, "I am a pastor," in that same breath he is saying, "and I invite stricter judgment on myself for what I say."

So a pastor who speaks to a church should expect to answer to that church for what he says. If he goes on the radio, he should expect to answer to that audience for what he says. If he blogs, if he writes in the local newspaper, if he speaks at rallies — and, certainly, if he writes books, he should expect to answer for what he says. He should expect to be held to the standard of God's Word. No responsible pastor blinks in surprise when someone asks for clarification. He expects it. He invited it the day he presented himself before God and the Church as a pastor. To be a pastor means to be a teacher of the Word of God, and it means to be judged in his pursuit of that activity.

...

[In the case of a pastor questioning another:]

Rather than throw brickbats (or frozen meat-chubs) at the reasonable questioner, thank him for taking Acts 20:28 seriously. And rather than shielding (or beating your breast for) the questionee, encourage him to respond honestly and straightforwardly, and thank him for taking James 3:1 seriously.

And if I may add, this doesn't apply to pastors ONLY. All of us who, in some way or another, witness for Christ or teach others, will have to answer to God and to others for our own words. After all, the verses Mt. 12:36-37 aren't in the Scriptures for no reason. They read

I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Forget about the annonymity of the Internet, all of us who blog will be held accountable to God for every word we type. For every person we counsel in the name of Christ, every Christian we disciple, God will hold us accountable for what we say (and don't say). Especially if you are in a teaching position, and God doesn't care whether it is ecclesiastical or not; a parachurch worker is just as accountable to God as a pastor in a church for what he teaches (or doesn't teaches).

So anyone still wants to be a teacher?

Video: The myth of the modern Gospel

Here is a video regarding the way we present the Gospel. Food for thought.

Article: Why do some pastors delibrately avoid teaching their church doctrine

Good article, especially with regards to the article here.

Canadians apologize to world for promoting sodomy

OK, some Canadians at least have apologized to the world for promoting sodomite "marriages" here. When will the stupid 'civilized peoples' of the world realize that violation of God's principles will destroy their lives, families and societies?

On exposing error

Here is an excellent article by Vincent on Gal. 4:16, and the need for ministers to boldy preach against sin and error wherever they be found, even if it means personal loss and sacrifice.

A Rick Warren blog

Oh my, look at this. Seems like Rick Warren requires a spin doctor these days to keep his purpose driven empire alive. Whatever happens to his former apologist Richard Abanes, writer of the book Rick Warren and the Purpose that Drives Him? Is Mark Kelly going to publish a book entilted "Why Rick Warren's tactics are not marketing" or something like that? Oh well, guess at least Rick Warren hasn't stoop to the level of suing people to silence the truth...

Oh, check this out to see why Rick Warren is indeed involved in the marketing business...

Finished honors project... YEAH!

Just finished my honors project yesterday, and submitted my thesis. Should be freer now, I hope. For more information, click here.