Dr David Jeremiah’s shocking apostasy, Updated

A few days ago, a friend emailed me a link to an invitation and announcement of an event at Dr David Jeremiah’s Shadow Mountain Church. I was saddened but not surprised. It was indicative of the grievous trajectory one displays when one begins to depart from the faith. But first, let’s go back and do some groundwork.

Apostasy – the Lord prophesied a massive falling away from the faith during the tribulation, and a ramp-up preceding it. (2 Timothy 3:13, 1 Timothy 4:1). Apostasy, according to Theopedia, is

what one commits when they denounce, reject, or fall away from their faith (i.e. religion). A person who commits apostasy is called an apostate.

People reject Christ. They always have. They always will. This rejection comes in different flavors. It is the flat-out atheist who says there is no God, and that he, the atheist, doesn’t sin. There is the Catholic-Buddhist-Hindu-Wicca-New Age-Muslim who claims to believe something, as long as it isn’t Jesus, the blood, resurrection, personal sin or wrath for it.

And there there is the false Christian. This is a person who is a tare that is mixed in with the wheat. The person whose heart was thorny ground or rocky ground when the word was delivered, and seemed to have thrived for a while, but then faded away. (Luke 8:6-7). Some people fall away from the truth quickly, like Charles Templeton. Others, like Billy Graham, take a lifetime to reveal themselves. Either way, for the person who doesn’t truly believe, no matter how hard they try to blend in, their sheep mask will someday slip and reveal the wolf.

It is the case with Dr David Jeremiah.

There are many detailed examples I could give. I won’t. I’ll give three. They should be enough to demonstrate that the pastor of Shadow Mountain church and narrator at Turning Point television and radio is no longer to be trusted.

Jeremiah regularly appears on Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) alongside Paul Crouch (when he was alive) during their fall Praise-A-Thon. TBN is a broadcaster of heresy, an exporter of error, and a brood of vipers. Their prosperity Gospel, false claims of holiness healing, charismania, greed, and pure unadulterated contempt for the people watching is grievous. One look at their regular programming schedule from today is pretty bad.

Below is a screen shot from the November 2014 TBN Praise-A-Thon where Jeremiah is ‘preaching’ the sowing principle. Also known as ‘sowing a seed,’ in this still pic, Jeremiah was urging people to send money to TBN based on the sowing principle. He said that even God believes in the sowing principle, you know, He sent His Son to be sown into the world and now we are reaping the harvest.

At the crawl along the bottom of Jeremiah’s ‘sermon’ was a promise that a donation of any kind will result in the donor being sent a bottle of “Psalm 45 perfume”, fragrances from the Bible bottled in an attractive container…and there were phone numbers along the top for people to call now. Gross.

At GotQuestions we read of the seed sowing principle

A person wrote to GotQuestions about the doctrine of sowing a seed to reap a financial harvest. … The central theme in seed faith giving is the money you give to spread the gospel God would multiply back to you thirty, sixty, and one-hundredfold.

TBN (Trinity Broadcasting Network) not only sponsors these false ministries but has unreservedly adopted the gospel of greed heresy. TBN is a major media portal to the world, responsible for sending the gospel of greed heresy to hundreds of millions of unsuspecting people, and taking what little money they have. The gospel of greed has become a means of livelihood for prosperity preachers who live lavish lifestyles while telling you to send money to get more money. Jan Crouch, in her soft sugary voice said on TBN, “God has a special blessing for the little women who have caught the vision of giving, even if only their grocery money.” While there are many Christians who see TBN and its association with the gospel of greed ministries as an abomination, many others (not well versed in the Bible) believe in the heresy and fall prey to its deception.

It is hard to find what was a bigger heretic than Paul Crouch (now dead). GotQuestions on Word of Faith movement that spawned this seed giving principle:

Word of Faith teaching is decidedly unbiblical. It is not a denomination and does not have a formal organization or hierarchy. Instead, it is a movement that is heavily influenced by a number of high-profile pastors and teachers such as Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, Paul and Jan Crouch, and Fred Price.

And not only is Jeremiah partnering with them, but is urging people to send money so the unbiblical heresies can continue being exported and the deception can be continued.

Jeremiah was asked by the Downey/Burnett duo to write a companion book on Acts as a sequel to their miniseries titled “The Bible”. The new tv show is called A.D. The Revolution Continues and will be broadcast on Easter. The married duo also produced The Son of God movie seen in theaters. You might remember Roma Downey in the long-running tv show Touched By An Angel. Pastor Justin Peters said that the TV series The Bible was so lacking in a Gospel presentation that it wasn’t even accidentally given.

Below, Jeremiah and Downey/Burnett are at Shadow Mountain Church discussing the new tv show A.D. and Jeremiah’s new companion book based on the biblical book of Acts. The interview was held on March 12, 2015 at the church.

From Shadow Mt. Church Facebook page

This is not surprising since Downey and Burnett aren’t Christian. Downey says she is a devout Catholic and is also a mystic. She “sees God in everyone” and utters claptrap such as “The language of God is in the silence.” She attained a Master’s Degree from a New Age college in Spiritual Psychology. Her beliefs are not even close to being evangelical, born-again Christian. Further, she practices divination. She participated in a psychic show and allowed the medium to ‘call up’ her dead mother from the nether-realms and Downey talked with ‘her’. This is divination and necromancy, part of a cadre of sorceries that God hates with a holy hatred. God said,

Thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of [the] nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord. (Deuteronomy 18:9)

If a person performs any of these sorceries, that person is detestable to God. That person is an abomination to God. And lest someone wrongly claim that the Deuteronomy verse is outdated just because it’s Old Testament, sorceries are also forbidden in the New Testament. Revelation 18:23 and Galatians 5:19-21 strenuously forbid such practices.

Downey and Burnett have produced a TV show that twists the Bible, presents another Jesus, fails to offer the Gospel, and they themselves have participated in New Age, direct revelation, mystical practices, and sorceries. Yet a supposedly astute and mature Bible teacher such as Jeremiah has invited the duo to his pulpit and interviewed them in order to promote the next TV series, A.D. and by the way, his new book.

In the interview Jeremiah flatly said that the duo creates shows that honor the word of God and doesn’t pervert it. Justin Peters was astounded to hear Jeremiah say this. Peters remarked that Jeremiah is well-versed in the Bible and he knows when it’s being twisted. The only possible explanation for Jeremiah saying that “The Bible” mini-series honors God’s words is that he is being deliberately dishonest. If you know Justin Peters, you know he never says anything lightly, and rarely if ever, does he ever say anything like that. He was truly shocked.

As for Jeremiah’s partnership on TBN with the Crouches et al, and with Downey/Burnett et al, the Bible says

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God... (2 Corinthians 14-16a).

With Jeremiah, there is instead repeated partnership with darkness, evil, and error. He has no excuse.

A friend who likes David Jeremiah was fully engaged in Jeremiah’s recent series on Revelation. Knowing I enjoy studying prophecy, he urged me to tune in to the sermon series. I did. As the sermon opened I was assaulted by pounding music and slick graphics. Then Jeremiah began reading. I could not understand where he was reading from because the passage didn’t sound like the Bible. I thought I must have missed something. I listened a bit more and then turned it off.

I tried again the next week, and I realized as I listened to Jeremiah read a lengthy passage, and I mean for 10 or 15 minutes, he was reading his own book, called Agents of the Apocalypse.

How dare any person substitute or equalize man’s words from the pulpit instead of God’s.

Can you picture the momentous scene described in Nehemiah 8:1-2?

The public reading of the Scriptures was required by the law to be made every seventh year; but during the long period of the [Babylonian] captivity this excellent practice, with many others, had fallen into neglect, till revived, on this occasion. ~Jamiesen-Fausset -Brown Commentary

And all the people gathered as one man at the square which was in front of the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses which the Lord had given to Israel. 2 Then Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly of men, women and all who could listen with understanding, on the first day of the seventh month. (Nehemiah 8:1-2)

How tremendous! The people are all gathered for the first time in generations, eager to hear the word of God. They were joyous in being able to celebrate His holy word and adopt His statutes. What if Ezra had ascended the stairs, opened the scroll, took a deep breath, and said, “Before I launch into a reading of the word, let’s listen to an excerpt from a book I wrote on traveling mishaps on the way to and from Babylon. It’s called “Agents of the Captivity,” and it is on sale in the temple bookstore.”

Ezra Reads the Book of the Law, David Martin, 1659

How dare he! Is there no gravitas? Is there no pastoral respect for the pulpit? Is there no submission in fear of God? Is there no place one can bask in unadulterated holy scripture and not be pressed into buying something associated with it? Worse, is this message from Dr Jeremiah:

On Easter Sunday, Turning Point Television will begin airing our new series, A.D. The Revolution That Changed the World. This teaching series is the “Scripture behind the story” of the dramatic NBC television event, A.D. The Bible Continues.

Hollywood overtakes Shadow Mountain Church.

I am indeed sad that many people who like Dr David Jeremiah will be grieved to read this news, myself included. However, the work of the Christian is to uphold the glory of Jesus, to warn of apostates, and to encourage each other in the Word. When a man alleging to be an under-shepherd of the Lord hawks his book from the pulpit during Sunday service, presses the poor to sow a seed so TBN can continue promoting doctrines of devils, and when he pollutes his own stage with a necromancer, we must call a spade a spade and glorify the Lord by warning about Dr David Jeremiah.

Please take these things under consideration, and continue to pray for wisdom and discernment as more and more men and women are revealed who have fallen prey to satan. Pray for them, and pray for your fellow church members. We are sheep among wolves.

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. (Matthew 10:16). As Jamieson Commentary says of the above verse,

Alone, the wisdom of the serpent is mere cunning, and the harmlessness of the dove little better than weakness: but in combination, the wisdom of the serpent would save them from unnecessary exposure to danger; the harmlessness of the dove, from sinful expedients to escape it. In the apostolic age of Christianity, how harmoniously were these qualities displayed! Instead of the fanatical thirst for martyrdom, to which a later age gave birth, there was a manly combination of unflinching zeal and calm discretion, before which nothing was able to stand.

Let us in this age do the same.

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UPDATE

Berean Research has posted the following today, October 6, 2015:

Birds of a feather? David Jeremiah teams up with Osteen and Meyer at the big Jump Start conference in Chicago this May

So … Joel Osteen … Joyce Meyer … and David Jeremiah. It seems since this was originally published the downhill apostasy slide has increased its velocity, sadly.

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Further Reading:

Tyndale House media release:

(Chicago, February 2015)— Tyndale House Publishers will partner with New York Times bestselling author and Bible teacher Dr. David Jeremiah to produce the companion books for NBC’s A.D. The Bible Continues television event, launching this Easter. A.D. The Bible Continues picks up where the smash-hit miniseries The Bible left off, continuing the greatest story ever told and exploring the exciting and inspiring events that followed the crucifixion of Christ as recorded in the Book of Acts.

Sunny Shell: History Channel’s The Bible exalts man over God