Category: discernment

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

IF:Gathering – updated review four years later

Posted on by elizabethprata

Four years ago I posted a few articles looking at and critiquing the women of She Reads Truth (SRT) and IF:Gathering.

This week a reader emailed a question to me. She wanted to know what I thought of the women of IF and SRT now, after four years had gone by. She asked mainly about She Reads Truth. I’ll update my thoughts on that movement on another day, but today I’m going to focus first on the IF:Gathering:

She asked great questions and valid ones, to be sure. I had thought about doing an update, and her question spurred me to do it. In God’s providence and timing, last week the two women of Sheologians, Summer White and Joy Temby, did a podcast reviewing IF:Gathering. Yay! I listened to it. I am including notes on their insights and review. My thoughts will follow.

As a side note, the Sheologians ladies (Summer White and Joy Temby) mentioned how difficult it is to do discernment ministry. Not that the Sheologians, or even I, focus solely on discernment. But whenever we feel called to write about a person, teaching, or movement in the discernment spheres, it is hard. It is hard on the soul to listen and hear such things said about our God or against our Jesus. It is hard to write negatively. It is hard to think of the people that will be hurt by the conclusions we come to. It’s hard – but it’s important. So we do it.

We don’t do it lightly. I pray, I do hours of research, of course consult the Bible, and I check in other discernment ministries, like I did with the Sheologians. I work hard to be accurate and fair, being biblical without compromise despite a certain person’s or movement’s popularity. That said, here is a synopsis of Sheologians’ PLUSES and PRAISES of IF:Gathering:

  • They said that the IF ladies produce a conference well, and they know a lot about organizing and using social media and the internet to get their message out.
  • They mentioned that the Huffington Post did an article about the women and their movement a few years ago, noting in the article the movement’s emphasis on social justice. Sheologians said that if even a secular publication notices a Christian movement, it’s something. I’ll make a few notes about the social justice and popularity below.
  • The Sheologians noted that the IF website and live gatherings are known for their beautiful long tables laden with flowers backlit by fairy lights, gifts, womanly takeaways, and Pinterest-perfect backgrounds and tablescapes. Summer White wondered, what is the IF:Gathering attracting people TO? If you stripped away all of this, would they still come? Is the movement focused solely on aesthetics? Summer said that Jennie Allen addressed this in her speech, downplaying the aesthetics part of their movement and was relieved because of Jennie’s assurances.
elegant-ladies-taking-tea-delphin-enjolras-
Note- Not an IF:Gathering, just a simulation of one*
  • The Sheologians praised the IF:Gathering emphasis on the local church as important, and liked that the IF ladies stated that biblically equipping women is their goal. Summer White said that in Jennie Allen’s speech, Allen said that it is the church that must grow. That if the IF:Gathering disappears, who cares as long as local church is strong. This was the right priority, they said.

Sheologians’ MINUSES and CONCERNS of IF:Gathering

  • Many minutes went by in Jennie Allen’s speech without scripture, no Gospel talk, no talk of sin. When sin was mentioned, it was framed as part of our ‘brokenness’ or just that the devil was after you.
  • When Allen did mention sin 20 minutes into the speech, she made joke about sin, undermining confession of sin and undermining local church by joking about not confessing sin to people you’re in an actual relationship with.
  • The Sheologian women noted that Jen Hatmaker and Sarah Bessey have spoken at the conference. Both these women are overtly and obviously heretical. This is a problem.
  • Too much of a focus on emotionalism at the conference. There was a wrackingly grief laden testimony from a women whose small child died. Sheologians agreed that faith through grief can help, but there seems to be an over-emphasis with IF ladies. Also, that is the extent of it, there is no scriptural digging. Lots of emotion but not a lot of Jesus. They noted that story time is only beneficial as long as it ultimately points to Jesus.
  • Women do not need more emotionalism, we get that in our daily life we need to be pulled away more than running to it.
  • Jennie Allen got the Trinity wrong in her 2014 book Restless. She wrote that the Holy Spirit is a form of Jesus Christ. He most definitely is not, Summer White said. He is the Third Person of the Trinity. He is God.
  • There’s a lot of ‘God told me’, which is another mixed message since they talk a lot about women being in the scriptures, so why the emphasis on God directly telling them things, Summer White mused.

Sheologians’ Conclusion

Ultimately the Sheologians noticed that the IF Ladies say one thing and do another. They say they want to promote the local body, but joke about confessing sin to people you actually worship with.

You can’t preach the importance of the local body when you’re going to remove the necessity of confessing sin to people you’re in a relationship with.

You can’t preach importance of local church when you invite speakers who also undermine that doctrine with their heresies and various declarations against the church.

They could not take the IF ladies’ stated commitment to the Bible seriously when they constantly speak of directly hearing from God.

MY THOUGHTS

My warning about the IF:Gathering remains the same as four years ago, if not more fervent. Imagine, a woman who writes a book misrepresenting the Trinity formed a movement that same year where they intend to equip other women. This cannot be.

Direct revelation, ergo, Bible not sufficient

Their continual stance IS direct revelation. Regarding direct revelation, Jennie Allen revealed at the first IF:Gathering how IF got started. The ladies’ penchant to say ‘God told me’ that Summer noticed is in actuality not just a millennial-youth casual phrase. It is based on something terribly unbiblical. Here are Founder Jennie Allen’s words, transcribed from a video clip, actual video below:

For one second I want to give you a behind the scenes of where this all came from. About 7 years ago, a voice from the sky…[nervous laughter] which doesn’t often speak to me, but that day, there was this whisper. It was the middle of the night actually. It was ‘gather and equip your generation. … and for two days my bones hurt.

Doesn’t OFTEN speak to her?

Jennie went on to advise that

not all voices from the sky are God, FYI, but if it IS God he will give you what you need to accomplish what he spoke.

And this women who can’t figure out the Trinity can figure out which voice from the sky is God’s and which is the devil’s?

Clip can be viewed here at my other blog.

Margaret Feinberg was a speaker this year at IF:Gathering 2018, and is known for her book “God Whispers: Learning to Hear His Voice” and is a woman who even a liberal book reviewer called an evangelical mystic.

To me, this destroys any credibility the IF Ladies have in urging women to dive into scripture. Obviously for the IF women, it’s important to dive into scripture, as long as there isn’t a voice from the sky giving other orders or whispering into your ear. Then the Bible goes by the wayside.

Popular

HuffPo wrote of the movement back when it first started, piercing the notice of even that secular publication. I always go back to Luke 6:26 which I call the curse of popularity.

Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for according to these things their fathers used to treat the false prophets likewise.

Their first conference sold out in minutes. They were popular even at the start and are gathering even more steam as time goes on. This to me is suspicious, because of the verse. People don’t generally clamor in droves to a solidly Gospel Bible study, in fact, they reject it. Whenever something is instantly wildly popular, be suspicious.

Social Justice

The IF:Gathering is based on social justice, not a Gospel emphasis. They want to equip women with the biblical grounding SO THAT they can be ‘unleashed’ (whatever that means) to go out and promote “healing and reconciliation in the world.” The following is transcribed directly from their own words, an affirmation to the US Federal Government on their non-profit IRS returns,

To gather a new generation of women, equip them with the tools to know God more deeply and live out their purposes and unleash a movement to promote healing and reconciliation around the world.

2014 HuffPo article: ‘IF:Gathering’ Of Evangelical Women Focuses On Social Justice In Austin, Texas

This new wave of evangelical women is fueled by an ever-growing online culture of high-profile women bloggers and savvy social media types who have laid the groundwork for the new focus. [in Christianity of social justice]

While Christians are called to display kindness and charity to those less fortunate, and to meet saints’ needs, it is not our calling to rectify the sins of man globally. Social Justice is not the Gospel. Here is GotQuestions on Social Justice.

Emotionalism

Though we as women do feel things deeply, and it is our calling and privilege to nurture, we go overboard with the emotions sometimes. Emotional testimonies are not the Gospel.

The IF:Gathering IRS statement of purpose unfortunately includes an attitude of feelings regarding Bible verses rather than equipping women through teaching its intended meaning. Here is their statement of purpose transcribed. Links are below in the resources section.

“IF:Equip- A holistic, strategic, deep way to connect online with a like-hearted community and relevant resources. We hope to prepare women around the world to know God more deeply and to live out their purposes by sharing comments and feelings about daily passages posted online.”

Associations

The Sheologians made mention of several speakers whom the IF ladies had invited to speak at their annual gathering that illustrated problematic associations. Associations are not by themselves an indicator of solidity in a teacher or program, but it is to be taken into consideration. The Bible strictly warns to stay away from those who promote heresy. Mark and avoid them, (Romans 16:17), shut the door and do not even let them into the house. (2 John 1:10).

False teachers corrupt the divine standard and pollute the word, drawing away the unwary and are out greedily to kill, steal, and destroy. Therefore coffee klatches, sympathetic conversations, and mild-mannered toleration is not the biblical method for dealing with them, and are unwise in the extreme to employ.

In its first IF:Gathering, the speakers included feminist heretic Sarah Bessey and Bible-rejecter and church hater Jen Hatmaker.

This year’s Gathering, which concludes tonight, includes

A list of 2018 participants is here in pdf form.

IF:Gathering’s Board of Directors for each of tax years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 consisted of Larry Cotton with his wife Diann also as a Director. Sadly from the NY Times last week we learn that Pastor Cotton, who led Austin Stone Community Church, was “placed … on leave last Friday while it investigates “his qualification for his current role of leadership.” This was due to Cotton’s alleged participation in the coverup of a 1998 allegation of sexual abuse by a youth against one of the other pastors working with Cotton at the time, Andy Savage. While the statute of limitations has run out and Savage will not be prosecuted, the fallout of the accusation includes investigation of Cotton into his possible part in the incident and alleged coverup, so he is relieved of ministerial duty. It will be interesting to see what the IF Ladies, especially Jennie Allen, who called both Larry and Diann mentors, will say or do, if anything.

Associations matter.

I believe enough credible and long-term information exists to illustrate that submitting to Bible studies generated by these women is not healthy for your spiritual life. That pursuing unleashing, global healing and reconciliation, and social justice is not the Gospel call to women for a long-term or even short term lifestyle. That these ladies are to be avoided. There are other women to learn from. My stance is that women do not have to learn from women. They can and should learn from men. But if you feel compelled to search for women to learn from, Bible studies or devotionals to obtain, here are a few choices. I also enjoy and take inspiration from  the older missionary stories, such as Gladys Aylward whose story is captured in A Little Woman or Elisabeth Elliot, or biographies of theologians’ wives such as Martin Luther’s wife Katherine Von Bora, or Susannah Spurgeon for example.

Ladies, please stay away from IF:Gatherings.
—————————————————-

Resources and Links

2014 IF:Gathering public non-profit IRS returns, EIN 46-1978383

2015 IF:Gathering public non-profit IRS returns

2015 IF:Gathering public non-profit IRS returns (change of accounting period)

Mission&Vision Source of information about of non-profits and private foundations.
If Gathering > Financial Report
Financial Report If Gathering From 2013 To 2016
click to enlarge

The End Time on IF:Gathering 2014

Painting above is titled Elegant ladies taking tea by Delphin Enjolras, not an IF:Gathering

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Do we possess that much power?

Posted on by elizabethprata

Church signs. Most of them are cringeworthy. The messages on them try to be clever, punny, funny, or light-heartedly serious. The worst simply promote false doctrine or are erroneous in terrible unintended double entendre ways.

None really work, or at least not the way the sign-writer intended them. Why not just put a Bible verse on there? Or announce the times of worship and welcome one and all?

A few days ago, a friend sent me an email that contained a motto from a streetside Baptist Church sign. The sign read,

“No one can separate you from the love of God but you”.

This is not true. If we could separate from God’s love, we would be God, because we’d be stronger than Him. Let’s look a bit closer:

  • First, the saved. Can they be separated from God’s love?
    We are sealed with the Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 1:13). Can man UNseal what God has sealed? No. We do not have that much power
  • Next, the unsaved: can they separate themselves from God’s love?
    If they refuse to repent, they can. But all people are so drenched in their sin nature and blinded to God’s love no one would ever repent by themselves, unless God drew them first. (John 6:44).

So no matter who you’re talking about, we cannot separate ourselves from God’s love. I reject the statement on that church sign as false. Friends, don’t believe every sign.

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Speaking up for discernment ministries

Posted on by elizabethprata

Aw. Poor discernment ministries. They are getting such a bad rap these days.

Richard Caldwell tweeted,

That makes sense, and I agree. However the “scare quotes” might not be totally necessary. Discerning the true from the false is a Ministry. Not a “Ministry”.

Randy White says there’s a Sickness in Discernment Ministries. (Not THAT Randy White)
I can only think of a few things that the church needs more today than discernment. But I am completely convinced that discernment ministry is not the way the church is going to gain this discernment.

Perhaps this author and I have a different view of the goal of discernment ministries. The individual Christian is the one responsible responsible for cultivating their discernment, not ministries external to the local church. They are a resource, not the sole training ground for the Christian. Hebrews 5:14 says,

But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

So, whether or not we specifically possess the spiritual gift, we’re supposed to practice discernment constantly and train ourselves to detect good from evil, or as Charles Spurgeon says, detecting right from almost right. The pastor, if he preaches expositionally verse-by-verse, helps his people learn discernment because they are getting a good grounding in the word. Daily study and weekly sermons and personal study are the training we need in order to discern. We don’t rely on outside ministries to train us. We do consult ministries as an additional resource. Discernment ministries can be a good educational source, but a secondary one. So, in that sense, no, external discernment ministries are not the way the church is going to gain this discernment – or shouldn’t. However, that isn’t their intent.

Pastor John Chester of Piedmont Bible Church and Parking Space 23, says that we need discernment. However, in his view, “many of my concerns about many of these ministries have been magnified as some prominent ones have degenerated into de facto internet gossip columns and platforms to pursue personal grudges against pastors, theologians and churches.” Further, he believes ‘they are unbiblical, they are unhealthy, they are not very helpful, they often have significant blindspots’ and Pastor Chester has sworn off them.

Yes, some of these ministries have devolved. That’s sad but true. But swearing off all discernment ministries because a few, and I say a few, have devolved, is throwing the baby out with the bathwater in my opinion. Satan has the purpose and ability to corrupt every ministry that’s based on a spiritual gift. He has corrupted Preaching. He has corrupted Helps. He has corrupted Missions. He has corrupted Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Giving, and Leadership. Discernment is no different. Or maybe it is, because discernment is the gift that aids the Christian in detecting when any spiritual gift-based ministry locally or globally is going adrift.

Eric Barger writes When Discernment Turns Ugly, that “Until the Church rejects the venomous battering of Christians by other Christians merely pushing their pet theologies, we will continue to exist in various “us and them” camps where some are simply intent on impugning others for the sake of making points with their followers and proving themselves “right.” ”

Wow.

But again, I agree to a point. Some Discernment Ministries that devolve entrench themselves into an us-and-them camp. Paul warned about dividing into camps based on who the leader is. (1 Corinthians 1:12). This isn’t new. It’s an old tendency not restricted to Discernment Ministries. Not new are theological debates with entrenched sides and camps. (Synod of Dort, anyone?). Sometimes theological debates on gross or fine points of theology are important, and by necessity, whenever you have debates, there are sides. That’s OK sometimes. Good debates help the cause and keep the doctrinal lines clear. Bad debates can simply be ignored. It’s that simple.

Add to this, biblical illiteracy is at an all-time high. Phil Johnson, Executive Director of Grace To You and a pastor at GraceLife, and a conference speaker, said recently that he believes that the state of the church now equals or exceeds the doctrinal mess and moral decay evident in Corinth. Isn’t it interesting that just when biblical literacy and by extension, discernment, is most needed, discernment ministries are being tarnished and urged to be done away with? Another brick in the wall.

There is a great need for discernment.

Pastor Gabriel Hughes of First Southern Baptist Church in Junction City, KS and the voice of When We Understand the Text (WWUTT.com) said this week,

Just witnessed to 36 high school students, mostly churched. I asked them, “How do we talk to God?” Unanimously they said, “Prayer!” I then asked, “How does God talk to us?” They said revelations, visions, voices, dreams, someone said, “He just does.” No one said the Bible.

This week also, a pastor studying in a Maine seminary wrote a short letter to the editor at Lighthouse Trails, mourning the lack of discernment in seminaries and churches.
Letter to Editor: Pastor Studying at Christian College in Maine Discouraged by Lack of Discernment

Yet discernment ministries are getting slammed

Michelle Lesley does a gracious and expert job of defending discernment ministry. Again.
Answering the Opposition- Responses to the Most Frequently Raised Discernment Objections

You notice that lack of discernment in general arose during an era when expositional preaching is in decline. Topical, hip preaching based on felt needs and pragmatism (whatever works) was the fad these last couple of decades. And as a result, lack of discernment has risen. Since it is not to be found in many local churches, or is absolutely rejected when brought up, then the need for outside ministries filled that need for many. People searched for confirmation of the things they were identifying in various books, sermons, ministries and the like in their home churches. They weren’t getting help at home, so they went to web-based ministries. At least they were trying to follow the Hebrews verse. Good for them. Good for the good Discernment Ministries that were able to provide good information.

I was blessed. Back in 2011, I had a difficult time accepting that Beth Moore was a credible teacher. Yet everyone around me was applauding her and enthusiastically using her books and materials. I broached the question respectfully to a leader and received a less than respectful reply. Unknown to me then, I was also marked as a troublemaker. When the leadership later flogged Jentezen Franklin’s Daniel Fast book from the pulpit and urged us all to publicly contract to do his Fasting Plan, I again respectfully questioned it. I was veritably tossed out on my ear. But in between those two events I searched online for help with the Beth Moore issue and Franklin’s Daniel Fast issue. Chris Rosebrough was helpful with the Moore issue. He not only declared that she was wrong, but taught why, point by point. In this practical fashion, I learned how to discern. Tim Challies’ book reviews and John MacArthur’s expositional preaching helped so much also.

In my experience, far from Discernment Ministries promoting “venomous battering of Christians by other Christians merely pushing their pet theologies” as Eric Barger said above, I’ve seen venomous battering of Christians by other Christians for merely questioning their pet teachers. But these internal bickerings, protections of pet teachers and theologies, and take-downs, are invisible when they happen inside a church. More noisy and visible are the few Discernment Ministries crashing spectacularly. Those get the attention. But the real problem is inside churches that marginalize discerners, and fail to cultivate knowledgeable members through preaching strong and correct biblical doctrine.

To me, the big issue isn’t discernment ministries. It’s lack of discernment from elders, pastors, and leaders who are actively teaching inside local churches. And it’s lack of tolerance or respect to hear those members out when an issue does arise who either trying to follow Hebrews 5:14’s example, or specifically attempting to edify their home church via the spiritual gift of discernment .

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. (1 John 4:1)

Discernment is both a duty of every Christian and a spiritual gift given to some for the purpose of edifying the body.

As with all spiritual gifts, it’s incumbent upon the gift to use it wisely for the edification of the local body. (1 Corinthians 14:3-5, 12, 17, 26; Ephesians 4:12). If you have the gift of discernment, please use it wisely and humbly. We would say the same about those with the gift of giving, helps, leadership, teaching, mercy, and the rest.

Most discernment ministries (or ministries that partly deal with discernment among other issues) are good. Justin Peters Ministries, Michelle Lesley, Gabe Hughes/WWUTT, Tim Challies, DebbieLynne Kespert, Chris Rosebrough, Phil Johnson, Berean Research, CARM.org, and others manage to maintain a clean discernment ministry and also use their other gifts in balance, and do so wisely, humbly, and doctrinally. There are many others I could name.

This issue arose because some false brothers were brought in under false pretenses to spy on our freedom in Christ Jesus, in order to enslave us. (Galatians 2:4)

If there was somebody out there who could correctly help us avoid enslavement to false doctrines, why would we want to say no that that?

error and truth discernment

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Pay closer attention, lest we drift away: A sailing story

Posted on by elizabethprata

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. (Hebrews 2:1).

The question was raised at Bible Family Group last night, how does a Christian prevent developing a hardened heart? One wise older man said by staying in the Word.

The word is the only antidote for developing poor habits, shrinking our biblical worldview, and drifting away. I agree.

The word drift away used in the Hebrews verse in Greek means-

properly, to float (flow) alongside, drifting past a destination because pushed along by current. /pararrhyéō (“drift away from”) only occurs in Heb 2:1 where it refers to going spiritually adrift – “sinning by slipping away” (from God’s anchor). 3901 /pararrhyéō (“gradually drift away”) means to “lapse” into spiritual defeat, describing how we slowly move away from our moorings in Christ.

Paul often used nautical allusions and marine metaphors. Last night at Family Group I’d shared the experience from when I was living on the sailboat that relates to the verse. We usually sailed during the day, unless we were on an overnight passage out in the ocean. But if we traveled down the Intracoastal Waterway, we’d find a snug spot to anchor in at night and went to bed after the sun sank.

The anchor becomes all-important. The anchor holds you in place, prevents you from drifting and damaging other boats anchored or moored nearby, and keeps you afloat rather than crashing into the rocks or going aground.

We spent a lot of time tending the anchor. When we initially set it, we’d take time to ensure it was set correctly. Is the rode taut and not tangled? Are the flukes digging into the ground? Is there enough depth under us for when we swing with the tide or current?

Then we’d watch it a while. We took reference points ashore to compare with our position. One reference point isn’t really enough. Drift is deceptive and incremental. You could be drifting away and still seem like you’re lined up with the same reference point. So we’d take two references. Three references are better so you can triangulate.

During the night, we’d sleep lightly, listening carefully for any change in the pattern of the waves slapping the bow, or any other untoward noises that meant there was likely a problem.

We spent a lot of time tending the anchor.

Do I spend an equal amount of time tending the anchor of my spiritual life, the Word? Do I treat it carefully, thoughtfully? Do I employ reference points to ensure I’m not drifting? Reference points in our spiritual lives that help us against drifting away from the truth are: visiting our prayer closet, studying His word, corporate worship, small groups, discipling and being discipled, and so on. Are we in position, standing firm in the center line of that narrow way, not going to the right or the left? Are we vigilant, listening for any variation in pattern of our sanctification in life?

We spent much time tending the anchor because our lives depended on it. We should take an even greater amount of time tending the anchor of our spiritual life because our spiritual life depends on it. When Paul says we must pay closer attention, the word in Greek means exceedingly, abundantly, vehemently.

When man sails upon the waters, he is not in his element. It is a foreign environment. It’s an environment that’s hostile, with many things in it either actively or benignly trying to kill him. Just so, Christian man on earth is not in his element. There are many things in this environment actively or benignly trying to kill him. We should pay the closest attention so  we do not drift away. Remember all the nature documentaries…what always happens to the gazelle that lags behind and is alone?

Stay anchored to the Word, in position, with lots of reference points and a growing biblical worldview 🙂

boat

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Are we supposed to feel God’s presence?

Posted on by elizabethprata

Some ladies who teach the Bible claim to have had special feelings of a tangible presence of God. Sarah Young, author of Jesus Calling, Ann Voskamp, author of One Thousand Gifts, Beth Moore, author of lots of books, and other women, claim to feel God. They report a warm mist, a force entering them, a tingle and so on.

The question often arises, if I don’t feel God, am I doing something wrong?

No.

You might sense God as you commune with Him in prayer or the Word, but maybe you don’t. Feeling physical sensations are not a requirement for communion with the Lord. Most people do not feel a tangible presence of God at any time. Here, we look to Job. He expresses that in fact God feels far from Him but still Job will commune with God via treasuring the words of His mouth more than even the food that keeps Job alive.

Behold, I go forward, but he is not there,
and backward, but I do not perceive him;
on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him;
he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him.
But he knows the way that I take;
when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.
My foot has held fast to his steps;
I have kept his way and have not turned aside.
I have not departed from the commandment of his lips;
I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.
(Job 23: 8-12)

Be encouraged. Leave the warm mists, forcible compelling, tingles and other sensations to the ladies who claim such things. More than likely they are not even sensations from God. Be satisfied as Job was, with the words of God’s mouth. It’s enough, isn’t it? More than enough.

bread verse

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

The power of crafty words

Posted on by elizabethprata

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1)

We are introduced to satan early and his introduction contained an extremely negative assertion about his character. He’s crafty.

Satan is an angel. He is an unholy angel, as opposed to Gabriel or Michael who are holy angels. If you look at the angels’ activity you see just how powerful and intelligent they are. They administer judgment. (e.g. Revelation 8:6-13). They give the Law. (Acts 7:53, Hebrews 2:2, Galatians 3:19). They give the Gospel to the whole earth at once. (Revelation 14:6). They stand on the sun. (Revelation 19:7). They hold back the wind. (Revelation 7:1).

They’re powerful.

We’ll come back to that in a moment.

I’m enjoying the buzz around a couple of movies just out. Darkest Hour is the story of Winston Churchill’s early days as England’s Prime Minister. He was leading the United Kingdom through tough times as WWII rages on the continent and is about to hit home for Britain. Much of the focus of the movie is on Churchill’s oratory. It’s a movie largely without action and is tightly confined to the bunker tunnels and small rooms below the city. Churchill made several famous speeches which roused the populace, enabled changed minds and hearts to make decisions, and cemented the nation in unity to face the evil force that was soon to come upon them. It’s a movie about speeches.

Another movie just out is called The Post. It depicts the editor Ben Bradlee and owner/publisher Katherine Graham of the Washington Post during the critical years of the decisions about whether to release the Pentagon Papers, and leading up to their coverage of the Watergate Break-in, which eventually led to the downfall and resignation of American President Richard Nixon. It’s a movie about words.

Words, whether written or spoken have power. Where would we be without Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, Lincoln’s Gettysburg address, Kennedy’s ‘to the moon and back’, Reagan’s ‘tear down this wall’? We remember Chief Joseph’s surrender speech, ‘I will fight no more forever.’ Lou Gehrig’s farewell to baseball ‘luckiest man alive’ speech. President Reagan reassuring a shocked nation after the space shuttle Challenger exploded and the astronauts having ‘slipped the surly bonds of earth’ to ‘touch the face of God.’

Look at the impact of President Franklin Roosevelt’s Fireside Chats:

Fireside chats is the term used to describe a series of 28 evening radio addresses given by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt between 1933 and 1944. Roosevelt spoke with familiarity to millions of Americans about the promulgation of the Emergency Banking Act in response to the banking crisis, the recession, New Deal initiatives, and the course of World War II. On radio, he was able to quell rumors and explain his policies. His tone and demeanor communicated self-assurance during times of despair and uncertainty. Roosevelt was a great communicator on radio, and the fireside chats kept him in high public regard throughout his presidency. Their introduction was later described as a “revolutionary experiment with a nascent media platform”.

I’m brought back to the early chapters of Genesis. The serpent. What was his mode of attack? Did he hold Eve hostage and force her to eat the fruit? Did he call for his legions of followers to surround them and attack? No. He did it with words. Satan attacks with words.

We should not pay attention to satan.

Of course we don’t pay attention to satan, you say. Of course not, silly! But we do. We come across a false teacher and we listen. We rationalize that we have the power to ‘eat the meat and spit out the bones’. We wail, ‘But he/she helped me so much!’ Of course false teachers are skilled at oratory. They can make fine speeches. They use words well. They’re crafty!

False doctrine is sin because false doctrine doesn’t originate from God. (John 7:16, Titus 1:2). God hates false doctrine. (Revelation 2:15). Several of the letters in the New Testament were written to address errors of false doctrine (Galatians 1:6–9; Colossians 2:20–23; Titus 1:10–11). Take false doctrine seriously. Why? Its words will affect you.

Why do we know that speeches, movies, newspapers, and advertising affect us, but mistakenly think that listening to false doctrine won’t?

The Bible says that those who listen to false teachers are heaping these teachers up so they can ‘suit their own passions.’ (2 Timothy 4:3). Don’t indulge your passions by falling into satan’s crafty trap of words.

Black

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Further reading

Challies: The Five Tests of False Doctrine

Michelle Lesley: Is She a False Teacher? 7 Steps to Figuring it Out on your Own

Got Questions: How can I recognize a false teacher / false prophet?

Art of Manliness: Resurrecting the Lost Art of Oratory

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

An exhortation

Posted on by elizabethprata

Have you polished, adjusted, and thanked God today for your spiritual armor? We should be armed and ready, from head to toe, and praising the Lord for His generosity in protecting us from the demons and from the evil one himself! If we are on guard, rooted in His word, and seeking His face, we can always spot the real from the imitation, the Godly miracle from the demonic copy, the truth from a lying sign. It is a skill that needs honing, and we will need it more than ever as each day progresses. Be ready and sharpen that sword: read your Bible today!
armor

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

A move of the holy spirit & Christian emotionalists

Posted on by elizabethprata

We hear a lot about the big moves of the Holy Spirit. We see Youtube clips of young millennials falling to the floor, or standing with arms upstretched in front of smoke filled stages, pulsing lights, glitter, laughing and sobbing. Afterward they smile tiredly, saying “The Holy Spirit really moved!” Or, “The Holy Spirit really showed up!”

As an aside, I dislike that phrase, ‘The Holy Spirit showed up.’ It’s crass. It’s akin to attending a funeral and saying to the bereaved, “So your wife croaked, eh?’ The Holy Spirit doesn’t ‘show up.’ He isn’t hailing a taxi running late, throwing a scarf around his neck while jumping out of the cab and huffing into the church. The Spirit doesn’t ‘show up’. The Holy Spirit governs the universe.

To the main point regarding big moves of the Spirit. Successive years of successive generations of younger church-goers have twisted Hebrews 11:1’s statement of what faith is:

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Into –

Now faith is the substance of things we’ve come to tangibly possess, the evidence of things seen and experienced.

Spurgeon had something to say about these “Christian emotionalists” in Sermon 898, A Word with Those Who Wait for Signs and Wonders,

And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign... (Luke 11:29-30)

There are some, and these are generally the most uneducated, who expect to experience remarkable dreams or to behold singular visions. Others we have met with, who suppose that in order to being saved they must feel some very peculiar physical sensation. Now you must not look for this. You must not put physical contortions or sensations as a test before the Lord, and say you will not believe in Him otherwise.

You seek what is quite unnecessary. What do you want a sign for? You want, you say, a token of God’s love. What token of God’s love to you can ever be wanted, now that He has given His only-begotten Son, first to live on earth, and then to die in pains extreme, the just for the unjust, “that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life”! I blush for you, that you should ask any token of God’s love while Jesus Christ is before you…

I must tell you what is more, you are acting the part of an idolater. What does an idolater do? He says, “I cannot believe in an unseen God; I must have a golden calf or an image, that I can see with my eyes and touch with my hand.” You say just the same. You cannot believe God’s naked word, you demand something you can feel, something you can see. Sheer idolatry.

You might feel an overwhelming sense of joy, or peace, or well-being, or love for Jesus at times. These emotional times can occur when prayer is answered, providence is seen, worship is genuine, or Bible reading has deepened your view of the Savior. Strong emotion is good and appropriate. But to rely on such moments as proof of the Spirit’s presence casts a vain hope upon the shores of the Rock which stands above all. Your sure faith is in Him and His word that reveals Him.

Depending on signs is seeking a golden calf of experience over faith.

If you’re looking for a move of the Spirit, a miracle, sign, or wonder, there are many that we can name which exalt Jesus. Unsaved men are helpless and unable to come to God unless the Spirit draws them. (John 6:44). He saves by grace. Any new believer is a miracle, because they cannot save themselves. Sanctification is a miracle of God, because only by the Spirit can we resist sin and grow in His likeness. Providence is a miracle of God because He sustains the universe by the power of His word every minute, and He ordains every event that happens to all 8 billion people on earth at every second.

Stop looking for glitter dust falling from the ceiling, for personal prophecies, and visible signs when we already have the redemptive, sanctifying, providential work of the Lord occurring all over the world every second.

I’ll leave John MacArthur with the last word-

For all those true believers who love the Lord, the promise is a wonderful promise. … I think it’s time in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ to give honor to the Holy Spirit, to worship Him, to love Him, to ascribe to Him the glory that He is due and to stop the nonsense that brings dishonor on His holy name.

pic

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Strong women, who can know?

Posted on by elizabethprata

Alistair Roberts wrote at Mere Orthodoxy about the need to dispense with the strong female character. It’s a well-written, if long, article. He made some excellent points. Then he followed up with another article at his own site, Alistair’s Adversaria, reacting to some push-back, here.

I want to include a few excerpts from his good original article and then continue with my own thoughts. We may need to dispense with the ‘strong female character’ as Roberts suggests, or as I propose, we may need to redefine what a strong female character is in the first place.

Popular culture is the focus of some of the most determined attempts to shift attitudes on a host of issues within society at large, and such forms of representation are an important dimension of this. While popular media and the various ‘messages’ within it may often appear innocuous, they are frequently anything but. Behind them lie concerted efforts to change the public’s thinking and perception on key matters and some carefully calculated agendas. The supposed shallowness of pop culture is deceptive: It is a realm where brilliant and talented people go to try to shape minds at their most unguarded and impressionable. It is on the ground of entertainment media that the so-called culture wars have largely been lost.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Entertainment is never innocuous. What we absorb in entertainment has an agenda, a worldview, and a purpose. It’s not merely to entertain you and me, it is to change our perceptions, and this happens more easily when we are at our most unguarded.

RE more recent portrayals of Disney Princesses:

Yet, despite their likeableness and roundedness as characters, these new princesses betray some concerning anxieties about women’s place and agency within the world. Within the kickass princess trope lurks the implication that, to prove equality of dignity, worth, agency, and significance as a character, all of a woman’s resolve, wisdom, courage, love, kindness, self-sacrifice, and other traits simply aren’t enough—she must be capable of putting men in their place by outmatching them in endeavors and strengths that naturally favor them, or otherwise making them look weak or foolish.

That is very well said!

His article becomes tremendous toward the end. The section titled The Heroism of Lady Wisdom recounts the strong female through God’s eyes. The woman at home, raising children, is where the real strength is-

Our failure to see the heroism and the strength of such a diligent and active woman is a failure to see the world as God does. The strength of such a woman is not that of conformity to more typically male forms of strength, but rather of the reflection of the work of the master creator, Lady Wisdom, within her own world of activity.

Women can be trained in martial arts and sword play. It takes strength of the physical type to perform those feats. Of course, women lack the same upper body strength as men and cannot replicate male feats of warlike strength exactly, but thanks to animation and CGI, we can overlook that fact.

If you do a Google image search for ‘strong women’ you get photos like these:

strong

But truly, who is stronger, Mulan, or Lydia? Lydia hosted a home church. (Acts 16:40). She was a working woman, but she also prepared endlessly for guests, cleaning and readying the domicile so that the main concentration could be on studying the Word and fellowshipping with one another. Dorcas/Tabitha sewed endlessly for charity. (Acts 9:36). She made garments and sat among other women, edifying and speaking and loving. It’s harder to unfailingly love through the years than it is to swing a sword once or twice.

Jael swung a hammer and drove one tent peg for a few minutes. (Judges 4:17-22). Yet Leah was used by Laban her father and unpreferred by her husband, but submitted to them both, uncomplainingly raised 6 boys, and was faithful to God all her days. Which takes more strength, a few moments of physical exertion, of a lifetime of putting God first? Who is the woman of valor?

Hannah was barren, a devastating indictment in the culture’s eyes. She was tormented by her husband’s other wife. She asked for a son and vowed to give him back to God- and then did. Which takes more strength, the woman of Abel-Bethmaach who negotiated a peace treaty, (2 Samuel 20:16-21a), or Hannah? Could you give up your son and only see him once a year? Withstand insults and torment from a competing wife and turn only to the Lord for comfort and petitions? I know my answer. I’d complain and gossip and plot against the jealous other wife. Hannah showed strength of character not just in one Bible event like the wise woman of Bethmaach, but maintained Godly character for years. What woman is “stronger”?

Mary is to me one of the strongest women of the entire Bible. As a virginal teenager (probable age) betrothed but not yet connubially married, she was told that she would conceive and bear a child by the Spirit. Adultery was a crime for which people were stoned. Mary faced it and said to angel Gabriel, ‘let it be done to me as God wills.’ She gave birth in the cold and among animals. She lived with the whispers of adultery and attendant humiliation and doubts about her character all her life. She was told at His birth she would see Him die horrifically. And she did see her Son die horrifically. She was obedient, she bore it- and praised God through it. Isn’t that strength? Could you do as Mary did?

Our culture sees external fighting as strength. Feminists create women who appear in movies and shows, proficient in martial arts, wars, battles involving swords, knives, or guns as ‘strong’ women.  It’s the trope that’s constantly pushed in front of us. Rapunzel, Merida, Elsa, Wonder Woman, Rey, are all presented to us in entertainment as the external female strong ideal because they wield weapons. They’re called strong because of their derring-do. They’re lauded because they make men look foolish. But the REAL battle is not with swords, but is the internal fight against sin. Truly strong women wield the sword of the Word. (Ephesians 6:17). Truly strong women help their husbands, support and care for them, (Genesis 2:18; 20b) not make them look weak or foolish.

There are so many named and unnamed Godly women in the Bible who fought their own sin-nature and demonstrated quiet strength for years. Real strength is obedience to God, submission to our roles, and resisting sin always. Be strong, women, be strong.

Further Reading

Essay: Bad Examples of Women Pastors (But Great Examples of Godly Women)

Sermon: The Proverbs 31 Woman

 

Posted in discernment, Uncategorized

Doing my best to puncture the balloon that Ladies Ministries try to inflate

Posted on by elizabethprata

I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes. ~Job

To possess dignity is to be worthy of respect. Worthy of high esteem. Absorb this: you are worthy of respect. ~Beth Moore

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” ~Isaiah

Be kind to yourself. Be compassionate to yourself. Be loving to yourself. Be patient with yourself. Have the courage to be yourself. ~Christine Caine

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ~ Simon Peter

Who you are is more important than what you are called to do. ~Priscilla Shirer

Man was created to glorify God. (Isaiah 43:7). Our inherited sin nature makes it impossible to do that without His redemptive work in our heart. It’s important to see ourselves as we are (were). Ladies, yes, it’s good to have “self-esteem” to the extent that we know who we are. We’re sinners, saved by grace alone. Women’s Ministries these days over-emphasize that we are women of valor, courage, of worth, esteem, and bravery. We’re princesses, running around sunlit meadows in wedding dresses dripping pearls.

Or we are as Isaiah, Job, and Peter saw themselves when they saw God: as worms in the dust, sinning with the pigs and needing to rely totally on the Father for any scrap of righteousness we might possess.

Praise the Lord He came, died for sin, was buried and resurrected. He glorified the Father and His reward will be…us. The Father will give Him a Bride, redeemed and washed. It is all about the Trinity and His work. It is not about us, our worth, our esteem, dignity, or “who we are.”

O Lord, depart from me, I am a sinful woman. Yet He lifted me from the muck and mire and gave me His righteousness, robes, Spirit, and future. From that moment, when I search inside myself to see my worth, esteem, or dignity, what I see is His.