Will Christian Leaders Cause More Confusion Than Good?

 
Dear Concerned
Christian,

If your head is spinning,
trying to keep up with the latest happenings of the leaders of
the evangelical Christian church, it’s no wonder. For many, it’s
becoming increasingly difficult to see clearly through the muddy
waters of organized Christianity. More and more leaders, who
have been considered orthodox and traditional, are ending up on
speaking platforms with those from the
emerging/contemplative/New Spirituality arena.

These minglings are not
occasional or isolated events any longer. They are happening
with increased frequency. For the most part, Christian leaders
are not speaking up about the confusion it is causing.

Some people watching this
unfold are angry that ministries like Lighthouse Trails would
dare question their  spiritual” heroes.” For others, they laugh
and say, “See, I told you there was nothing wrong with this new
paradigm spirituality.” And still others say, “I thought at one
time it was wrong, but one of my favorite Christian figures
shows no concern (and in fact stands alongside them), so now I
believe this new spirituality is not wrong at all.” And in the
midst of all this, confusion mounts, and the Gospel message is
looking more obscure all the time.

Examples, you ask? Too many
to list them all. But here are a few:

1. Joel Rosenberg and Frank
Peretti have joined with New Spirituality teachers Leonard
Sweet, William Paul Young, and a host of other
contemplative/emerging figures to speak at the upcoming Break
Forth conference in Canada in January. This is in spite of the
fact that Peretti himself has written fiction stories that
actually expose the darkness of the New Age.

2.

Greg Laurie invited Rick Warren to give the opening prayer
at Laurie’s 2009 Harvest Crusade and asked Chuck Smith to
publicly welcome Warren at the event.

3. Apologetic figures Norman
Geisler and Greg Koukl  joined other “apologists” at Saddleback
Church for

an apologetics conference. Future Saddleback apologetic
conferences are already being planned.

4. Emerging church leader Rob
Bell and Chuck Swindoll shared a platform at the

2009 Catalyst event.

5. Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa

invited emerging church author/pastor Mike Erre to speak to
thousands of youth at their 2009 Movement event. In opening
remarks at the event, concerned ministries were called “haters”
for publicly stating their concerns.

6.  In the 2007 Break Forth
conference, Kay Arthur shared a platform with emerging/mystic
Tony Campolo.

7. Andy Stanley (son of
Charles Stanley), who says he is not part of the emerging/New
Spirituality, shared a platform at Youth Specialties 2009
National Youth Workers Convention with contemplative/emerging
figures Donald Miller (Blue Like Jazz), David Crowder, Duffy
Robbins, Tony Campolo, Jim Burns, and a number of others in that
camp. In fact, Youth Specialties is one of the main avenues
through which the contemplative/New Spirituality is entering the
church today and has been for many years.

8. The

2009 National Worship Conference brought together Calvary
Chapel leader Greg Laurie and Jesus movement singer, Chuck
Girard, with New Spirituality leaders Leonard Sweet, Brennan
Manning, David Crowder, and Sally Morgenthaler.

This is just a sampling of
conferences that have combined the “traditional” with the
heretical. These conferences throughout North America are
happening at a furious pace, and we believe are being used by
Satan to converge and blend truth with error, so that soon
there will be no distinction. Christians are flocking to these
events, showing their full support. But this is one fast moving
train that Christian believers should hop off before it’s too
late.

On November 9th, Lighthouse
Trails posted a report titled,

WHY are Joel Rosenberg and Frank Peretti Appearing With New
Age/New Spirituality Sympathizers? Then, on November 13th,
Joel Rosenberg

issued a public statement regarding this matter. He stated:

A few of you have expressed
concern that I’ve agreed to speak at the “Break Forth 2010”
conference in Edmonton, Canada Jan 29-31 because there are some
other speakers slated to attend whose theology is questionable.
Chief concern: William Young, author of “The Shack,” a novel I
and others have found heretical. The reason I am attending is
because it is the largest Christian conference in Canada (some
15,000 evangelicals are expected) and I’m not ready to concede
such ground to those who are peddling false teaching. I’ve been
asked to come there at [sic] [to] teach the Word of God and
preach the gospel, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I
can’t explain why Young, for example, was invited. But why cede
the entire stage to him. Moreover, at this critical juncture, I
plan on explaining why God loves Israel so much and why He wants
us to help mobilize a global movement to stand with Israel while
so much of the rest of the world is turning against her. Thanks
for your concerns. I would appreciate your prayers. May God
bless you guys.

In his statement, Joel
Rosenberg has implied that Break Forth is a trustworthy
organization that is bringing in just one heretical teacher,
William Paul Young, but the conference is bringing in a number
of them, and in fact, the New emerging spirituality is the
dominant presence in the conference. Even though
Rosenberg’s rationale sounds credible on the surface and even
though his message is valid, unless  he specifically identifies
and challenges what these other speakers are saying, he in
essence gives credence by sharing a platform with them because
his respectability will be implanted in the minds of the
attendees. It is logical that because Rosenberg is respected and
trusted,  the others will be too because in people’s minds you
don’t have heretics and proclaimers of the Gospel on the same
bill in  a non-debate scenario.  In essence, it is the opposite
of guilt by association; it is validity by association.

In Rosenberg’s

earlier announcement on his blog about Break Forth, he
called this a “powerful Christian conference.” Saying
this indicates that he may not understand the gravity of what is
going on in the church. This is not just a doctrinal issue –
what’s at stake is  what Christianity will be in the future.
Will it be mystical, panentheistic, and New Age, or will it be
the Gospel once delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3)? If our
concerns sound outlandish, read

our report from last week where we show how Leonard Sweet
resonates spiritually with New Age icons such as David Spangler
and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.

As the New Spirituality
becomes more widespread and acceptable, we’ll be seeing in the
future many more of these dichotomies: the defenders of the
faith sharing platforms with those who seek to radically change
and alter the very Gospel these defenders are seeking to uphold.
This is not the example that the Old Testament prophets or the
New Testament disciples set. Most of them stood alone and often
died alone because they would not compromise under any
circumstances. Regarding those who teach or promote heresy, the
apostle Paul writes strong words: “A man that is an heretick
after the first and second admonition reject” (Titus 3:10).
According to the Rosenberg’s rationale, it is OK for him to
share a platform with false teachers because his message is so
important. But doesn’t his desire to get his message out
override the Scripture in Titus 3:10? (And other Scriptures as
well.) We must strongly disagree with this reasoning. The end
does not always justify the means, and in this case, the end is
highly questionable.

While Rosenberg says he is
attending Break Forth to “defend Israel,” does he not realize
that by giving credence to emergent/New Spirituality speakers,
he is  abetting the emerging philosophy that sees NO prophetic
importance in Israel. A flood of Christian leaders are turning
their backs on Israel, directly or indirectly, merely by
promoting the emerging/contemplative/New
Spirituality. Mr. Rosenberg, defend Israel, yes, by all means,
but first defend the Gospel.

A note of irony. In
Rosenberg’s  rebuttal statement, he gives a link to Norman
Geisler’s article refuting The Shack. Yet, Geisler recently
teamed up with emerging-church-promoter Rick Warren (at Warren’s
apologetic conference), all the while Rick Warren is selling

The Shack on his Purpose Driven Connection website.  Perhaps
part of the problem here is that  Christian leaders are not
taking spiritual deception seriously. And yet Scripture warns
that the days before Christ’s return will be very spiritually
dark and that many will fall away: “Let no man deceive you by
any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a
falling away first. (II Thessalonians 2: 2).

This fusion of orthodox and
heretical is not a new tactic. One of the best examples of this
blending is Robert Schuller, identified by Bruce Wilkinson as
“the real leader” (see

A “Wonderful” Deception, p. 69) who has been inviting
orthodox traditional Christians to  Crystal Cathedral for a long
time. Often these invited guests, such as

Corrie ten Boom, come because they want to share their
messages. But often they are being used to bring credibility to
these vehicles of heresy–just as we believe Rosenberg and
Peretti are being used. Even Break Forth’s promotion photo shows
William Paul Young sandwiched between Peretti and Rosenberg.

We want
to make one thing very clear. Lighthouse Trails believes Israel
has a biblical prophetic role, and we agree with Rosenberg that
anti-Semitic as well as anti-Israel sentiment is growing at an
alarming rate. We too are vitally concerned, which is one of the
reasons we publish and distribute

several books and DVDs by Holocaust survivors and former
resistance workers.

But Rosenberg and other
dedicated Christian leaders must understand that it is also
vitally important for defenders of the faith to warn against the
devastation of spiritual deception that is quickly overtaking
much of the evangelical Church. The Bible warns that a day will
come when a one-world religious body will join together with a
one-world governmental body, and together they will serve a
world master who will seek to destroy Israel (and the
Church) and cause all mankind to worship him. What good will the
church be to Israel (or anyone else for that matter), if the
Gospel is no longer preached? “[F]aith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).

 If
Rosenberg and other Christian leaders can steer their own
followers away from this subtle yet deadly deception, they will
do more to help thwart anti-Israel sentiments than they can
know, just by the very reason that they will be pointing
believers back to the Bible and away from the New Spirituality.

Does Rosenberg realize that the very emerging spirituality that
is represented at Break Forth will help to usher in a “kingdom”
that will allow no room for Israel? Roger Oakland explains:

As the world becomes more and
more resentful toward Israel, the view that the church takes the
place of Israel, leaving Israel no prophetic significance
(replacement theology), will become increasingly accepted within
Christianity at large. Those who believe the Book of Revelation
predicts an apocalyptic future will be considered a danger to
society and the well-being of this new kingdom of God. (Faith
Undone, p. 227)

New Agers believe these
dangers of society (Bible-believing Christians) will need to be
gone before the world can truly be “healed.” (Please read the
free online book

Reinventing Jesus Christ by Warren B. Smith for
documentation on this “selection
process.”)  This is where the emerging, apostate church is
heading. And whether they realize it or not, many are helping
her to get there through their promotion of this New
Spirituality. 

Are we being extreme in
saying these things? We think not. Watch, and see as the events
and deception that the Bible warns about unfolds before your
very eyes. And pray that there will be some courageous Christian
leaders who will take a stand no matter the cost. It is possible
that Rosenberg and Peretti could do more harm to Israel and the
church than help by attending such conferences. We pray there
will be those in these days,  when the birth pangs in the Earth
continue to intensify, who will “earnestly contend for the
faith” (Jude 1:3). And may we as believers truly trust in Him
and not lean to our OWN understanding but in all our ways
acknowledge Him; then He promises to direct our paths (Proverbs
3).

---

Source page:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newsletter070609.htm#LETTER.BLOCK29