Oy. After listening to that whole series (Wide is the Gate) on the heresies and apostasies in the churches these days I begin to wonder just how much of the true Christian Church still exists. The Great Apostasy appears to be just about ready for its role as the global end times religion headed by the Antichrist. It's rejected or mangled or rewritten so much of the Word of God and incorporated so many alien ideas from other religions and the culture, it's reinvented Christianity so that it is hardly recognizable.
Besides that series I've also listened to the three-hour documentary on the Emergent Church, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF-CHA4Z2FQ which is perhps the main apostasy at the moment. Maybe it could all together be defined simply as the rejection of Biblical fundamentalism. They get rid of Hell, they violate commands such as the command against women preaching in the church, and support what the Bible calls sin, such as homosexual behavior, as normal acceptable behavior.
In the Charismatic-Pentecostal branches, or the New Apostolic Reformation, supernatural experiences are promoted that are attributed to God but in reality are demonic. Many of these come out of the New Age and Hinduism. The dominant philosophy is now Postmodernism which denies absolute truth.
Here's a collection of just a few of the influences that channel into this final world religion, off the top of my head, leaving out dozens, more likely hundreds, of important names. Perhaps someone has made a chart to show all the relationships involved. It could be done anyway.
Darwinism, Nietzsche Death of God Existentialism. //Marxism, Social Justice, Postmodernism, denial of absolute truth, deconstruction of history/texts, feminism, homosexual marriage, //Freudianism, Jungian psychology spirit guides twelve- step programs est Silva Mind Control //Eckart Tolle Oprah Winfrey Course in Miracles //Higher Criticism // Emerging Church Brian McLaren Rob Bell Doug Pagitt Richard Foster Contemplative Prayer (Centering Prayer) Desert Fathers Universalism // Globalism Dominionism anti-fundamentalism /// Theosophy, Alice Bailey, Madame Blavatsky -- New Age, Age of Aquarius etc., // Eastern religions, especially Hinduism, meditations, levitations, mantras etc // Roman Catholic mysticisms and superstitions, labyrinth walking, // William Branham and H. G. Lake prophecy New Apostolic Reformation Mike Bickle Manifest Sons of God Dominionism Rick Joyner /// Azusa Street Pentecostalism, Charismatic movement Word of Faith Benny Hinn Kenneth Copeland TBN Crouch little gods
They all have in common a rejection of the authority and/or sufficiency of the Bible. Most of it can be traced to literal demonic inspiration, "doctrines of demons" as scripture tell us. The Bible, however, is where and only where the true Christianity is to be found, the true gospel of salvation and the nature of the true God.
Yes I have some disagreements with some of what the films present. I wrote at some length about my objection to the characterization of Calvinism in Wide is the Gate They also slam the spiritual understanding of The Song of Songs as about the love between God and His Church, imputing a carnality to it that comes from themselves and not from the Song itself. The ancient Jews actually called it The Holy of Holies, and no way are they going to call a carnal writing by that name. Predestination is beyond our normal human abilities, and so is the spiritual meaning of the Song of Songs. I don't claim to understand them either, just that I know they aren't what the film says they are. Really it's better to ignore them in the churches than open them up to oremature debate. As I recall, Luther pretty much said Presdestination shouldn't be preached because it's too hard for us to wrap our heads around, but that at the right time in our Christian lives it is crucial for our reassurance. It's thoroughly biblical, but some things about the nature of God simply are too high for us.
The film also rejects Madame Guyon but I'm not going to take issue with that since for all I know she did fall into heresy with all her exploration of different methods of prayer, although I think she wrote some inspiring and perfectly orthodox poetry about the love of God.
Unfortunately we do need to know about these things to avoid being deceived ourselves. t The only really safe place to be is solidly grounded in the Bible.
