New Apostolic Reformation Proponents Hook Up with Emergents in New Book

A new book launched last week by emergents Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola. As Herescope points out, it reveals the merging of emergents with the New Apostolic Reformation.

Today is the launching of a new book, co-authored by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola. This marks the open marriage of the Emergent movement with the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR).

Sweet and Viola’s book, Jesus Manifesto, is subtitled “Restoring the Supremacy and Sovereignty of Jesus Christ,” and it pushes the envelope on redefining Jesus, including “You can be a Jesus Manifest.”[2] A quick glance at the lineup of key endorsers for this book includes a list of who’s who in Emergent, the Latter Rain cult, neoevangelicalism and the New Apostolic Reformation.

In recent posts on this blog we have noticed that emerging church leader Leonard Sweet has links to the NAR.[3] The co-author of his book, Frank Viola, also has roots in the NAR. He has been connected with the House2House group, a movement that is ostensibly about “house” churches, but in reality is concerned with building the networking apostolic cellular model of church for the purpose of building the kingdom of God on earth. This is the same Dominionist goal that is characteristic of the NAR: “This amazing network of churches is rapidly transitioning as a network to embrace the simple church models that the Lord is blessing all around the world,” leading to the “transforming work of God in bringing people to Christ. . . leading to dramatic advances of the Kingdom of God.”[4] John Arnott of the Toronto “Laughing Revival” has been a notable contributor to the House2House magazine.[5] Read Herescope’s important article here.

Leaders in the Lotus

This needs no commentary. Take a look, literally, at how the emergent church TransFORM Conference opened today. Apprising Ministries has more on the orgy of apostasy at this latest conference.

Mars Hill’s S-x Pastor Strikes Again

Well, Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill in Seattle, has taken his sex ministry to the Washington Post. Be warned ahead of time.

Or you can skip Driscoll’s latest sex-a-palooza and go straight to Dr. John MacArthur’s rebuke of Driscoll’s treatment of this subject matter in his series entitled, The Rape of Solomon’s Song. Dr. MacArthur, with characteristic biblical clarity, puts paid to the idea that pastoral verbal strip tease is necessary in handling this subject matter.

For anyone confused over the vulgar handling of this sacred subject matter by sex pastors like Driscoll, be refreshed by this response.

The Rape of Solomon’s Song by Dr. John MacArthur.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4 Conclusion

From Behind the Keyboard

Commentary by Ingrid Schlueter

A reader to the Crosstalk blog sent a scathing message with the following remark:

“What right do Christians like you have to sit behind keyboards and call out pastors?”

Well, he raises a good question. He felt that Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church should not be held accountable for what goes on under the name of his own “Acts 29″ Network. It has been a source of some embarrassment that Harambee Church, a church plant of Mark’s church, cooperated with CAIR, the Muslim propaganda and PR group with terrorist ties to groups like Hamas, at an Interfaith gathering. We’re still waiting to hear form Mark about the Interfaith service/CAIR connection, but in that he would have to publicly expose his Acts 29 International Director, Mike Gunn in doing so, we are unlikely to hear anything publicly. Despite Mars Hill claims to the contrary, as the founder and “lead visionary” of the Acts 29 Network, the buck stops with Mark Driscoll, period.

But what about that blog thing? It is currently in vogue to sneer at “watchblogs” that report on things like churches working with groups like CAIR, circus churches that blaspheme the Lord’s name while hanging on to their evangelical Christian credentials, false teachers and authors who are promoting doctrines of demons in the name of the gospel, and so forth and so on.

Pastors like Mark Driscoll are not just pastors of their own churches anymore. They are international celebrities with big money book contracts, speaking gigs at an endless stream of conferences and national media appearances. As such, what they write, what they preach, what they oversee becomes part of the larger church. If these men want to influence my son or daughter with their teachings online, if they want to show up on television shows and sell books on Amazon, their teachings and conduct will come under biblical scrutiny. You can’t claim that you are accountable only to your own church board when your ministry sells books all over the world, your sermon clips are put on YouTube and you solicit conference attendees from every background and denomination in the country. If you want participation and revenue from outside of your church, celebrity pastors, expect the scrutiny that goes with that.

As these celebrity pastors get more and more off the rails biblically, it is God’s own statement on their ministries that men and women from all walks of life have to take time out from their primary callings to warn about these leaders and expose what they’re doing. The churches aren’t holding their pastors accountable, so others have to. God is also using the unsaved to do that. When the church will not judge its own, the world often does it.

As a case in point, I give you this news clip from News 8, a Texas television station that is exposing the extravagant lifestyle of Pastor Ed Young. He’s the pastor of Fellowship Church, best known for putting a bed on his “stage”, doing a sex challenge, and appropriately showing up on Comedy Central. Note the irony of the reporter referring to the “church jet.” Only in America.

This is how evangelical Christians make headlines. Not for changed lives and holy living, but for outrageous conduct in Christ’s name. Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill first became well-known as the “cussing pastor.” That’s quite a claim to fame, but it got him plenty of attention. That’s how bad things have gotten.

We’ll continue to report and warn, because sunlight is still the best disinfectant. Most of what goes on in the name of evangelical Christianity today is a fleshly fraud. Christ referred to his “little flock.” Narrow is the way and few find it, Scripture tells us. May the Lord help all of us reject the horror show of the American “church” and follow on that narrow way.

Lesbian ‘Christian’ Singer Jennifer Knapp Out on Larry King Live

Apprising Ministries has posted an article about the appearance of newly announced lesbian ‘Christian’ singer, Jennifer Knapp, on Larry King Live.

By now you may know that recently Christian Singer Jennifer Knapp came out as a lesbian, which Apprising Ministries covered in Jennifer Knapp And Homosexuality. The other night she appeared on Larry King Live as you’ll see below via SuchIsLifeVideos. In previous posts like Correcting Brian McLaren “On Faith” And Homosexuality I’ve warned that there’s a same-sex storm gathering hurricane force, which is right now, looming only slightly off the horizon of the mainstream evangelical community.

As I’ve pointed out before, there’s a very specific reason why the Lord moved me to begin covering the issue of a growing acceptance within evangelicalism that the deviant and sinful lifestyle of having sexual relations with another of the same sex, i.e homosexuality, is a viable one for the regenerated Christian. Now for those who may be familiar with fire bases in Vietnam, which were temporary artillery encampments there to provide fire support and quarters for ground operations near the front lines, in the dark of night there were many times enemy forces would try and move in for a sneak attack.

Jay Bakker, the apostate son of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, is on record as celebrating Jennifer Knapp’s lesbianism in his “sermon” here. The new crop of feelings-oriented, biblically-illiterate young evangelicals is joining the gay cabal with gusto. Holy Scripture is no longer the authority on sexuality or anything else for that matter. In this age of spiritual rebellion among professing evangelical Christians, Build-a-Faith franchises like Bakker’s church in New York are booming.

*Updated* Acts 29 Church Works with CAIR, a Hamas Front Group

**Update to the Update** Harambee Church in Renton, Washington was not the only Acts 29 Network church involved in the Interfaith event with CAIR, the Hamas front group. Also at the event was Oikos Fellowship in Bellingham, Washington. As you can see from their website, they are an Acts 29 Church plant as well. (See link that states so on the side.) Harambee member Seth McBee wrote about the Muslim/Christian Interfaith event on his blog where he also cited the involvement of Oikos Fellowship. Paging Mark Driscoll. Your Acts 29 Network churches made a public stand in cooperating with CAIR. What is your response?**

*Updated* I have had a conversation with Nick Bogardus who is in charge of media and communications at Mars Hill Church in Seattle. He felt that the header on this post that linked Mark Driscoll to Harambee Church’s cooperation with CAIR, the Hamas front group, was inaccurate. I have agreed to change the header. The new header will further clarify that Harambee Church publicly identifies as being part of the Acts 29 Network. The Acts 29 Network lists its founder and “lead visionary” as none other than Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church. While Nick Bogardus disclaimed any involvement of Harambee Church with Mars Hill and Mark Driscoll (he said in an email that “Mark Driscoll did not plant that church”), the claim is puzzling in that the following was posted on their own Mars Hill Church blog:

“Mike Gunn was a pastor at Mars Hill Church who was sent out to plant Harambee Church in Renton, Washington, through Acts 29. In addition to serving as lead pastor at Harambee, he is actively leading Acts 29’s international movement.”

The pastor of Harambee Church is Mike Gunn, former pastor at Driscoll’s Mars Hill and the International Director for the Acts 29 network!

Because Mark Driscoll was reportedly not aware of what this Acts 29 church was doing with the notorious CAIR, we will remove his name from the header. Given the gravity of the conduct at Harambee Church, as founder and “lead visionary” of the Acts 29 Network, however, Mark Driscoll needs to make a clear statement regarding his position on Interfaith cooperation with CAIR. This event, declared a “tremendous success” by CAIR Muslim leaders in Washington, was outrageous. Given the fact that even the FBI will no longer work with CAIR as a legitimate Muslim group due to terror ties, how shocking that an evangelical Christian church would help CAIR in their promotion of Islam. We will update readers as to any further response from Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill.**

Click here to listen to the prayer at Harambee Church in Renton, Washington back in March. The sound of the Islamic call to prayer echoed through this Acts 29 Network church at an Interfaith event where participants dialogued about “Jesus.” Harambee Church was so proud of that Muslim call to prayer in their facilities that they posted it on their website. Both Islamic and Christian sides declared the event a “tremendous success.”

The event was coordinated with CAIR, a Hamas front group that has so many links to terrorist individuals, groups and countries that even the FBI will no longer work with them. See here.

So today we have so-called Christian churches working with terrorist-backed groups, allowing pagans to pray in their facilities and sitting around sharing about who THEY think Jesus is.

Something is seriously wrong here.

The Emergent Church is Dead

I, and many others, predicted the death of the emergent church some time ago. Well, now even emergents themselves admit that rethinking everything didn’t work for them. The death knell has officially sounded for the emergent church–a movement with roots that were far too shallow to last.

USA Today Carries Eckhart Tolle Puff Piece

New Age author and teacher, Eckhart Tolle, was featured this week in USA Today. He believes he’s a spiritual leader whose time has come. Disturbingly, the same concepts Tolle talks about, going into the silence to find peace and shutting down your mind, are being taught by emergent and evangelical authors and leaders. The new mysticism is making its way into evangelical churches in a big way. For more on that click here for a listing of just some of the evangelical leaders now promoting contemplative spirituality.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Are you weighted down by your past? Anxious about tomorrow? Stewing over how to face today?
Stop. Drop those thoughts. Breathe. Be still. Just be.

Spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle will tell you this is the ultimate path to inner peace, available to you any time. All you have to do is let go of all your thoughts.

Of course, that’s a lot trickier than it sounds. Hence, Tolle’s soaring popularity as a guide to living in the present un-tense.

His most recent book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose, a sequel to his earlier best seller, The Power of Now, has sold 6 million copies. When Oprah Winfrey read it, she was so inspired that she invited him to co-host a 10-week set of Internet seminars on how to simply be. So far, 35 million people worldwide have viewed these “webinars.”

In July, he launched Tolle TV, an Internet channel featuring his videotaped teachings and meditations. And his 2010 speaking tour, from Australia to five countries in Northern Europe to the USA, winds up in Madison Square Garden this fall.

Religious critics have called him the Antichrist for claiming you can save yourself, no God or Jesus required. Secular critics call his ideas and looping ways with language New Age twaddle.

This is someone who in conversation uses the term “is-ness” (the state of “being in the now”) who, when he says “human being,” means “being” as a verb. “I am, you are” — and nothing more need be said.

Sort of. Actually, it takes many words to map out an earthly path to Tolle’s “new heaven.” Read the USA Today article.

Assemblies of God Head Retracts Name from Covenant of Civility

An encouraging word today from the Superintendent of the Assemblies of God denomination. Dr. George O. Wood, General Superintendent, has asked that his name be removed from the Leftist “Covenant for Civility” that was signed by numerous evangelical leaders and emergent church false teachers. Superintendent Wood was unaware at the time that heretical teachers were also part of the scheme. Here’s what he said:

“I have put in a request to NAE (National Association of Evangelicals) for my name to be withdrawn as a signatory.They are working on it and will let me know if it can happen and how. Like you, I do not want my name or the Assemblies of God to be associated with persons who claim to be in the Body of Christ yet reject the moral teachings of Scripture.”

I would add that it isn’t just the moral teachings that some of the signers reject. Brian McLaren has crafted a New Kind of Christianity that denies cardinal Christian doctrine. These emergents cleverly turned the issue to “civility” when the real issue facing the church is betrayal of the Word of God.

Read more here.

Jim Wallis Targets Glenn Beck With Email Campaign- Crosstalk Responds

Socialist agitator and “spiritual counselor” to Barack Obama, Jim Wallis, is trying to ramp up “evangelical” opposition to Glenn Beck, the Fox News commentator who recently outed “social justice” as the trojan horse of leftist ideology in churches. It took a Mormon to point it out, which is no surprise given the state of evangelicals who are apparently on board for Wallis’ socialist “Great Awakening.”

Wallis wants people to fire back at Glenn Beck by email and tell him that they are “social justice Christians.” I have a better idea. For those who recognize Jim Wallis for what he is—Chief Agitator and Political Strategist in the Church of Evangelical Apostasy, let’s turn the tables and tell Jim Wallis that we are “Biblical Authority Christians” who reject his rebellious spiritual and leftist political agenda for our nation and the church.

Crosstalk is hereby beginning a campaign to let Wallis know that we are here, we stand firmly on the Word of God, and that his spiritual deception is being exposed for what it is.

Wallis recommends the following letter to Beck which I have taken the liberty of altering:

Subject line: “I’m a social justice Christian” “I’m a Biblical Authority Christian”

Dear Mr. Beck Wallis:

I’m a Christian who believes in the biblical call to social justice authority of all of Holy Scripture as God’s inerrant and inspired Word to a lost and fallen mankind.

I stand in the tradition of the Hebrew prophets and the teachings of Jesus that demonstrate God’s will for justice in every aspect of our individual, social, and economic lives. Savior himself and St. Paul, just to name two, who warned of wolves that would enter the Church of Jesus Christ and teach another gospel. We point to you, Mr. Wallis, as Exhibit A in our times. Your support for the May 13, 2009 press conference on Capitol Hill, attended by transsexuals, transvestites, homosexual clergy and various others in gross rebellion against God, says all we need to know about your concept of “social justice.” You are not furthering the cause of Jesus Christ, you are furthering the cause radical homosexual and socialist causes in this country. As such, you are serving as an enemy of our freedoms and lost souls.

We want you to know that we are “Biblical Authority Christians”, and we will resist and expose you for what you are teaching as long as God gives us breath.

In Christ’s Name,

Your Name

You can send this note to sojourners@sojo.net. Spread the word.