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Wednesday, March 21, 2012
How the Apostates Take Over, Part 1
The evangelical church is under constant threat to compromise its reliance on biblical truth. The human desire to be accepted, to not be seen as "outside the mainstream," can be overwhelming. But that desire is our weakness, our downfall. It does not always immediately destroy the dam we build to protect the waters of truth, but instead it leads to tiny fissures that grow until destruction is inevitable.Twenty years ago, I experienced the painful demise of the Episcopal Church, who once was a bastion of biblical truth. It was not a pretty picture. It was a picture painted in the primary colors of relentlessness and deception.
The combination of those elements inevitably led some sincere folks to weariness, and willingness to compromise, and yes, ultimately to surrender. For those who sought peace at any price, conformity over conviction, and popularity over principle, capitulation seemed the easier way out.
The initial compromise, which caused the first cracks in the dike, seemed innocent enough at the time: the ordination of women.
But to truly understand how that initial compromise caused a wave of liberalism to overcome biblical boundaries within the Episcopal Church (and soon by the rest of the mainline denominations), we have to understand the different groups involved. Keep reading
The compromise did not begin with women's ordination. It goes back to the 19th century Tractarian movement, which is nothing more than Roman Catholic-lite. I would argue that it goes all the way back through Wesley's Arminianism to the high church Carolingians and the Arminianism of Archbishop Laud.
The only solid ground is Reformed theology, namely Calvinism. Calvinism is the Gospel, not because of the moniker but because it is systematically consistent with the whole teaching of Scripture.
The compromise did not begin with women's ordination. It goes back to the 19th century Tractarian movement, which is nothing more than Roman Catholic-lite. I would argue that it goes all the way back through Wesley's Arminianism to the high church Carolingians and the Arminianism of Archbishop Laud.
ReplyDeleteThe only solid ground is Reformed theology, namely Calvinism. Calvinism is the Gospel, not because of the moniker but because it is systematically consistent with the whole teaching of Scripture.
Charlie