CE National: Concerning the
Emerging/ent Church
By Steve Mitchell PowerToStand Ministries Sept./2007
PT. I: “I.D.”ing the EC in the
FGBC
CE National (http://www.cenational.org/cenational/cehome.asp)
is a long-time ministry affiliated with the Fellowship of Grace Brethren
Churches whose goal is to “Reach, Teach and Release” young people into ministry
and a deeper walk of faith in Jesus Christ. They have done a good job of it in
many ways, but I am increasingly concerned lately about who seems to be
influencing some of them in these endeavors, notably the writers and teachers
of the Emerging Church (hereafter called the EC) or what some call the Emergent
movement. What exactly can we expect our young people to be reached with,
taught with and released into if these endorsements and partnerships continue?
Lets look a little closer at why I am concerned.
I’ve watched a shift in thinking
as more and more leaders from many denominations and fellowships bought into
the surge to adapt postmodern ministry methods and some of the emergent
philosophies in an attempt to reach out to this changing culture. Id like to
say first off that that in itself is a problem because culture will always
change and we begin to lose valuable moorings and solid doctrinal grounds when
we look to culture as our guide for how to engage Christian young people. In
the maddening rush to be so culturally relevant, many actually begin to take on
the methods, teachings, and mannerisms of the spirit of the age, whether
postmodern or any other era.
Still more perilous is the
tendency to look at specific teachers in today’s church that are either in the
emerging church or teach unbiblical doctrines and introduce bad practice into
their congregations. Persons in this sphere of concern are Rob Bell, Erwin
McManus, Donald Miller, Brian McLaren, Tony Campolo, Doug Pagitt, Tony Jones,
Dan Kimball, Leonard Sweet, Rick Warren, Ken Blanchard, and a host of others.
This isn’t to say that everything they teach is heretical or off base but their
works and seminars contain an unhealthy dose of truth mixed with error and thus
should be avoided.
At the absolute minimum it
is troubling to see many in the FGBC not make any real stand against some of
the more dangerous elements of emerging and postmodern thought. In fact, I’ve
had pastors and leaders tell me that we ought to say nothing until we can
actually arrive at what the Emerging church really is. It is claimed that it is
far too nebulous or morphing to pin down yet and we should wait and see what
fruit comes from these “conversations” and mystical practices being introduced
into our churches. I guess if that line is accepted, that we really cant even
identify this movement, then that explains why few are speaking out against it
and this flexing, morphing body of doctrines and disciplines are entering in
unquestioned in many cases.
Well I disagree. I believe
that when we look at the specific teachings, practices and endorsements of many
in the EC, it is all too crystal clear that there are dangers to be identified
and stood against for the sake of the truth. The Bible warns of last days
deceptions and false teachers who will bring in subtle heresies and falsehoods
that will go unchecked because of a lack of discernment among those who should
be watchmen. This sermon is an attempt to deal with this encroaching and
current reality.
Briefly, here are a few
prominent dangers that may not be uniformly held by all in the Emerging Church
and related congregations but it is my firm opinion that we ought to oppose
many of these things wherever they are found. Whether or not you want to be
called “emerging” or not, it is still dangerous to entertain the following
concepts and practices:
1. Mysticism or various forms of eastern
mindsets involving meditation, yoga, unbiblical contemplative prayer
techniques. When the Bible speaks of meditation on scripture or contemplation
of God’s Word it is vastly different from the latter day version being promoted
by many in the EC and even mainstream churches.
Contemplative
Spirituality, as Lighthouse Trails
Research defines it is “a belief system that uses ancient mystical practices
to induce altered states of consciousness (the silence) and is rooted in
mysticism and the occult but often wrapped in Christian terminology; the
premise of contemplative spirituality is pantheistic (God is all) and
panentheistic (God is in all). “ This category includes the mysticism of
Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen and is also promoted by Dallas Willard, Richard
Foster, and Brennan Manning.
“The modern day
contemplative prayer movement stems from the monastic period of Christianity
(early middle ages), which was a time of experimentation and mystical
practices. One of the practices, Lectio Divina, meaning sacred reading,
involved taking a page of Scripture and reading it over and over again.” (From
an article on how the message Bible is teaching Contemplative Prayer to little
kids)” (From http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/).
2. Spiritual Formation and some spiritual
disciplines as being introduced and promoted by many in the church today.
“Spiritual Formation: A movement that has provided a platform and a channel
through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual
formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative
spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the
spiritual formation movement.” (taken from: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/spiritualformation.htm)
Being Christlike is taught
in the Bible but with this new set of teachings, the trouble resides in the
process that many are advocating. I realize that term “spiritual
formation” has historically changed
in scope and definition. What I’m referring to in these articles is the version
of it that includes contemplative spirituality techniques that are UNBIBLICAL
and comprised of the wrong kind of mystical experience. This includes several
disciplines promoted by many in the EC today like “the silence” which is that emptied
state that a person reaches after engaging in some sort of meditative practice
such as mantra meditation or breath prayers. According to Richard Foster and
others, anyone can hear from God after arriving in this state whether you are a
Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. And these principles, as applied
across the board allegedly prepare you to be in touch on a deeper level with
Christ. The question the discerning believer needs to ask is “which Christ?”
The Bible never teaches that we are to do this.
As one can clearly see
today, many are writing about spiritual formation and other forms of mysticism
being introduced in our midst. My concerns center mainly on those areas that
practice the aforementioned mystical teachings and concepts. Doug Pagitt writes
about this. An emphasis on Catholic practices like Lectio Divina (A catholic
practice involving repetitious recitation of Bible verses), Eucharistic
doctrines that focus heavily on Christ’s mystical resacrifice in the Catholic
mass, monasticism and certain ascetic practices as taken from the Desert
Fathers and medieval circles.
3. Some practices in the EC and elsewhere are blatant
interfaith compromises and new age thoughts such as the mystical
interconnectedness of all things taken to an unbiblical extreme.
4. Relegating the testimony and doctrines of our Holy
Scriptures to a mere “conversation” and teaching that these sacred doctrines of
our faith once delivered and clearly revealed in scripture are “flexible” or
“stretch” with the changing trends and cultural mindsets. Implying that the
virgin birth or trinity teachings are negotiable or non-essentials. Some are
even teaching that orthodoxy cannot be arrived at in any sort of sufficient
way. Perhaps this is why Brian McLaren suggests a five-year stop on the
church’s teaching about homosexuality so we can discover what we really believe
about it. Some of the teachings are downright heretical like the assertion that
we are co-creators with God!
5. “Shock-jock” rhetoric or startling speech designed
more to get a rise out of folks in the church than to be clear and cogent on
one’s beliefs. For example: when Erwin McManus says that he may be
“anti-Christian”, or that “Christ came to destroy Christianity as a world
religion” or even that we are rediscovering Christianity as a Eastern
religion.. Tony Jones denying the doctrine of original sin without explanation
or Brian McLaren stating matter of factly that he writes in a mischievous,
deliberately unclear manner so as to get people talking and mystified.
Roger Oakland also gives a
good summation of some of the most dangerous elements of emergent thought in
his fabulous book, Faith Undone:
In the Bible in the book
of Revelation, it says that Satan will deceive the whole world (Revelation
12:9). The emerging church movement has three essential elements that
consistent throughout the movement that may help this great deception to occur:
1. The embracing of
mysticism
2. The belief that the
kingdom of God will be established on earth BEFORE Christ returns.
3. The rejection of
eschatology (the study of the end-times and Bible prophecy relating to it).
The combination of these
three things could help to bring about the great falling away of which the
Bible speaks. We pray that every Bible-believing Christian will be able to
comprehend these things and warn their families and loved ones.
"Let no man deceive
you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away
first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition." (II Thessalonians
2:3)
"Now the Spirit
speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith,
giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils." (I Timothy
4:1)” (From Faith Undone as
featured on the Lighthouse Trails blog:
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/
).
The very times we live in demand that we be
discerning and able to tell what is truth and what is error:
"This know also, that in the last
days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves,
covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful,
unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent,
fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers
of pleasures more than lovers of God;" 2 Timothy 3:1-4
These are just a few points
of major concern when looking at the EC.
There are various other
concerns surrounding these issues but suffice it to say I am personally
burdened for the evidence that suggests that many in the various areas of FGBC
ministry and leadership have what appears to be a real admiration for some of
these things and we are beginning to see more and more mention of them in our
events and seminars.
I am troubled at the growing
connection with some of these teachings and ministries as seen among the FGBC
of late. CE National’s growing connection with some of these teachers and
beliefs is in view here.
I think we would all agree
that we must teach our young people and of course be ready to minister to the
lost who come into our midst but I am just saying that we don’t and shouldn’t
look to the emerging church for their new so-called innovations and pervasive
mysticism. The teachers we select, books we recommend, and ministries we point
others to should not carry with them the possibility of spiritual damage as a
result of someone following our recommendations to read or get into some of
these teachings and resources. Let’s
begin now with CE National.