YWAM has had a long
history of involvement with the Roman Catholic Church and this is dangerous
ecumenism that is increasing. The Global Leadership Team of which Lehmann is a
part has decreed the following:
“The GLT also made many new leadership and ministry
appointments. The GLT gave two ministries transnational status: YWAM Associates
(Peter & Donna Jordan); and Campus Ministries International (Jang Bin
Hong). Also, after a presentation by Bruce Clewett and Rob Clarke of Kerygma Ministries, the GLT issued a statement on their behalf:
"The GLT
welcomes Kerygma Teams to the YWAM table as a member of our global family of
ministries, and esteem the pioneering work of this ministry currently reaching
out to the Catholic world on five continents through evangelism, training and
mercy ministries.
"We recognize the risk of misunderstanding inherent
in bridging from the YWAM family into the Catholic world. We
therefore...underscore the need for Kerygma Teams, as with all YWAM ministries,
to embody all the YWAM values, and in particular to build relationally with
appropriate regional and local leadership." (GLT Calls for 50-Day
Fast http://ywam.org/articles/article.asp?AID=210
Date: 10/1/2004 | Source: International
YWAMer | Issue: IYOct04)
This is serious because Kerygma Teams are openly involved in ecumenism as evidenced by their own website:
“Since Kerygma Teams mission is specifically Catholic and ecumenical, it is important to know the Catholic Church's views on ecumenism, evangelization, missionary work, etc. The following are some of the Church documents on these subjects - they are a great source of encouragement and affirmation of what we are doing!” (http://www.kerygmateams.org ).
Why would Danny Lehmann continue to be on the team that is endorsing further activity in the Roman Catholic Church? He wrote an earlier book called GO! In which he talked about sending someone he had led to the Lord into a charismatic catholic church and this indicates a long standing sympathy for Rome, even in YWAM’s earlier days.
YWAM founder Loren Cunningham, on YWAM’s 25th anniversary celebration at Calvary Chapel Honolulu (now Calvary Chapel Komo Mai) several years ago proudly mentioned how the Pope had given them such a commendation for their work with Catholic youth. The Charismatic Catholic renewal movement has also been endorsed by YWAM.
Currently on YWAM’s main site, YWAM International Chairman Lynn Green shares with all his recommended books, the top two being Catholic in scope and content. He heartily recommends Milestones by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (who is now Pope Benedict the Sixteenth) and The Monk Cardinal by Anthony Howard. He also refers to them as excellent examples of leadership. (http://www.ywam.org/articles/article.asp?AID=339).
Is it any wonder that YWAM England kicked off its new 40-Day Prayer Initiative coinciding with the Catholic observance of Lent?
http://www.ywam.org/articles/article.asp?AID=340
It is clear that this is a pervasive and continuing problem for YWAM not to recognize the differences in gospel content.
With this current
and past evidence of ecumenism, true to form, it was only natural for a high
level YWAM leader like Danny Lehmann to plug the Pope:
“A friend of
mine just told me, he’s in a Christian school here in town and after the Pope
died, this is hard to believe, after the Pope died, a person in the Christian
school said to his classroom ‘Well I guess he found out there’s no purgatory
now, didn’t he?’ Like in other words the Pope went to Hell. How can you judge
something like that?…”(Danny
Lehmann “On Fire” KLHT 1040 AM Sat. aft. Oct. 21,2005).
Now I can agree
that was an inappropriate comment and an unauthorized judgment, however,
Lehmann reacted as though the very thought that the Pope might have been
unsaved was almost unthinkable. He then proceeds to at least insinuate that
Pope John Paul might have been saved or seen in a different light:
“By the way, this week’s edition of Christianity
Today magazine, just to put in a good word for the former Pope here, rest
his soul. It is an article in Christianity Today magazine this week that
talks about how the Pope when he was a cardinal in Poland was able to persuade
the rest of the Catholic church to let Campus Crusade for Christ come into the
universities and high schools in Poland and give Ten Steps to Spiritual Growth,
win people to Christ by the Four Spiritual Laws, get them into Bible Studies
and help them to grow in Christ. Now of course some people at that time thought
Campus Crusade was a little bit theologically naive and don’t understand all
the problems over there and you’re compromising here, so the theologian Norman
Geisler, whose books are in our bookstore here, one of the most respected
theologians in the world went over there just to check things out. Norman
Geisler came back and said he found those young people over there more on fire
for God, more committed to the Bible, more committed to Jesus Christ as Lord than anyone he had run
into in the western world, so thank you Pope John Paul II for doing that for us”(Ibid.).
Thank you Pope John
Paul for doing that for us? Rest his soul? The fact that he did an amiable deed
means really nothing in terms of whether he was saved or not. We are not saved
by our works but by faith in the gospel that is by grace. In looking at this
endorsement I was left asking what the point of it really was. Truly it is
presumptuous and forbidden for anyone to judge the eternal destiny of anyone
else for only God knows but the implication Lehmann made was that the Pope was
almost certainly saved and then tried to bolster that premise with this story
of a “good deed” by the former Pope. We must note however, that the Pope merely
allowed a Christian group to come into a country says nothing of his own
salvation.
I’m all for
condemning wrong judging but I am equally vehement that the truth of a
situation be fully considered. In the
above anecdote, Lehmann gives a plug without acknowledging the seriousness of
what the Pope also represented in his teachings and ministry. Before anyone
expresses outrage or disdain that anyone might think the Pope never made it to
heaven, let’s just be honest for a moment and see some truths concerning the
former Pope.
We as evangelicals must not forget that this Pope called Protestants “rapacious wolves”. He definitely didn’t view us as being saved. (http://www.moriel.org/articles/discernment/catholicism/john_paul_II.htm ).
To imply, as
Lehmann does even by de facto involvement in endorsing YWAM’s openly ecumenical
Kerygma Teams that the Pope is any kind of good or godly example of a true
Christian goes against John Paul’s own words and beliefs. Consider these tragic
statements:
Pope John Paul II upheld that Christ was recrucified every time the Mass was taken:
“This is my body which is given for you” and “This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood.” In the Eucharist Christ gives us the VERY body which he gave up for us on the cross, the VERY blood which he “poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 380)
“The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice: “The victim is one and the SAME: the SAME now offers through the ministry of priest, who then offered himself on the cross; only the manner of offering is different.” “In this divine sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the SAME Christ who offered himself once in a bloody manner on the altar of the cross IS CONTAINED and offered in an unbloody manner.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 381).
This is heresy and the Bible directly contradicts this foul idea. In Hebrews 9:23-10:18 we are clearly told that Christ’s sacrifice for sin was a once for all event that will never and can never be repeated whether by ritual or actual event, bloody or “unbloody”. Do we believe the testimony of the Pope and the Catholic Church or the testimony of God’s Word? This affects the gospel of which YWAM missionaries are to be bringing to the world.
Pope John Paul II also held the belief that there was no salvation apart from baptism and that into the Catholic Church:
“By Baptism all sins are forgiven, original sin and all personal sins, as well as all punishment for sin. In those who have been reborn nothing remains that would impede their entry into the Kingdom of God, neither Adam’s sin, nor personal sin, nor the consequences of sin, the gravest of which is separation from God.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 353)
Pope John Paul also believed one must perform the sacraments of the church to secure salvation:
“It is through the sacrament of Penance that the baptized can be reconciled with God and with the Church: “Penance has rightly been called by the holy Fathers ‘a laborious kind of baptism.’ This sacrament of Penance is necessary for salvation for those who have fallen after Baptism, just as Baptism is necessary for salvation for those who have not yet been reborn” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 278)
“How are we to understand this affirmation, often repeated by the Church Fathers? Re-formulated positively, it means that all salvation comes from Christ the Head through the Church which is his Body: Basing itself on Scripture and Tradition, the Council teaches that the Church, a pilgrim now on earth, is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is the mediator and the way of salvation; he is present to us in his body which is the Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of faith and Baptism, and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity of the Church which men enter through Baptism as through a door. Hence they could not be saved who, knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God through Christ, would refuse either to enter it or to remain in it.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 244).
Pope John Paul II believed in indulgences for the dead:
“Since the faithful departed now being purified are also members of the same communion of saints, one way we can help them is to obtain indulgences for them, so that the temporal punishments due for their sins may be remitted.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 413).
Pope John Paul II believed in the immaculate and eternal virginity of Mary. He held to the beliefs that she Is Sinless, Queen Of Heaven, Eternal Virgin:
“Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death.” The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son’s Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 274)
Pope John Paul II advocated Prayers For The Dead - People Can Pray Their Dead Out Of Purgatory:
“In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and ‘because it is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins’ she offers her suffrages for them.” Our prayer for them is capable not only of helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.” (Pope John Paul II, October 11, 1992, The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Page 272)
All these practices and doctrines are detestable, and certainly, non- Christian! Being aware of these, who, if they are truly honest could continue to even imply that the Pope was any manner of true Christian witness or continue any kind of further involvement with the Roman Catholic Church as it truly is. Shame on Lehmann and YWAM for not telling the truth of these matters concerning the actual belief system of the Roman Catholic Church and leading others into a unity with her! This is what is left when one insists on not judging doctrine and putting the straight ruler of the word next to ones curved beliefs.
At this point we see the clear distinction between the beliefs of a Roman Catholic who blasphemously considered himself the very “Vicar of Christ” which the Bible speaks nothing on. Can we have any license to put in plugs for this man or continue to be involved with organizations that uphold the “faith” of this false institution? For more info on the Pope and his beliefs, see these articles by former Catholics:
http://www.pro-gospel.org/01/ea-027.php
http://www.catholicconcerns.com/
A similar inconsistency exists in YWAM’s continued support of Mother Theresa as a great Christian witness. Lehmann likewise has used her as a good example of Christian work overlooking what she believed about salvation:
“Mother Theresa was on the cutting edge of this wider mercy doctrine. In a film entitled 'Mother Teresa', originally given in its world premiere at the United Nations 40th Anniversary celebration in 1985, she gave a familiar message of religious universalism: 'No colour, no religion, no nationality, should come between us.” Mother Theresa practiced today’s open Catholicism “I love all religions. ... If people become better Hindus, better Muslims, better Buddhists by our acts of love, then there is something else growing there.” She upheld that there are many ways to God': “All is God--Buddhists, Hindus, Christians, etc., all have access to the same God.” (12/4/89 Time, pp. 11, 13)
“If in coming face to face with God we accept Him in our lives, then we are converting. We become a better Hindu, a better Muslim, a better Catholic, a better whatever we are. ... What God is in your mind you must accept” (from Mother Teresa: Her People and Her Work, by Desmond Doig, (Harper & Row, 1976), p.156)
But, alas, these questions go unanswered by the leadership, Danny Lehmann included and that is shameful and should bring any true Christian to repentance if they are in any way collaborating with or endorsing these practitioners or their practices. YWAM, and, in this case Danny Lehmann is most certainly doing just that by their ecumenical involvements. This needs to be repented of immediately and separated from posthaste if we are to continue to see YWAM or its leaders as true evangelicals, or any kind of authentically biblical Christians.
I also can’t tell
you where anyone certainly went for eternity but we do well to keep a great
distance between Rome and ourselves in terms of belief and practice. We also
need to be careful of any teacher (like Lehmann and groups like YWAM) who
advocate, endorse, or make ecumenical unions with Rome. Salvation is not found
in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, yet YWAM and its leaders don’t
let that stop the ecumenism.
One of Danny
Lehmann’s favorite subjects is revivalism. I say revivalism because of
his regular appeals to the teachings of Charles Finney in this area rather than
a complete appeal to what the Scriptures teach about true revival. Indeed
Finney frequently finds mention in Lehmann’s sermons and “insights” about this
subject and perhaps for good reason. Finney’s views served as somewhat of a
foundation to an early YWAM belief that is still in effect in some places Moral
Government Theology (MGT). For more info on Moral Government Theology, go here:
http://www.bibleguidance.co.za/Engarticles/Otisteachings.htm
It has been shown
that Finney ascribed, at least in part to what is known as the Pelagian heresy,
which is:
“An insistence
of the adequacy of created human nature, essentially unimpaired by Adam’s fall,
to fulfill the will of God; the denial of original sin as either guilt or
corruption transmitted from Adam to all mankind; the highest moral and
spiritual expectations of the baptized Christian who must be capable of a life
of perfect holiness, because God commands him thereto; and an understanding of
the gifts of grace that excludes, or at best drastically minimizes, that
enabling power without whose inner working we can do nothing acceptable to
God.” (New Dictionary of
Theology, ed. Sinclair Ferguson and David F. Wright, (Downers Grove:
Intervarsity Press, 1988), s.v. "Pelagianism,” 499, 500.).
Certain tenets of
Pelagianism affected Finney’s views on original sin, which he denied existed as
an inheritance from Adam. He also believed in Christian perfectionism. Of
course the Bible says different. His view of the end times was
postmillennialism and he believed fervently that if Christians could unite and
get on board with his proposed “new measures” then society could be
transformed. Sounds like the dominionists of today.
One of the most
troubling beliefs Finney held was his view of revival:
“A revival is
not a miracle according to another definition of the term “miracle” — something
above the powers of nature. There is nothing in religion beyond the ordinary
powers of nature. It consists entirely in the right exercise of the powers of
nature. It is just that, and nothing else. When mankind become religious, they are
not enabled to put forth exertions which they were unable before to put forth.
They only exert powers which they had before, in a different way, and use them
for the glory of God. A revival is not a miracle, nor dependent on a miracle,
in any sense. It is a purely philosophical result of the right use of the
constituted means — as much so as any other effect produced by the application
of means.” (Finney, Lectures
... Revival, Lecture 1, 11,).
Well if this
doesn’t fly in the very face of the Bible’s teachings on revival, then I don’t
know what else to say. Lehmann and others hail him as some kind of expert on
revival, yet Finney espoused these kinds of ideas clearly from the heart of
sinful men and not from the Word of God! (Mt.12:35)
Once again we see a
case of either real ignorance of what Finney actually believed or the typical
white-washing of the actual realities in order to continue to appeal to him as
an authority on revival. To be sure, Finney taught and believed a system of
revivalism that he called the “new measures” and this is in contradistinction
to biblical revival as taught in the Scriptures.
For more on Charles
Finney’s worrisome views read Revival and Revivalism by Iain Murray,
Banner of Truth Trust, or check out this excellent article:
http://cicministry.org/commentary/issue53.htm
The question then
is why Finney is regarded by so many as an authority on revival. His beliefs
are clearly unbiblical and actually antidotal to true revival and yet, at many
a turn, Lehmann quotes him and clearly views him as an authority on the subject
despite the obvious heresies and denials of tenets of the Christian faith.
YWAM was also
involved in promoting the faulty Transformations videos that were proven untrue
as well as promoted the Third Wave spiritual warfare agendas, already taught
and perhaps introduced in some form by YWAM’s John Dawson in his book Taking
Our Cities For God. This
problematic text is still a standard work read the world over by YWAMers in
their training DTS’.
For more on the
Transformations video fakery go to:
http://www.geocities.com/smithtj.geo/transformations.html
Lehmann has stood
beside Dawson as the current YWAM president and is fully aware of the unfolding
agendas of the Global Leadership Team he is on. Sadly, it’s apparent to see
where Lehmann has gotten influenced by his participation over the years.
Despite staggering
lacks of discernment in some of these things, Danny Lehmann, at least sees some
folly concerning many in today’s transformation movements. Although, as we will
see, any difference he might have is obscured by his contradictory assertions.
Lehmann says:
“Now there are
some groups who say and I’ve mentioned this before, were gonna bring in the
kingdom, and were gonna change all the society, and were gonna, y’know, were
gonna knock the devil off the thrones of the world and were gonna take over.
Well, that’s one extreme. But the other extreme is lets just hide in our little
churches, have a little holy club, congratulate ourselves all the time on how
wonderful we are, curse the people out there in the darkness and complain about
all the time…or we can humble ourselves and say God you put a focus on the
kingdom. You said way back in the book of Genesis, that you made them in the
beginning male and female, you created them that they would have dominion and
rule over everything on the earth…”(Danny
Lehmann “Mars Hill” Sat. PM 6 / Oct. 8, 2005).
“I’m not
advocating a big political take-over here. I’m advocating getting to our knees.
I’m not talking about climbing up on a pedestal and saying AAAA like Tarzan. We
are gonna take over because we’re Christians! We’re gonna be the first
Christian state! I don’t think we need any of that kind of triumphalistic
rhetoric…” (Danny Lehmann
MARS HILL Oct. 25,2005).
Cindy Jacob was one
of the prophets who decreed that Hawaii would be the first Christian state.
False apostle Ed Silvoso inferred the possibility as well on a program with Cal
Chinen in 2005. This is exactly the type of triumphalist rhetoric being
promoted by advocates of the Third Wave, the NAR, Cindy Jacobs(had book
published by YWAM Publishing), Transformation Hawaii and YWAM’s Moral
Government Theology teachings, taught in the past by George Otis, Jr. (http://www.bibleguidance.co.za/Engarticles/Otisteachings.htm)
If Danny Lehmann truly
believes we don’t need this stuff then why continue such high level involvement
with some of the most prolific dominionists we have ever seen?
YWAM has also
endorsed Cindy Jacobs for a long time and as for not believing in dominionist
leanings and triumphalist rhetoric, well his stand becomes completely anemic
because he endorses Transformation Hawaii and United in Prayer, which is
precisely based on some of the principles Lehmann calls extreme:
“A friend of
mine named Cal Chinen is kind of a prayer fanatic and a couple weeks ago he had
6700 Christians at about 80 or 90 different campuses around Oahu and around the
outer islands praying and its called United in Prayer. And all they do, they’ve
got different pastors, Pastor Alan Leigh, pastor of Calvary Chapel in Wahiawa
did the one out there and Pastor Mike Kai did the one my wife and my boy went
to, I was out of town but they went to it in Waipahu, and that was at Waipahu
high School. They went to all the schools, they prayed for the principals, they
prayed for everybody there. There was no agenda, there was no doctrine being
preached. There was no one church over another. In fact the pastors kept
saying, its not about us its not about us. It’s about God and its about these
kids. Were praying for the school. I say that’s good. I say that’s great to be
united in prayer. Now that’s not a revival but it could be something we could
do to prepare for revival…”
(Danny Lehmann “Mars Hill” Sat. PM 6 / Oct. 8, 2005).
It needs to be noted that I talked with Pastor
Leigh of Calvary Chapel Wahiawa about his involvement with this and Lehmann’s
mention of the fact and he assured me he was not going to attend the follow-up
meeting precisely because he was not in agreement with what the movement was
doing. I commend Pastor Alan for renouncing further involvement with this false
revival movement.
More recently Leon Siu was featured at his Mars Hill meeting. In response to Lehmanns question on how to pray for Hawaii Leon Siu said, “y’know Transformation Hawaii is making a big dent here in Hawaii and many, many people are beginning to see this vision of another great awakening in Hawaii. I believe this is happening I believe we are already in the first stages of it …” (4/01/06)
Bottom Line: YWAM played a major role in the Transformation Hawaii Prayer Gathering in March 2005 where Loren Cunningham was a speaker and some of Honolulu YWAM base staff participated. This was presided over by a false apostle working with C. Peter Wagner and the New Apostolic Reformation named Ed Silvoso. Lest we forget, YWAM was a major sponsor of the unbiblical Call to the nations Conference in 2005 in Hawaii (http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/acalltothenations.html )
Being part of the
Global Leadership Team member and YWAM recruiter, Danny Lehmann, cannot escape
his involvement with this nor can he be considered blameless for many who
continue to get involved with the Third Wave and YWAM.
I cannot judge
whether his continued promotion and mention of these things are because he is
ignorant of the glaring contradictions or just plain undiscerning to the point
of not seeing the problem with promoting and denouncing the very same issues
from the same platform from week to week. Anyone else would be rightfully
labeled hypocritical and contradictory but alas, thus far, nary a person has
addressed this.
Indeed Mr. Lehmann, YWAM, and Calvary Chapel Komo Mai owe some sort of explanation or clarification, at the very least. Shenanigans and cover-ups like these are definitely hindrances to true revival.