WEEKLY CHURCH NEWS NOTES
Pastor Dale Morgan
June 28, 2008
The Weekly Church News Notes is designed for use in churches
*HUSBAND/WIFE FATHER/MOTHER ON THE ROPES *
The legalization of homosexuality is already beginning to destroy the
biblical concept of father and mother, husband and wife. The new
marriage licenses in California replace "husband and wife" with
"Party A and Party B." In Scotland, teachers in some major cities
have banned Father's Day cards this year so as not to offend students
who live with single mothers and lesbians. The London Telegraph
reports, "The politically correct policy was quietly adopted at
schools 'in the interests of sensitivity' over the growing number of
lone-parent and same-sex households" ("Father's Day Cards Banned,"
June 20, 2008). Last year Scotland's National Health Service approved
a policy for hospital workers mis-titled "Fair For All." In fact, the
policy is "fair" for no one, because it destroys the right of free
speech and forbids the use of historic and biblical terms such as
"mother" and "father" (some patients might have two mothers or two
fathers) and "husband" and "wife," labeling this "homophobic
language." Such terms must be replaced with "partner" or "they/them"
("There is only one acceptable way to talk about homosexuality --
SILENCE!" OneNewsNow.com, May 31, 2007). The policy is to be strictly
enforced. In May 2007 the California state senate passed bill SB 777.
If approved by the state assembly and signed by the governor, it will
ban any speech in the public school system that "reflects or promotes
bias against" homosexuality, transgenders, bisexuals, or those who
"perceived" gender issues. The ban would apply even to discussions.
Randy Thomasson of the Campaign for Children and Families warns that
references to "mother" and "father" would probably be banned if this
idiotic policy becomes law ("Lawmakers Pass Redefinition of 'Sex,"
The Berean Call, June 8, 2007).
*
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU LAUGH AT *
The following is by Brian Snider of Huntsville, Alabama: "Be careful what
you laugh at. Laughter can make you do things, and accept things, you
would not normally accept. George Carlin's death this week is a good
reminder of how much damage can be done through inappropriate
laughter. Carlin was an American comedian and entertainer whose
routines were filthy and blasphemous. Carlin made the kinds of
statements that very few people would tolerate from a politician or
teacher or television personality. But because he was a comedian and
delivered his statements with a dose of laughter, people who would
not normally enjoy a tirade against God would sit still and listen.
Carlin was raised in a liberal Roman Catholic environment in New York
and at a young age was a determined, anti-authoritarian misfit. He
dropped out of high school and was kicked out of the Air Force after
facing court-martial three times. He began his entertainment career
as a straight comedian, appearing on mainstream programs in the 60s,
but later adopted a hippy look and lifestyle and sought a new
audience. He was already on the rise professionally when he released
the album Class Clown in 1972 which contained the routine, 'Seven
Words You Can Never Say on Television.' The language was filthy, but
it was delivered in a comical manner and was therefore more palatable
to large groups of people. That routine caused a stink with the FCC
and was eventually reviewed by the US Supreme Court to determine
whether or not the words were obscene, which they clearly were. The
high court ruled that they were only 'indecent.' That incident
brought Carlin more fame, or notoriety, and helped in a major way
toward lowering the the standards for what is allowed on television
and radio. While Americans were laughing at him, he was ripping apart
the fabric of decent language and faith in God. Carlin took every
opportunity to mock and degrade the name of God. The Bible says that
the fool has said that there is no God. Not surprisingly, Carlin
concocted a comedy routine entitled 'There is No God.' How many
people became atheistic in their thinking after attending one of his
comedy shows and laughing at him as he derided the name of God? God
only knows. Be careful what you laugh at. It is a certainty that
George Carlin is not laughing now. 'Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye
know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with
the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness' (2 Peter
3:17)."
*
COOPERATIVE BAPTIST FELLOWSHIP SPEAKER DENIES CHRIST'S DEITY *
A speaker at the Cooperative
Baptist Fellowship's annual conference in Memphis denied the deity of
Christ. John Killinger, in a workshop entitled "The Changing Shape of
Our Salvation" (which is also the title of his 2007 book), said that
Jesus did not conceive of Himself as the Saviour of the world and was
probably not God incarnate. "Now we are reevaluating and we're
approaching everything with a humbler perspective and seeing God's
hand working in Christ, but not necessarily as the incarnate God in
our midst" ("CBF Presenter Questions Christ's Deity," Baptist Press,
June 19, 2008). Killinger, the pastor of Marble Collegiate Church in
New York City, said that modern scholarship has taught us that Jesus
did not actually say and do many of the things that are written in
the Bible. This again demonstrates the apostasy of the Cooperative
Baptist Fellowship. The CBF's 2001 conference in Atlanta featured
prayers to "Mother God." At their annual breakfast that year, the
leaders of the Baptist Women in Ministry (BWIM, an auxiliary of the
CBF), stated their discomfort at calling God "Father," "Lord," and
"King." Sally Burgess, BWIM treasurer, said she believed that more
Southern Baptist women would be ordained to the pastorate "because I
believe God is good, and She knows what She's doing" ("Women
Celebrate 'Mother God' as Moderate Baptists Gather," Religion Today,
July 2, 2001). In 2000, CFB coordinator Daniel Vestal told the press
that there are congregations that support the CBF that ordain
homosexuals and that he does not want anyone to leave over this issue
("CBF 'welcoming but not affirming' of homosexuals," Associated
Baptist Press, Oct. 23, 2000). CBF council member Dixie Lee Petrey
said, "I don't think we should limit the Spirit of God in the way
that it moves. Do we really want to sit here and say God's Spirit
cannot call a homosexual to follow God's call?"
*
CHRISTIANITY TODAY'S POSITIVE REVIEW OF SEX AND THE CITY
*
Christianity Today recently
published a positive review of the filthy Sex and the City movie
based on the HBO television series. The reviewer admits that the
movie contains filthy language, nudity, homosexual kissing, and
"several graphic sex scenes," but goes on to say that it "offers much
that will resonate with singles--and yes, even Christians" and has
"smart dialogue, interesting plots, and a ton of heart." Our friend
Jeff Royal got it right with this comment: "It's unbelievable that
C.T. would not try to steer Christians far away from this thrash, and
that they would choose to review it in the first place. I can
understand its popularity with the world, but for it to appeal to
Bible-believing Christians must bring great reproach to an all holy
God. 'Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any
people' (Proverbs 14:34). 'Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth
forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death' (James
1:15). 'For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the
lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is
of the world' (1 John 2:16)."
*
DISAPPEARING DAUGHTERS *
Disappearing Daughters: The Tragedy of Female Feoticide is the name of a
2007 book
documenting the continuing decline in the ratio of girls to boys in
India. Author Gita Aravamudan says: "Female infanticide is akin to
serial killing. But female foeticide was more like a holocaust. A
whole gender is getting exterminated." The average worldwide ratio of
girl births to boy births is 1050 to 1000, but in India it is about
925 to 1000 overall and in some places the ratio is as low as 300 to
1000. And it is steadily declining. In an interview with The Hindu
magazine Aravamudan said: "I realised that infanticide happened not
in pockets, [only] among the poor and disempowered but foeticide
happened among the rich, the powerful, the educated; those who were
aware of family planning" ("Targeting the Girl," The Hindu, May 27,
2007). Though sex selection testing is illegal in India, it is widely
practiced and attempts to stop it have been ineffectual. A UNICEF
report says that 7,000 females are aborted EACH DAY in India. It is
also not uncommon for females to be killed after they are born. In an
interview with Agence France-Presse on July 20, 2007, Aravamudan
said: "One of the most disturbing revelations came from a midwife who
said she had killed hundreds of newborns. She had lost count." In a
Hindu society, parents typically must pay a dowry to marry off a
female, who then becomes the servant to the husband's family and is
often abused.
*SOUTHERN BAPTIST EMERGENT CONTRASTS HUMILITY WITH JUDGMENTAL
PREACHING *
J.D. Greear is a Southern Baptist
preacher associated with the Acts 29 network. In 2002 Greear became
senior pastor of Homestead Heights Baptist Church in Durham, North
Carolina. He led it to adopt the emergent philosophy, changed the
name to Summit Church, and attendance has grown from 400 to 2,400.
Mark Driscoll, head of Acts 29, claims to be "theologically
conservative and culturally liberal." Driscoll's church in Seattle,
Mars Hill, sponsors secular rock concerts, reviews R-rated movies,
and hosts a New Years Eve dance party complete with a champagne bar.
Greear says he strives for "humble orthodoxy" and contrasts this with
the image of the Baptist preacher as "the angry guy with coifed hair
and an out-of-style suit who likes to pick at things" ("Young Baptist
Preachers Chart Different Courses," Christian Post, June 20, 2008).
Jesus Christ was humility incarnate, yet He was very bold and
"judgmental" in his preaching. He preached more about hell than
heaven, at least 14 times in the four Gospels, and He preached it red
hot and terrible (e.g., Mark 9:42-48). Christ rebuked error in the
severest terms (Mat. 23:13-33). He scalded the Pharisees because they
perverted the way of the truth and corrupted the gospel of grace,
calling them hypocrites, blind guides, fools and blind, serpents,
generation of vipers. Roman Catholic priests and theologically
liberal Protestant ministers corrupt the truth at least as much as
the Pharisees did, yet the emerging church does not speak out against
them after the fashion of Christ. He told the Pharisees that they
were of their father the devil (John 8:44), and a more "judgmental"
statement has never been made! After forgiving and healing people
Christ warned them, "... sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto
thee" (John 5:14). That is the type of thing that people in the
"emerging culture" do not want to hear. They want to be forgiven and
healed and encouraged, but they do not want to be told how to live
and warned about what will happen if they don't. Christ's message cut
against the grain of society in His day, and it still cuts against
the grain of society, and the apostles preached after exactly the
same fashion. One thing is certain. Christ's type of preaching would
not be at home in any branch of the emerging church.
CONCLUSION: Friends in Christ, do not be discouraged by what is
happening today. It is God's will that we know the times (1 Ch.
12:32; Mat. 16:3) and that we be as wise as serpents and harmless as
doves. These things remind us that the hour is very late, and we need
to be ready for the coming of the Lord. Are you sure that you are
born again? Are you living for Christ day by day? "And that, knowing
the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is
our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent,
the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness,
and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in
the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and
wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts
thereof" (Rom. 13:11-14).