A TRUE AND FAITHFUL WITNESS
Are you committed to being a true and faithful witness to the Lord Jesus Christ of the New Testament Gospel?
The River of Seducing Spirits
In many modern day church settings we are invited through song to jump
into the river of God. This river supposedly brings cheer to our otherwise
melancholy hearts and dancing to our otherwise stationary feet. The
unbridled display of emotions in many modern day church and television
settings, however, makes some wonder. Is God the Spirit really the source of
these things? Is this flowing river really the norm for our Christian lives? Is
there something being subtly taught about this river in the midst of these
gatherings? And if so, what is being taught? Some would argue that we need
more emotional response to God in our worship than past church tradition
has provided or allowed. But that is not the issue being addressed here.
True worship can in fact elicit a number of different types of emotional
responses ranging from profound grief to utter joy. But how do we
distinguish if our worship is rooted in the sensual or is truly spiritual? Have
we even thought enough to care about this fact or understand there may be
a difference? Many have come to the conclusion that this river is really very
menacing to true Christian growth. This is based upon the beliefs that are
subtly employed in the music and flow from its' fountainhead.
Jesus said that we should love God with all of our heart and soul and mind.
(Matthew 22:37) True love and worship of God is multi-faceted in the sense
that the entirety of our being should be fully engaged. True worship as seen
in Romans 12:1, 2 is presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice unto God.
But note this takes place in context as response to understanding the
wonderful mercies of God already given to us in Romans 1-11. So does God
ask of us to be engaged whole-spiritedly to that which we do not understand
with our minds as truth when we worship? According to John 4:21-26 the
answer is 'no' since Jesus says we are to worship God in spirit and in truth!
Does our finite understanding of God give us an excuse to not be illumined
in our mind to spiritual truth as we worship? According to I Corinthians 2:6-16
the answer is 'no' because Paul says we are to know the things which the
Spirit teaches based upon the reality they are communications via words and
we understand because we have the mind of Christ! Is true worship
bypassing the given revelation of God (His Word) as the means by which His
Spirit communes and communicates with us and instead plunging into the
great mystical unknown and shelving our minds? Are we to instead initiate
entrance into altered states of consciousness (passive mind) to have our
spirit carried away uncontrolled on a spiritual journey? Are we to seek some
mystical, visionary and fresh experience (supposedly of God) or hear some
voice apart from the Word as the norm? According to Colossians 2:18,19 the
answer is 'no' because these things are spoken of as 'fleshly' and not part of
the understanding we have together under the headship of Christ.
The lack of discernment in many worship settings should raise a red flag as
to the possible nature of the corporate worship and the foundations being
laid within these ministries. The upbeat worship is often times smoke and
mirrors for false doctrines to be brought into the church scene. This occurs
by seducing spirits (I Timothy 4:1) no matter what perceived manifestations
of 'God' might be taking place! The results can be astounding. The bottom
line in all of this is whether or not we have a clear understanding of the fact
that the Holy Spirit is the third PERSON of the trinity. He thus has all the
customary attributes of person-hood rather than impersonal force. His
communications are then specifically that: communications via words, not
feelings via impressions or intuition.
Unfortunately what happens in many modern signs and wonders/seeking the
glory-presence type settings is comparable to what is recorded as taking
place in pagan rituals. That ought to make us very wary. Experiences like
kicking, screaming, and barking are no where found in the Holy Scriptures let
alone normative of the Christian life. Many statements of faith say we believe
in the sole authority of Scripture for faith and practice but do we really mean
it? Many have decided that judging things spoken or practiced is not the
thing to do. (Which is contrary to I Corinthians 14:29; I John 4:1; I
Thessalonians 5:21). And because we are not supposed to judge, then the
original belief system which we had agreed to (church statement of faith,
etc.) is rendered meaningless in any application! We are thus required to
acquiesce and follow the leader. But, whether we consciously perceive this
or not, the people gathered have shifted their understanding of authority
from the Holy Scripture to the anointed leader. This can be incredibly
dangerous. {Think about it - the angel of light only has to deceive one
person to lead the whole flock astray if this has happened! And,
unfortunately, any Christian can be deceived if not careful}. Remember, the
Scripture says all true believers have an anointing from the Holy One. And
that anointing teaches us all things which are true (Scripture!) (I John
2:20-27) The Scriptures also tell us that each believer is a priest unto God
with Jesus only as their perfect and permanent High Priest. (I Peter 2:1-10;
Hebrews 7:11-8:6) We don't need any human or spiritual entity, no matter
who or what they are, to be set up as our intermediaries. NONE. PERIOD.
(True shepherds of Gods' flock are really only under-shepherds of His. They
provide the example of self-giving love and doctrinal integrity in their
leadership of the flock.)
And lest you think leaders of this flowing river are not functioning as
intermediaries let me remind you of this fact. Often times they have claimed
for themselves the right not to be touched or questioned in terms of their
authority or ministry. They have it and unless you agree with them you don't
have it and are in fact against it. And if a church has bought into the idea of
the five-fold ministry (a false translation of Ephesians 4:11 - compare to
Ephesians 2:20) then they actually have given themselves biblical precedent
for the lack of sole Biblical authority. (Make sure you caught that: supposed
Biblical authority for the lack of sole Biblical authority! Talk about going
around in a deceptive circle!) These self-appointed apostles and prophets
take over the role of the Holy Scriptures by being those who are the leaders
in the new flow of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church and all individuals
therein. And do not be deceived - when they join together it becomes a new
massive denomination whether they admit to this or not. And having denied
sole Biblical authority don't believe for one second that they have not
replaced that with an unwritten and pervasive agenda. (Every thinking
person or spirit has an agenda - every non-thinking person is usually lead
around by the former!) But friends the reality is this: if you don't think
(Scripturally) - someone is more than happy to do your thinking for you. And
the worst case scenario is when you do not realize that is what is happening.
BEWARE - the river could be plunging you headlong into troublesome
waters!!!
Copyright 2004, David Sheldon, all rights reserved. Can be photocopied and
distributed for free or price of duplication only but only in its entirety with
copyright information included. Cannot be posted on any different website
but can be linked: The River of Seducing Spirits - David Sheldon
www.atrueandfaithfulwitness.com/seducingriver.htm
For More Articles Like This Go To: www.atrueandfaithfulwitness.com
In many modern day church settings we are invited through song to jump
into the river of God. This river supposedly brings cheer to our otherwise
melancholy hearts and dancing to our otherwise stationary feet. The
unbridled display of emotions in many modern day church and television
settings, however, makes some wonder. Is God the Spirit really the source of
these things? Is this flowing river really the norm for our Christian lives? Is
there something being subtly taught about this river in the midst of these
gatherings? And if so, what is being taught? Some would argue that we need
more emotional response to God in our worship than past church tradition
has provided or allowed. But that is not the issue being addressed here.
True worship can in fact elicit a number of different types of emotional
responses ranging from profound grief to utter joy. But how do we
distinguish if our worship is rooted in the sensual or is truly spiritual? Have
we even thought enough to care about this fact or understand there may be
a difference? Many have come to the conclusion that this river is really very
menacing to true Christian growth. This is based upon the beliefs that are
subtly employed in the music and flow from its' fountainhead.
Jesus said that we should love God with all of our heart and soul and mind.
(Matthew 22:37) True love and worship of God is multi-faceted in the sense
that the entirety of our being should be fully engaged. True worship as seen
in Romans 12:1, 2 is presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice unto God.
But note this takes place in context as response to understanding the
wonderful mercies of God already given to us in Romans 1-11. So does God
ask of us to be engaged whole-spiritedly to that which we do not understand
with our minds as truth when we worship? According to John 4:21-26 the
answer is 'no' since Jesus says we are to worship God in spirit and in truth!
Does our finite understanding of God give us an excuse to not be illumined
in our mind to spiritual truth as we worship? According to I Corinthians 2:6-16
the answer is 'no' because Paul says we are to know the things which the
Spirit teaches based upon the reality they are communications via words and
we understand because we have the mind of Christ! Is true worship
bypassing the given revelation of God (His Word) as the means by which His
Spirit communes and communicates with us and instead plunging into the
great mystical unknown and shelving our minds? Are we to instead initiate
entrance into altered states of consciousness (passive mind) to have our
spirit carried away uncontrolled on a spiritual journey? Are we to seek some
mystical, visionary and fresh experience (supposedly of God) or hear some
voice apart from the Word as the norm? According to Colossians 2:18,19 the
answer is 'no' because these things are spoken of as 'fleshly' and not part of
the understanding we have together under the headship of Christ.
The lack of discernment in many worship settings should raise a red flag as
to the possible nature of the corporate worship and the foundations being
laid within these ministries. The upbeat worship is often times smoke and
mirrors for false doctrines to be brought into the church scene. This occurs
by seducing spirits (I Timothy 4:1) no matter what perceived manifestations
of 'God' might be taking place! The results can be astounding. The bottom
line in all of this is whether or not we have a clear understanding of the fact
that the Holy Spirit is the third PERSON of the trinity. He thus has all the
customary attributes of person-hood rather than impersonal force. His
communications are then specifically that: communications via words, not
feelings via impressions or intuition.
Unfortunately what happens in many modern signs and wonders/seeking the
glory-presence type settings is comparable to what is recorded as taking
place in pagan rituals. That ought to make us very wary. Experiences like
kicking, screaming, and barking are no where found in the Holy Scriptures let
alone normative of the Christian life. Many statements of faith say we believe
in the sole authority of Scripture for faith and practice but do we really mean
it? Many have decided that judging things spoken or practiced is not the
thing to do. (Which is contrary to I Corinthians 14:29; I John 4:1; I
Thessalonians 5:21). And because we are not supposed to judge, then the
original belief system which we had agreed to (church statement of faith,
etc.) is rendered meaningless in any application! We are thus required to
acquiesce and follow the leader. But, whether we consciously perceive this
or not, the people gathered have shifted their understanding of authority
from the Holy Scripture to the anointed leader. This can be incredibly
dangerous. {Think about it - the angel of light only has to deceive one
person to lead the whole flock astray if this has happened! And,
unfortunately, any Christian can be deceived if not careful}. Remember, the
Scripture says all true believers have an anointing from the Holy One. And
that anointing teaches us all things which are true (Scripture!) (I John
2:20-27) The Scriptures also tell us that each believer is a priest unto God
with Jesus only as their perfect and permanent High Priest. (I Peter 2:1-10;
Hebrews 7:11-8:6) We don't need any human or spiritual entity, no matter
who or what they are, to be set up as our intermediaries. NONE. PERIOD.
(True shepherds of Gods' flock are really only under-shepherds of His. They
provide the example of self-giving love and doctrinal integrity in their
leadership of the flock.)
And lest you think leaders of this flowing river are not functioning as
intermediaries let me remind you of this fact. Often times they have claimed
for themselves the right not to be touched or questioned in terms of their
authority or ministry. They have it and unless you agree with them you don't
have it and are in fact against it. And if a church has bought into the idea of
the five-fold ministry (a false translation of Ephesians 4:11 - compare to
Ephesians 2:20) then they actually have given themselves biblical precedent
for the lack of sole Biblical authority. (Make sure you caught that: supposed
Biblical authority for the lack of sole Biblical authority! Talk about going
around in a deceptive circle!) These self-appointed apostles and prophets
take over the role of the Holy Scriptures by being those who are the leaders
in the new flow of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church and all individuals
therein. And do not be deceived - when they join together it becomes a new
massive denomination whether they admit to this or not. And having denied
sole Biblical authority don't believe for one second that they have not
replaced that with an unwritten and pervasive agenda. (Every thinking
person or spirit has an agenda - every non-thinking person is usually lead
around by the former!) But friends the reality is this: if you don't think
(Scripturally) - someone is more than happy to do your thinking for you. And
the worst case scenario is when you do not realize that is what is happening.
BEWARE - the river could be plunging you headlong into troublesome
waters!!!
Copyright 2004, David Sheldon, all rights reserved. Can be photocopied and
distributed for free or price of duplication only but only in its entirety with
copyright information included. Cannot be posted on any different website
but can be linked: The River of Seducing Spirits - David Sheldon
www.atrueandfaithfulwitness.com/seducingriver.htm
For More Articles Like This Go To: www.atrueandfaithfulwitness.com
HOME
Rick Warren
Forty Days: False Gospel
Forty Days: A Closer Look
Forty Days: Which Jesus?
PDL: God's Wisdom
PDL: Exalting the Fallen Creation
PDL: A Purpose-Shaped
Worldview
Antichrist
Will Antichrist Be Revealed
Before the Tribulation?
The Great Harlot
"Mystery" Babylon
"Emerging" Church
Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell - Part 1
Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell - Part 2
Church Growth Movement
Schuller, Hybels & Warren
Review of Schuller's "Self-Esteem"
False Apostles, False
Prophets, False Revival
River of Seducing Spirits
Spiritual Warfare Script
Deception of Spiritual Warfare
Flags & Banners...Spiritual Power
Tools?
Davidic Warfare/Worship?
Jesus of the "Signs" Now the
"Christ" of Apostolic Government
Mystical Christianity?
Tenney's Mystical Deity Chase
Richard Foster: Quaker Mystic?
Willard and "The Way of Jesus"
What Oswald Chambers
Might Have Thought About
Todays "Christianity"
Rick Warren
Forty Days: False Gospel
Forty Days: A Closer Look
Forty Days: Which Jesus?
PDL: God's Wisdom
PDL: Exalting the Fallen Creation
PDL: A Purpose-Shaped
Worldview
Antichrist
Will Antichrist Be Revealed
Before the Tribulation?
The Great Harlot
"Mystery" Babylon
"Emerging" Church
Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell - Part 1
Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell - Part 2
Church Growth Movement
Schuller, Hybels & Warren
Review of Schuller's "Self-Esteem"
False Apostles, False
Prophets, False Revival
River of Seducing Spirits
Spiritual Warfare Script
Deception of Spiritual Warfare
Flags & Banners...Spiritual Power
Tools?
Davidic Warfare/Worship?
Jesus of the "Signs" Now the
"Christ" of Apostolic Government
Mystical Christianity?
Tenney's Mystical Deity Chase
Richard Foster: Quaker Mystic?
Willard and "The Way of Jesus"
What Oswald Chambers
Might Have Thought About
Todays "Christianity"