The No Goofy Zone Discernment Ministry

The No Goofy Zone is a discernment ministry for saved born again Christians and all who are seeking the truth.We expose non-biblical trends in the church. We are making material available to advance understanding of issue's which endanger Christianity. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit.

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Location: Piqua, Ohio, United States

Former drummer for Gary Lewis and The Playboys and The Coasters. Tim has also played with Paul Baloche, Lincoln Brewster, Darlene Zscech and Hillsongs, Jeff Fenholt, SteveCamp among others. Tim founded The Simply Agape Project in 2001 to get free Christian music to the troops. Recordings have been made with Tim, and friends Alex Acuna, Abe Laboriel SR, Justo Almario,Steve Camp , Jared Ming and some wonderful Independant Christian artists.The Somebody Brave CD also features words of encouragment to the soldiers from Pastors, Moms, Dads, and Lt Col Brian Birdwell a Pentegon 9/11 survivor Tim is married to Donna Wirth and has four children Alan 25,Steven 23, Brittany 22, Bethany 21. Tim has played in numerous churchs as well as shows on TBN. Tim has also performed on JCTV on the show Generation Worship featuring worship leader Jared Ming. Tim has a book published worldwide titled "Pass The Plate And Let Us Prey" (My Search For Black and White Christianity in a Gray Nation)

Tuesday, July 31, 2007

New article by Sandy Simpson

Very good new article by my friend and brother in the Lord Sandy Simpson.

Pre Millennial And Post Millennial Doctrines Do Not Mix
by Sandy Simpson, 7/13/07



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Many Christians today (having allowed themselves to be diapraxed by false teachers on TV, in books, in seminars and on tape) have begun to accept a mixture of Pre Mil and Post Mil doctrines. Many claim they still hold to a Pre Trib Rapture (or another Pre Mil scenario) and at the same time would claim that Christians are in a great end times revival, that "Transformation" is taking place all over the world, and that our mandate is to retake dominion over the whole world including its businesses, social agendas and political arenas (a Post Mil scenario). But what many "Christians" today do not realize is: the mixture they have accepted is oxymoronic.

If you are truly a Pre Millennialist you hold to the fact that we are NOT in the Millennium but in a time of preaching the Gospel while a falling away from the Faith is taking place. Pre Mils believe that Jesus Christ will come back and establish His Kingdom in the Millennium and until then we are to carry out the Great Commission and be light and salt, therefore our mandate is NOT to take dominion over the earth.

If you are a Post Millennialist you believe that we are in a time of great revival because, figuratively (certainly not literally according to the Bible) we are already in the Millennium. Many of them believe that Satan is bound, that we can bind territorial demons (why they are roaming around when Satan cannot I do not know!) and that we can command the weather and retake dominion over the earth promised to Adam. Jesus Christ will then, according to Post Mils, come back at the end of the Millennial age we are currently in and then the old earth will be destroyed and the new heaven and new earth will begin. If you don't believe that this is what Post Mils believe, then read what Post Millennialists/Dominionists C. Peter Wagner and company are saying and doing.

Our theological bedrock is what has been known as Dominion Theology. This means that our divine mandate is to do whatever is necessary, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to retake the dominion of God's creation which Adam forfeited to Satan in the Garden of Eden. It is nothing less than seeing God's kingdom coming and His will being done here on earth as it is in heaven. (C. Peter Wagner, letter, May 31, 2007)
Following this pattern, our new paradigm for taking dominion includes a dual task: the evangelistic mandate (saving souls) and the cultural mandate (transforming society). ... During the 1990s, we knew very little about apostolic leadership. Neither did we know much about the church in the workplace. But now we do. In chapter 1, I tried to make a case for the church in the workplace, and in chapter 2, I argued that there are apostles in the workplace. We need to move beyond the 1990s and integrate these concepts into our social-transformation efforts. ... A very important role in social transformation is that of territorial apostles. These are apostles to whom God has assigned key apostolic authority over a certain geographical region. ... Let’s decide to move forward. Let’s take dominion now! (C. Peter Wagner, Let’s Take Dominion Now!, exerpt from the book Dominion!, InTheWorkplace, http://www.intheworkplace.com/articles_view.asp?articleid=22902&columnid=1935)

"The goal of this mission is to repent of those things that have defiled this circulatory system in the heart of America. This defilement has caused these waterway systems to become a vast network and communications base for the 'prince of the power of the air' and for the second heaven principalities to legally link into the earth. These teams will bring repentance for the atrocities and defilements of the past as well as uproot the work the Buddhist have been doing as of late. Our mission is to dismantle this demonic power grid and declare, decree, and set in place a new grid for prophetic fire to flow throughout the circulatory system in heart of America. We will also prepare the Way for the release of a 'NEW SOUND' and new rhythm in the heart of America on 07 07 07 in Nashville, Tennessee."Further details are listed below. On Saturday, May 5th, the River Teams complete the Journey together at Venice, Louisiana at the mouth of the Mississippi River. At 7:00 PM (EDT), 6:00 PM (CDT), and 5:00 PM (MDT), they will release a "ROAR" of worship over this circulatory system. James is specifically requesting that each of you support this culminating event by worshiping at the rivers in your region and "LIGHT THE PASSAGE" with them at this set time. (James Nesbit, in a memo from Chuck D. Pierce to the National and State Apostolic Team Members, Cc: Peter and Doris Wagner, Brian Kooiman, April 13, 2007)

Suffice it to say if this is not what the Bible teaches then Dominionists need to be taken away in a wagon with rubber walls. This stuff not only shows their involvement with the "save the planet" Globalists, but it shows that they need to have their heads examined.
How many others today have bought into Reconstructionist/Kingdom Now/Dominionist theology? I think you might be shocked. To lend some proof that the most influential leaders in Christianity today are promoting Dominionism, I will present quotes from a number of sources, some perhaps shocking to some of you. (Emphasis in bold added by Sandy Simpson.)

JAMES DOBSON (Alliance Defense Fund), MICHAEL FARRIS (Home School Legal Defense Association,
JERRY FALWELL (Deceased, Libety University) & MARVIN OLASKY (World Magazine)

Based in Powder Springs, Ga., American Vision also produces reams of material that push Christian Reconstructionism, a form of fundamentalism that argues for a re-writing of American history, dismantling secular democracy and constructing an America governed by "biblical law." Reconstructionists seek to impose the criminal code of the Old Testament, applying the death penalty for homosexuals, adulterers, fornicators, witches, incorrigible juvenile delinquents and those who spread false religions. Despite its overtly radical theocratic agenda, American Vision is allied with some of the Religious Right's most powerful outfits. This year's conference was cosponsored by the Alliance Defense Fund, a well-funded Religious Right lawyers' outfit that James Dobson and other religious broadcasters helped create; Michael Farris's Home School Legal Defense Association; the late TV preacher Jerry Falwell's Liberty University School of Law; and World Magazine, Marvin Olasky's influential evangelical Christian periodical. (Christian Reconstructionists Are Trying to Take Dominion in America -- and They Have Powerful Friends By Jeremy Leaming, Church and State, AlterNet, Posted July 2, 2007, http://www.alternet.org/story/55717/)
PAT ROBERTSON (CBN, 700 Club)

"...Now what do you do? What do I do? What do all of us do? We get ready to take dominion! We get ready to take dominion! It is all going to be ours - I'm talking about all of it. Everything that you would say is a good part of the secular world. Every means of communication, the news, the television, the radio, the cinema, the arts, the government, the finance - it's going to be ours! God's going to give it to His people. We should prepare to reign and rule with Jesus Christ." (Robertson, speech at Dallas '84., http://www.inplainsite.org/html/kingdom_theology_3.html)


CHUCK COLSON (Prison Fellowship/ECT)
"Redeeming culture is the never-ending mission of the church." (Chuck Colson, Breakpoint, KLHT Radio, 1/2/05)
"I was deepening my understanding of what we call the cultural commission, the command to the Church to take dominion and bring righteousness to our culture. (Chuck Colson, God's Inseparable Commissions, Prison Fellowship, 01/05/2005, http://www.pfm.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=PFM_Site&temnlate=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentlD= 15120)

"Today-some 30 years into my ministry-I have come to believe passionately that all Christians need to take their faith out of the pews and into the trenches. We've got to be faithful to the cultural commission to have dominion, to work for Christian values to arrest our worldview slide. (Chuck Colson, Prison Ministry and Worldview: A Match Made in Heaven, Prison Fellowship, 08/29/2004,
http://www.pfm.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=PFM_Site&template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentlD=1 2515)

GARY NORTH (Christian Reconstructionist/Reformed Theology)
"Gary North, one of the movement's most vocal proponents, defines Reconstruction in this way: 'A recently articulated philosophy which argues that it is the moral obligation of Christians to recapture every institution for Jesus Christ." (http://www. libertymagazine.org/article/articleview/243/1/31)

RICK JOYNER (Kansas City Prophets/Latter Rain/NAR)

"What is about to come upon the earth is not just a revival, or another awakening, it is a veritable revolution. The vision was given in order to begin to awaken those who are destined to radically change the course, and even the very definition of Christianity." (Rick Joyner, The Harvest, "Joel's Army.")
EARL PAULK (Manifest Sons of God/Dominionist, recently involved in a sex scandal)
"Christ in us must take dominion over the earth.... The next move of God cannot occur until Christ in us takes dominion. (Earl Paulk, Held in the Heavens Until... 1985, p.234)
"The Church has been foreordained of God to become that people who will become so glorified that we can bring Christ back to the earth. This glorified church must make the earth God's footstool before Jesus can come again." (From The Wounded Body of Christ. Earl Paulk, quoted in Jewel Van der Merwe's book Joel's Army).

TOMMY TENNEY (Former UPC/Antitrinitarian/NAR)

"God literally moves His throne from heaven. When this happens the church is building a chair, a seat, a place for God to come. When is the church going to arise and build a mercy seat according to the pattern of heaven? And He will literally set up His throne, and you will have a throne zone in the midst of the church and some group somewhere is going to build a seat for the glory of God, and the water that flows from that place will eventually cover the earth. The next wave of revival is not going to be like anything that you have ever seen. There will be nothing of man on it or God won't come to sit. He is tired of breaking chairs that we have built for Him. He is demanding now that we build a mercy seat." (Tommy Tenny, Rivermail Archives: Mar.-Apr. 1999, The Glory of God

VINSON SYNAN (Reconsctructionist/Reformed)
"In all revolutions there are noisy and dangerous times as the OLD ORDER is replaced by the new... after the dust settles, WE CAN PROCEED TO BUILD the beautiful kingdom that the Lord has purposed from the foundations of the World" - (Vinson Synan, Fullness, Jan. - Feb. 1990, p.24.)
FRED PRICE (Word-Faith)
"But God has to be given permission to work in this earth realm on behalf of man. You are in control! So if man has control, who no longer has it? God. When God gave Adam dominion, that meant God no longer had dominion. So God cannot do anything in this earth unless we let Him. And the way we let Him or give Him permission is through prayer." (Fred Price, "Prayer: Do You Know What Prayer Is.. .and How to Pray?", The Word Study Bible, 1990. p. 1178)
ERN BAXTER (associate of William Branham, a Latter Rain founder)
"God's people are going to start to exercise rule, and they're going to take dominion over the Power of Satan. They're going to bring diabolical princes down. The dark powers that hover over the Parliament buildings of the nations are going to be paralyzed by the corporate prayer of an authoritative community. As the rod of His strength goes out of Zion, He'll change legislation. He'll chase the devil off the face of God's earth, and God's people together, doing the will of God, will bring about God's purposes and God's reign." (Ern Baxier, Nailonal Men's Shepherds Conference, Kansas City, Missouri, September, 1975)
BILL HAMON (Latter Rain/Prophetic Movement/NAR)
"At that time the sons of God will be fully manifested on the earth. Widespread spiritual warfare will result with the Sons of God doing battle with Satan and company, the non-Christian nations of this world will also be defeated. Once the earth has been subdued. Jesus will come back to earth and be given the Kingdom that has been won for Him by this "manchild company." (Bill Hamon, Prophets and the Prophetic Movement)
FRANCIS FRANGIPANE (Latter Rain/Associate of Rick Joyner/NAR)

"All spiritual warfare is waged over one essential question: who will control reality on earth - heaven or hell? We must see that our prayers, attitudes and agreement with God as an integral part of establishing the reality of the kingdom of God on earth!" (Francis Frangipane, Mainstream. Spring 1994, p.10.)

KENNETH HAGIN (Word-Faith/deceased)
"Yes, sin, sickness and disease, spiritual death, poverty and everything else that's of the devil once ruled us. But now, bless God, we rule them -- for this is the Day of Dominion!" (Kenneth Hagin, "Rejoice! This Is the Day Which the Lord Hath Made!", The Word of Faith, p.16, 7/96)
C. PETER WAGNER (Head apostle of the NAR)
"The cultural mandate, which some refer to as Christian social responsibility goes as far back as the Garden of Eden. After God created Adam and Eve, He said to them: "Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it, have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing... Both the cultural mandate and the evangelistic mandate are essential parts of biblical mission, in my opinion. Neither is optional. There is a growing consensus on this point in Evangelical circles. This was not true as early as twenty-two years ago when the Berlin World Congress on Evangelism was held in 1966. One of the first Evangelicals to stress the cultural mandate in a public forum was Horace Fenton of the Latin America Mission at the Wheaton Congress on the Church's Worldwide Mission, also held in 1966. Following that, the social consciousness generated by the social upheavals of the 1960's brought the cultural mandate to prominence until it was given a relatively high profile on the platform of the International Congress on World Evangelization at Lausanne in 1974." (C. Peter Wagner, "On the Cutting Edge of Mission Strategy," Perspectives on the World Christian Movement, A Reader, Revised Edition (Pasadena: William Carey Library, 1981,1992), pp. D-45-46.)
Finally, read what C. Peter Wagner claims is the new agenda for the churches as of 2004:
See, the problem is, is that Satan has had too much of his way in our society because he has a government! And the only way to overthrow a government is with a government. It won’t happen otherwise. So therefore the government of the church has to get into place in the extended church just like we do have it very well in place, we haven’t reached our goal yet, but it’s very well established in the nuclear church. ... These apostles in the workplace are the ones that are going to come into the picture and with them we’ll be open these gates, without them we can have all the prayer meetings we want, all the marches for Jesus we want, all the prayer walking we want, the gates aren’t going to be opened. Because it takes a government to overthrow a government. Gate number one, letter A, the gate of social transformation, the gate of social transformation. ... This gate will be opened when we understand about the church in the workplace, that the church has a government, that it takes a government to overthrow a government, and when we understand this, if we renew our minds, if we embrace this paradigm shift, if we see, if we hear what the spirit is saying to the churches, if we recognize ministry in the extended church and government in the extended church, the revival we’ve been praying for is just around the corner. We will see it. ...And now I pray for every individual here, before you, who is in the workplace, who tomorrow and in the days to come will be going out to their ministries in the workplace, and I impart to them an anointing, I impart to them an anointing for not seeing a job, but seeing a ministry in the workplace. And I impart an anointing to them and to this whole community to recognize and raise up apostles who will set the church in the workplace in order so that our cities, our communities, our states, and our nations will be transformed for Your glory, in Jesus’ name. (C. Peter Wagner, Arise Prophetic Conference, Gateway Church, San Jose, CA, 10-10-2004)
JIM LAFFOON (Apostle of the NAR)

Jim Laffoon, another "apostle" of the NAR recently stated this:
I'm utterly convinced, as I stand here tonight, that God has raised up this family in the earth to reach "every nation in our generation." But the ultimate purpose of God is not for us to reach every nation, it is to raise up a generation long after my generation is gone who because they have reached nations can begin to rule nations! ... As I look at this nation, as I look at the nations of the world, I'm here to tell you, that before we're done, we'll not merely plant a church in every one of the world's nations, we will study, analyze, and penetrate the cultures that control her. ... Before I die, I expect to see an incredible apostolic center in every nation in the earth. Before my children die, I expect they'll begin to see every culture in those nations begin to change.... We're raising up a generation of children who I believe if my generation is faithful to reach nations, the next generation can begin to rule nations. It is my passion. (Jim Laffoon (with Rice Broocks), "To Reach and To Rule", Morning Star Jnternational, Every Nation Churches and Ministries, 2004 World Conference: Every Leader - Every Church - Every Nation, July 15, 2004)
I could give you countless other quotes from today's leaders in Christendom, but as you can see these doctrines have penetrated almost every church and denomination. Many of the above are outright heretics, but some like Colson and North are well respected in evangelical circles. Yet they espouse the false teaching of Dominionism.
So how can "Christians" today mix the two opposing Eschatologies of a PreMillennial rapture and Dominionism? It is because they have not used discernment or thought through the ramifications. Either Rev. 1-3 is addressing the early church exclusively and the rest of Revelation already happened in the past, or Revelation was written to all generations and particularly to the last one. If you are a true Pre Millennialist you will understand that the warnings to be "overcomers" in a time of great persecution and tribulation leading up to and (possibly) including the Great Tribulation is a time when we must hold fast to the Faith till the end because there is a great apostasy already taking place. Either you believe there is a falling away and the antichrist comes first, or you believe that this is a time of worldwide revival where Christians can even command the natural elements. Though the Bible says we can move mountains with our faith, that faith has to be justified by obedience to God, His Word and His purposes. If this is not a time where we are to take dominion back in the earth, then any commanding of natural forces to take dominion is without the permission of God, and thereby without His power.

Christians need to clean up their theology. Either believe the ridiculous edicts of the false apostles and false prophets and buy solely into Dominionism, or come back to sound doctrine and believe what the Bible has to say. Those who love the Lord obey His commands and His Word.

Joh 15:10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
Joh 14:24 He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
1Jo 2:5 But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:
Jesus Himself put to rest any idea that the Kingdom of God would come apart from His second coming. Kingdom Now theology, which includes Dominionism, is soundly denounced by Jesus and we are told to run away from anyone who says the Kingdom has come.
Luke 17:20-37 Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst." And He said to the disciples, "The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. They will say to you, 'Look there! Look here!' Do not go away, and do not run after them. For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. "It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. "It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. "On that day, the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. "I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left." And answering they said to Him, "Where, Lord?" And He said to them, "Where the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered."
Let's dissect this passage with a view towards what is being "said" today about the Kingdom of God already being here and that we need to take dominion over the earth.
(1) The Kingdom of God will not come with signs to be observed. Those who tell stories about alleged miracles, signs and wonders, trying to prove that we are establishing the Kingdom of God on earth, are not being honest. Jesus told the Pharisees, the religious elite of His day, that they missed the Kingdom because they missed the King! The King was to come and suffer first. When the Kingdom of God comes in the end times, it comes when the King returns, not before.

(2) Just as in the time of Christ there are many today who say "look there, look here" for signs of Christianity taking over the world. They claim there is "transformation" happening all over the earth which is supposed to be part Christianity taking back lost dominion. They continually prophesy that a great end times revival is here, or is coming soon. They claim that we must take over the businesses (Anointed For Business by Ed Silvoso) and governments of the world (Dominion! by C. Peter Wagner). Yet Jesus said we are not to go away and run after people who make these claims.

(3) As in the days of Noah and Lot so shall the shock of the second coming be for those unprepared. Most Dominionists, who are Preterists at heart, believe that we live in some post Revelation age and that there is no falling away, Antichrist, Tribulation or Millennium to come. So they continue with their lives (eating, drinking, getting married, etc.) unaware of the apostasy and delusion they have bought into which the Bible clearly warns us about. When Jesus Christ comes to establish His Kingdom on earth for a millennium they will be caught unaware.

(4) Judgment from God at the end of the Tribulation will leave many dead. Those who are building themselves an earthly "kingdom" claiming they are going to give the earth back to God, in perfection, when He returns will be in shock. Then they will look back on the earthly kingdom they established with their fancy mega-churches just as Lot's wife looked back with longing at Sodom. The moment they turn back to their false kingdom of "goods and fields" they will be destroyed. Those who lay up treasure in Heaven by obeying God's commands and continuing to carry out the Great Commission instead of trying to build a kingdom now will be kept from God's wrath.

So have you bought into the dominion delusion? If you get in your car and follow me home you will end up where I end up ... at my home. If you are following false apostles like C. Peter Wagner then you will end up where he is going. Are you falling away? Instead of falling away, run away from these people!



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Important other articles to read on this subject:

Dominionism and the Rise of Christian Imperialism by Sarah Leslie, 12/05
The Dominion Mandate and the Christian Reconstruction Movement by Bob DeWaay, Critical Issues Commentary, 12/05
Dominionism Exposed compiled by Sandy Simpson, 2/2/06
Dominionism and Kingdom Now Teachings by Discernment Research Group, Herescope, 2/23/2006
Dominionism: The New Christian Fascism? - Is it ultimately that different from Islamic Fascism? by Sandy Simpson, 6/29/07
The Doctrines of Dominionism by Herescope, 7/9/07 - also read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 & Part 4.



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Monday, July 23, 2007

THE DEADLY MAGIC OF HARRY POTTER MOVIES


e this is a hot topic right now and many Christians are being deceived here goes.
My friend and sister in the Lord Berit states it all better and more clearly than I can acticulate.
I hope this helps someone.Tim

THE DEADLY MAGIC OF POTTER MOVIES




By Berit Kjos

July 17, 2007

NewsWithViews.com

"...it can't be much darker - or more dramatic - than the challenge the young wizard faces with the re-emergence of Lord Voldemort.... Claiming to have seen the mysterious Voldemort, Harry is met with disbelief and derision ... and the suspicion that he's a liar rapidly spreads through the school. More than ever before, the thing that makes Harry special also makes him an outcast."[1] Movie review

"Harry longed to bite the man... but he must master the impulse. He had more important work to do. But the man was stirring.... He had no choice.... He reared high from the floor and struck once, twice, three times, plunging his fangs deeply into the man’s flesh.... The man was yelling in pain... then he fell silent.... Blood was splattering onto the floor.... [Harry's] forehead hurt terribly."[2] Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Parents who watch the Harry Potter movies may not be aware of the dark, occult world that empower this series. Unlike the book, this dark movie doesn't explain the nightmarish scene above. Nor does it describe the murderous spells and curses that kill Sirius Black, Harry's beloved friend and "godfather." To better understand those forces you may want to read our review of the book behind the fifth movie, The Order of the Phoenix.

You may not know that Sirius, like Harry, was an animagus (shape-shifter) who could turn himself into a large, black dog. This shape-shifting process is sometimes called transmutation. Its roots may not trouble those who delight in Harry's magical world, but Christians should remember that shape-shifting has been part of sorcery and shamanism through the centuries.

In this segment of the seven-part series, Voldemort, the evil wizard with the cravings of a vampire, repeatedly makes his deadly assaults through the jaws of a serpent. And since Harry was psychically linked to this devilish wizard, he participates in the attack as if he were actually inside the snake -- as if Voldemort's spirit had possessed Harry's mind.

Yet, this event is not an example of shape-shifting. Both Harry and Voldemort have the magical ability to "talk" with snakes (parseltongue), but this is different. Harry is now an unwilling participant in Voldemort's mind. He feels his enemy's hatred, shares his thirst for blood, and participates in his murderous action. As Harry explains in the book,

"I thought I was a snake, I felt like one - my scar really hurt... It was like something rose up inside me...." (Page 481)
Not a nice story for children, is it? The rest of this sinister plot isn't much better. Harry is depressed and angry. His best friends don't understand him. Professor Dumbledore, Harry's father-like former protector avoids him. Though most Hogwarts students once admired him, they now distrust him. And the end of the movie leaves little hope in a better future. In fact, a coveted but hidden prophecy -- one that fueled some of the cruel curses near the movie's end -- warns that either Voldemort or Harry must die. One must kill the other.

Throughout the book, rage, revenge, lies, sarcasm and sorcery bombard the imagination of the reader. The movie dramatizes the same somber mood. Harry fears he is becoming increasingly like Voldemort, while the merciless wizard is rebuilding his army of scheming death eaters, many of whom are the fathers of Harry's most hostile classmates. Scene after scene immerses viewers into unforgettable evil -- often wielded by supposedly "good" wizards.

Today's love for such depravity shows that God's warnings are as relevant as ever. Here He describes ancient Israel, which had turned from God's loving protection to the deceptive guidance of diviners and sorcerers:

"...they obeyed not, nor inclined their ear, but walked every one in the imagination of their evil heart." Jeremiah 11:8.
FROM ENTICING FANTASY TO DEMONIC REALITY

In some ways Rowling's wizards resemble the real wizards behind medieval alchemy. The facts and philosophy behind alchemy are rarely mentioned these days, which might explain why Biblically illiterate "Christians" are so easily persuaded to equate it with Christianity. Author John Granger first introduced this deception in his 2004 book, Looking for God in Harry Potter, published by the "Christian" Tyndale House. He argues that alchemy (plus mysticism), rather than the cross of Christ, is the pathway to redemption -- and that Potter will show us the way:

"Understanding the Harry Potter books as alchemical writing in the tradition of the English 'Greats' will explain otherwise bizarre events, plot turns, and names in the novels.... The alchemist, like all traditional or non-modern people, understood man to be essentially spirit (as man is created by the Spirit), then soul, then physical body.... [H]is tragedy was that he was fallen, i.e., that he had lost his spiritual capacity or intellectus, by means of which Adam walked and talked with God in the garden. Alchemy was the means, in conjunction with the mysteries of the Church, by which he could regain this lost capacity....

"It is essentially a super-conscious or spiritual work that happens through correspondence with archetypes that are above, not below, individual consciousness.... Rowling clearly understands both 'alchemy in literature' and the 'alchemy of literature.' Her books satisfy the need in us, born in a profane culture without heroes or avenues of transcendent experience.... We get this experience in our identification with Harry.... Rowling’s novels are so popular because her works transform the human person via imaginative identification, catharsis, and resurrection."[3] [Emphasis added]
Yes, Rowling obviously understands both alchemy and sorcery. And her occult wizard-world may well "transform" members of emerging and market-driven churches through "imaginative identification." But Granger's misplaced reference to "resurrection" has nothing to do with Jesus Christ who gave His life to free us from bondage to the forces of evil.

In contrast, his usage of words such as "correspondence," "above" and "below" fit right into medieval alchemy and Rowling's magic. The phrase, "as above so below" dates back to ancient "mystery religions" and to the mythical Greek god Hermes. The occult philosophy linked to his name also gave birth to Hermetic magic, the mystical Kabbalah, Rosicrucianism, Theosophy and other occult organizations that flourished during the 19th and 20th centuries.[4]

A former member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn who became a Christian and renounced these works of darkness, explained it to us in these words:

"I was taught in ritual magick how to go to different planes of existence outside the physical body. I could create a realm there in which I could practice ritual magick and perfect my magical skills.... Through my will and imagination, I made things happen on the physical plane. As above, so below! This ritual magick is a manifestation of the power of your will."[5]
His words remind me of the Wiccan author Starhawk's formula for magic and spells. Author of The Spiral Dance and founder of the "Covenant of the Goddess" she taught her followers exactly what Harry and his young wizard friends were learning at Hogwarts. Rowling seems to know those occult principles well:

"To work magic is to weave the unseen forces into form, to soar beyond sight, to explore the uncharted dream realm of the hidden reality... to leap beyond imagination into that space between the worlds where fantasy becomes real; to be at once animal and god....

"Spells [and magic]... require the combined faculties of relaxation, visualization, concentration, and [mental] projection."[6]

FROM PAGAN BONDAGE TO CHRISTIAN FREEDOM

To equate the wizard world with Christianity, Rowling and "Christian" Potter fans must divide the wizard population into two categories: good and evil, or light and dark. The "good" wizards can then be likened to "Christians" who fight the forces of Satan.

But this wishful logic is flawed. Unlike the "good" and "evil" wizards, Christians and occultists turn to opposite sources of strength. And while Christians trust God's grace for victory, occultists trust their own magical skills and concentration for victory. There are no enlightening parallels between God's people and occult adepts![7]

Before the spread of Christianity, cultures around the world relied on the dark forces of the occult. Contrary to the modern illusions of noble, earth-loving primitives, tribal people of the past lived with constant, justifiable fears. They sought peace and healing, revenge and rewards through divination, sorcery and magic. Their shamans or medicine men could be kind or cruel, but their only source of supernatural relief was a dark pool of capricious demonic forces.

In those days, ordinary people feared angry spirits as much as they feared their jealous neighbors. So to save a sick child from a supposed angry spirit, a mother might offer a sacrifice to a "benevolent" spirit. To kill a rival, an offended warrior might rely on a powerful deity. Both might hire the services of the tribal shaman -- one who had "sold his soul" to gain his power.

That pagan world illustrates Harry's wizard world. Rowling's spiritual forces may seem less personal and more predictable, but neither world offers anything comparable to our Biblical God. There is no "good side" apart from knowing Christ.

The timeless results of popularizing spiritual alternatives are all around us.[8] Our children and grandchildren are learning to --

1. Love tempting alternatives rather than God. (Revelation 2:4-5)
2. Enjoy evil more than good. (Psalm 52:3 & Isaiah 5:20-21)
3. Trust fantasy more than Truth. (Jeremiah 7:24, 23:16)
4. Reject God's unchanging Truth and adapt home-taught values to changing culture. (2 Timothy 4:1-5)
5. Redefine Biblical words to support today's thrills. (Isaiah 5:20-21)
6. Ignore contrary suggestions and follow the crowd. (2 Timothy 3:1-14)


The solution, of course, is to turn back to God, to heed His warnings, and to follow His way:

"There shall not be found among you anyone who... practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out..." Deuteronomy 18:10-12


"Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord." Ephesians 5:8-10

Footnotes:


1, "Magical, but dark"
2, J. K. Rowlings, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Warner Brothers, 2003, p. 463.
3, Looking for God in Harry Potter
4, Warnings - How mysticism & the occult are changing the Church
5, Role-Playing Games & Popular Occultism
6, Starhawk, The Spiral Dance (New York: Harper & Row, 1979), p. 62.
7, Overview and Application of Harry Potter
8, America's Spiritual Slide



© 2007 Berit Kjos - All Rights Reserved



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Berit Kjos is a widely respected researcher, writer and conference speaker. A frequent guest on national radio and television programs, Kjos has been interviewed on Point of View (Marlin Maddoux), The 700 Club, Bible Answer Man, Beverly LaHaye Live, Crosstalk and Family Radio Network. She has also been a guest on "Talk Back Live" (CNN) and other secular radio and TV networks. Her last two books are A Twist of Faith and Brave New Schools. Kjos Ministries Web Site: http://www.crossroad.to/index.html


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Thursday, July 19, 2007

Checking Under The Hood


As of late people have been upset at me because of my exposure of Rick Warren and James Emery White endorsing the reading of Harry Potter books.
Ive been accused of trying to hurt those who are actively engaging the culture.
But does the Bible teach us that we need to actively engage the culture in order to share Jesus with them?
If you want to know what is counterfeit in the world today do you study what is counterfeit or what is true?
Treasury agents learn to detect counterfeit money not but studying counterfeit bills but actually studying real bills.
Do I need to know everything about Harry Potter or witchcraft to know that it is bad?
No I need to find out what the Bible teaches about witchcraft.

“When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire [an ancient occult practice], or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination [detestable] to the LORD…”
-Deuteronomy 18:9-12a

Now take notice in these verses witchcraft is not linked with a religion but with a practice.
One of the arguments for harry Potter is that it does not promote a religion such as wicca.
Agreed but it does promote practices the Bible strictly forbids.

Some comments from Christian Answers-

Those who follow the path of the magic arts are on the wrong path - a road that leads away from God, not toward Him. In one way or another, the end will be disaster. The evil Queen Jezebel practiced witchcraft (2 Kings 9:22) bringing catastrophe on herself and all Israel. Over and over, God denounces those who "conjure spells" (NKJV) and those who practice witchcraft and sorcery. The Bible says that anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord (Deuteronomy 18:10-12; 2 Kings 21:6; Micah 5:12; Isaiah 47:12; Ezekiel 13:18, 20; Acts 8:11-24; Leviticus 20:27; Exodus 7:11; Revelation 9:21; 22:15).

God warns of the ultimate punishment. Revelation 21:8 says of "…those who practice magic arts …their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur… the second death" (NIV). Those who practice witchcraft (sorcery) will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:20-21). These practices are anti-God and are in rebellion against Him.

The Mars Hill card is also played a lot but Paul called these people ignorant for worshipping a unknown god Acts 17:23.
The same folks defending Harry Potter probably missed this verse in scripture.

Many of citizens of ancient Ephesus practiced the magic arts. Those who became Christians realized the foolish error of their former lives and burned their expensive books of magic as the trash they were.
Acts 19:19
"Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver."

And what was the result of these folks burning the books?
Lets look to the next verse.
Acts 19:20
"So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed."

Wow we really dont want to talk about that kind of thing here in America but look at what the results were.

So what do we do about the counterfeit?
Many people who have bought a used car are beware and look to see if a car is cut.
That means a car that has been pieced together to look like a real car but in fact is fake and could cause a big accident possibly killing or severely injuring you.
Many preachers out there today are like cut cars.
Their statement of faith are modeled after the core doctrines of Christianity.
But when you get in and drive around a bit you realize something is wrong.
Compare what they do and preach and teach to Gods Word.
If it doesnt add up shut the door behind you.

Study Gods Word and be faithful Bereans.
Know who Jesus is.
Thats the best way to engage a lost culture and nation.

Men like James Emery White seems to be looking for something good in something that God says is evil.
Be a faithful Berean

Acts 17:11
"These were more fair–minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so."

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Coming Out Of The Closet


Since this very well could be the end times because of the signs its interesting to see so many in Christianity coming out of the closet concerning Harry Potter and the new age spirituality.
Ive noticed because of popular trends in the culture (which many undiscerning Christian seem to follow) pastors and leaders don't even hide the fact they want to popularize something God forbids and condemns in His Word.
Popular trends in the culture can make a lot of money for the big church machines man has created.
Are we saving souls and leading others to the Lord?
My Bible states in the end times there will be a great falling away.
Not great revival.

"Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being assembled to meet him ... Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion [in the original greek: apostasy - 'great falling away'] comes first, and the lawless [one] is revealed, the son of perdition..." 2Thess 2:1,3

"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..." 1Timothy 4:1

I do believe that is what is happening here right now. You will either believe these verses or not.

Its your choice.

On the Harry Potter topic I really don't see what Christians don't get.
The Harry Potter books specifically are about children going to a school to learn witchcraft.
So children who love Harry naturally want to imitate what Harry does.
Which is learn and hone skills using witchcraft.
Does God's Word in any verse, way, shape or form allow or promote witchcraft?
Does Gods Word state that witchcraft is ok if its used for good or moral purposes?
This is a very black and white issue.

Lets look at some James Emery White comments from his blog at Crosswalk.com.

"My reading list, of course, is not meant to endorse the content of the books, but to recommend the importance of reading the books." end quote-

link-http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/JWhite/11548000/

To me this is double speak which is a popular trend among many pastor's today.

I don't need to watch a porno book or watch a porno movie to know its bad for you.

I don't need to read Harry Potter to be able to speak to the public about witchcraft.

Yes I suppose we could find something moral in about anything the end justifies the means.
If your marriage is on the rocks and your sex life is on the fritz why not get your wife to buy some Fredrick's of Hollywood clothing or watch a adult movie. (Folks this is being promoted in the Christian community).

I'm sorry but if you cant see the beauty in your wife without dressing her up like a tramp I really feel for you.
But prayer can solve this issue not Fredrick's of Hollywood.

The same goes for Harry Potter.
One commenter compared James Emery Whites approach similar to that of Paul's approach to the Athenians.
I don't think this is a viable comparison.
You can be aware of whats going on in your culture without having to be immersed in it by literature and ritual practice.
Do I have to actually have to perform a spell (or attempt it) to witness to a wiccan and let them know the danger of this practice?
Of course not I just turn to Gods Word and show them where it is wrong.
Of course even though they will probably not to relate to Gods Word I can show them in Gods Word where Jesus died on the cross for them and wants to deliver them and spend eternity in heaven with them..
I don't have to read Harry Potter to be able to relate to them.

Now you have a choice.

Folks like Ken Copeland and Benny Hinn have been exposed time and time again but people still send them money.
You have a choice and will be held accountable for your choices.
Not by me but by God Himself.

Of course one day James Emery White and Rick Warren will have to give account directly to Jesus for all their actions and things they promoted.
So will I.

Many of the leaders and pastors in this new form of Christianity are no longer even trying to hide what they promote.
You cannot state you hold firm to the core doctrines of Christianity and then turn around and promote the occult and new age.
That makes a person double minded.

James 1:8 "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."
Meaning a person who has doubts is thinking about two different things at the same time and can't make up his mind about anything.
Can we even be sure these new brand of preachers believe in the core doctrines of the Bible?
Time will tell.
Again many of these leaders are coming out of the closet.


Tim Wirth

Monday, July 16, 2007

Update on Rick Warrens Minsitry Toolbox endorsing Harry Potter to over 400,000 pastors


I just received this in my google alert box a update and statement from James Emery White. This is a quote from the article-

"Those who put Harry in the “dangerous” camp are concerned about the use of magic and the presence of certain "dark" themes and even violence. They have dismissed them as being blatantly occultic, and have forbid their children to read them. I was reminded of this anew when just a few weeks ago I released my annual “Summer Reading” list through this Update (Vol. 3, No. 11). My friend Rick Warren reprinted that Update, as he has others in the past, through his “Ministry Toolbox” email which is sent to over 400,000 pastors around the world.
I began to see a few “Google Alerts” come my way as a handful of bloggers began to write how Rick Warren was now endorsing Harry Potter through “contemplative advocate” (huh?) James Emery White (I always thought of myself as more of a cultural apologist). My reading list, of course, is not meant to endorse the content of the books, but to recommend the importance of reading the books. For example, the list also recommended reading one of the three main “atheist” apologetics released this year, such as Christopher Hitchens’ God Is Not Great. I am surprised a blogger or two, using the same reasoning, didn’t accuse me and Rick of endorsing atheism!
Granted, it wasn’t a firestorm. I’ve had much worse of late. But I stand by my recommendation to be familiar with Rowling’s works. This is a momentous occasion in popular culture." end quote-
Read the entire article here
http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/JWhite/11548000/

So it seems that Rick Warren does endorse reading Harry Potter or considers it harmless fantasy.
I hope Rick would have the backbone to put out a written statement of his own that reading Harry Potter is ok.
Rick Warrens Ministry Toolbox goes out to over 400,00 pastors worldwide.
I would be interested to hear from other pastors and see what they think about Rick Warrens Ministry Toolbox endorsing Harry Potter as recommended reading.

I would also love to hear from Richard Abanes who wrote a very good book warning people about the dangers of Harry Potter.

James's eye opening article ends with this statement-

"Yet the larger conversation can be more positive, for the Harry Potter books and films give every parent and child something to think about as Christians, such as the reality of good and evil, the critical importance of choices, and the nature of sacrificial love.
So I, for one, say pick up and read.
I know I am going to.
James Emery White"

Maybe James and Rick both need to look in Gods Word what the Bible states about witchcraft and the practice of occultism.


Let me know what you think-
Peace
Tim

Retraction from Saddleback article

In my recent article "A warning to Saddleback" I stated that Rick Warren should have his fat head examined.
There is no reason for me to call Rick names and I was wrong and publicly repent of this.
Ive called others on name calling so there is no excuse for me to do the same.
I do not like Rick Warrens unbiblical methods which has done a extreme amount of damage to the Body of Christ.
But Rick will have to answer to the Lord for that.
That does not give me a excuse for name calling and Im sorry I did that.
I was in the flesh because of my strong emotions in the article.
Not to make excuses but my ex sister in law is a Wiccan and I know what witchcraft can do to a person and family.
No excuse to call Rick Warren names though.
With that I will retract that statement from my article.
I will attempt to settle down before I write future articles because I know that it hurts my credibility.

I do call on Rick Warren to state what he thinks about Harry Potter since it is being endorsed on his Ministry Toolbox website.

Tim

Thursday, July 12, 2007

A Warning to Saddleback Church and others-Harry Potter is being promoted on Rick Warrens website


Source-Rick Warrens Ministry Toolbox
http://www.pastors.com/RWMT/article.asp?ID=316&ArtID=10674
Now first of all its important to note that Rick Warren is not directly promoting Harry Potter but James Emery White is under his recommended reading.
Here is the quote-

Recommended reading
by James Emery White

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. Though the seventh and final installment is yet to be released (July 21, to be exact), when it does, it will be well-worth reading. Though some would disagree, I am one to put Rowling's work in the camp of fantasy literature, along with Lewis and Tolkien, with her use of magic more mechanical than occultic. I found her earlier six volumes instant classics of the genre, and the final book will undoubtedly cement this series as among the best written.

Now for the record I don't know anything about James Emery White it states he is a pastor but that doesn't mean anything these days.
Also I want to state for the record that James Emery Whites statement above is a lie and deception from the very pit of hell itself.

Even though you have to dig for this it is on Rick Warren site so Rick should be accountable for what goes on his site.
This goes to show you what happens when christian businessmen like Rick Warren take on the role (but not calling ) of pastor.

Another problem with promoting this on Ricks site is that it provides a link where you can buy the Harry Potter book on amazon.com

Rick himself has not come out in favor of Harry Potter but I wonder if he thinks he can make some money by putting more butts in the seat at Saddleback or it becomes in vogue will Rick go with the flow?
Unfortunately for Rick, Saddleback and the thousands being deceived this is not the flow of Gods Holy Spirit.

And where is Richard Abanes in all this?
My old sparring partner and un-officio spokesman for Rick Warren has all but disappeared from the net.
Richard wrote a excellent book about the dangers of Harry Potter which I read and passed around to several friends back in the 90's.
I would really like to know what Abanes thinks about all this?

Face it folks ever since businessmen like Rick Warren are now running church anything goes.
The Harry Potter endorsements Will be buried for now until they become ok with the new Christianity and Im pretty sure at that point Rick will give a wink and hearty thumbs up to reading material that can put children into deep occultic bondage. Harry Potter is nothing like Narnia or Lord of the Rings fantasy it involves children learning witchcraft-nothing less.

Here is a letter from a friend of mine that I would like to share with you about this subject.
And hey Rick why not ask Richard Abanes how bad Harry Potter is. That is if you really want to know?

Here is the letter.

PLEASE, PLEASE read what I have written to you today. I never really understood what it meant to grieve the Holy Spirit until I pursued these things. Although I know it is a topic many Christians, especially pastors, have decided to either accept or simply sidetrack, this has become an enormous sadness in my heart for some time and I want to share my concerns.

My daughter has many friends in churches where the "fun and exciting" films and books of Harry Potter are being talked about as if they are as good if not better than the bible. In recent conversations with many, MANY teenagers she knows, I have heard the same thing coming from their mouths... that they don't think about these books and movies from a biblical perspective. In fact, the pastors often talk about them as if they are the greatest thing to entertain oneself with. I believe you know, as well as I do, that witchcraft exists. It is very real and the demoralization of our nation is becoming greater as the days go by because we do not take a stand for our God anymore. The reverence and holiness of our Father and the fact that our lives do not belong to us anymore are of little concern to many Christians, youth and adult.

Are we not to take each day as a gift from our Lord? Are we not to try to live each day as best we can... to learn and grow and become His hands and feet and Word for those around us? Yes, the world is evil and many things in it are bad, but when we pay to entertain ourselves with evil, is that not an opposition to God and simply something to honor ourselves? Witchcraft is a complete opposition to Godliness. Many Many teens and young children are completely enticed by the Harry Potter topics. Perhaps you did not know that the author, JK Rowlings has practiced witchcraft and the chants in the books and movies are actual incantations. Please take the time to research her background and the background of her material. She prayed to Satan to bless her work, and so he has, with not only our children but our pastors being swept up in the evil. We are to abstain from evil, to think on things that are good and pure and just and noble. Not fill our minds with the opposite, no matter how enticing it is. Sin is enticing. That is merely what it is. Some claim that the books help kids to learn to read and the movies help to expand their imaginations. Shall we also place porn or slanderous reading in front of them if it helps them? We can teach our children the right and wrong of things without explicit involvement in them.

Please don't encourage this any longer. If you and/or your staff are promoting this material, please stop. It is completely against our Lord and His ways and it is heartbreaking for kids like mine who choose not to take part in it when every one of her friends feel the material is practically blessed by the pastors. As I stated above, the overall response when I ask them how they feel God would view Harry Potter, they simply said that they’ve never thought of it from the bible perspective before. Please encourage our kids to do that. I encourage YOU to do that. Check your lives against the bible and try to live as though Jesus was here… because He is. I ask that you would encourage our kids to think about all the books and movies they see. To pray and to seek God and what HE would have them do. Please don’t sidetrack the topic of witchcraft and demonism in what they consider fun and exciting. So many do not even believe it’s real. Others do not see anything wrong with it because our pastors do not take a stand against it. It isn’t just innocent entertainment. It is the eternal souls of so many.



Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
Exodus 22:18

Ye shall not eat [any thing] with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.
Leviticus 19:26

Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I [am] the Lord your God.
Leviticus 19:31

And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Leviticus 20:6

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood [shall be] upon them.
Leviticus 20:27

There shall not be found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, [or] that useth divination, [or] an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
Deuteronomy 18:10-11

And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, [Is it] peace, Jehu? And he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts [are so] many?
2 Kings 9:22

And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.
2 Chronicles 33:1-6

Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me [are] for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
Isaiah 8:18-19

But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
Acts 8:9-11

And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew [them] into the marketplace unto the rulers,
Acts 16:16-19

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Galatians 5:19-20

Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without [are] dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Revelation 22:14-15

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
Exodus 22:18

Ye shall not eat [any thing] with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.
Leviticus 19:26

Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I [am] the Lord your God.
Leviticus 19:31

And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.
Leviticus 20:6

A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood [shall be] upon them.
Leviticus 20:27

There shall not be found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, [or] that useth divination, [or] an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
Deuteronomy 18:10-11

And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, [Is it] peace, Jehu? And he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts [are so] many?
2 Kings 9:22

And he caused his children to pass through the fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom: also he observed times, and used enchantments, and used witchcraft, and dealt with a familiar spirit, and with wizards: he wrought much evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger.
2 Chronicles 33:1-6

Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me [are] for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
Isaiah 8:18-19

But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
Acts 8:9-11

And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew [them] into the marketplace unto the rulers,
Acts 16:16-19

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Galatians 5:19-20

Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without [are] dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Revelation 22:14-15

May our Lord bless your words and heart in these things.

Lynne

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Hot off the Press

Another great article from my firend and brother in the Lord Bud Press.

LifeWay's Fitness Expert Promotes Yoga

New Age Movement continues to Haunt Southern Baptist Convention

by Bud Press, Director

Christian Research Service

June 29, 2007



For years, the Southern Baptist Convention (hereinafter SBC) has warned Christians about the dangers of Yoga and the New Age Movement.



The SBC has developed articles, resolutions, and Interfaith Evangelism Belief Bulletins warning against the New Age Movement and Yoga.



LifeWay Christian Stores, a division of the SBC, removed Susan Bordenkircher's Yoga for Christians and Brooke Boon's Holy Yoga from its main online bookstore.



SBC officials have spoken out against Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement.



For decades, solid, Bible-based Christian apologists and cult-evangelists have warned the body of Christ about Yoga and the New Age Movement.



God's word, the Bible, warns about false teachers, worldly philosophies, strange doctrines, and traditions of men, and commands Christians to avoid them.



But despite the warnings, LifeWay and its own fitness expert, Branda Polk, promotes Yoga and encourages Christians to participate in Yoga classes.



Meet Branda Polk



Branda Polk is a Certified Fitness Instructor, personal trainer, wellness coach, and Pilates Instructor at Germantown Baptist Church in Germantown, Tennessee ( http://www.sbc.net/redirect.asp?url=http://www.gbconline.net ).



Polk, a professing Christian, is also the developer of and national spokesman for FIT-4 (a Christian Wellness program for LifeWay), a featured writer for LifeWay.com and the Baptist Press, and author of the book, With All My Strength: God's Design for Physical Wellness.



In her article, "Develop an Intentional Exercise Plan," Polk states that,



"Flexibility training or stretching can be performed everyday and can be as simple as bending, reaching, and stretching at home, to taking yoga or a stretching class at a fitness center" (LifeWay Christian Resources, undated).



But Polk's involvement with yoga goes quite deeper than a simple promotion. At Germantown Baptist Church, Polk is surrounded with Yoga of all shapes and sizes: "50+ Yoga, Yoga, Beginner Yoga, Mommy & Me Yoga, Yoga Flow, Evening Yoga, Yoga/Pilates Fusion, and Yoga Basics" (Germantown's YOGA & PILATES CLASS DESCRIPTIONS).



Germantown also offers classes on Prenatal Yoga, where "Unification of the mind and body are fundamental to yoga. This focus brings relaxation and joy to the mother-to-be as she bonds with her baby."



And it was about nine years ago when Germantown first incorporated "Christian Based Yoga" into its recreational program.



Welcome to Germantown Baptist Church, where all Yoga bases are covered; where Yoga has become a way of life.



Kickin' Yoga classes up a notch



Those who desire to further their "uniquely soulful experience" with Hatha Yoga, may join "people of all faiths" and become a Certified Yoga Instructor--courtesy of Germantown Baptist Church--for a monetary fee, of course ( Yoga Certification ).



Germantown's Yoga Certification workshop, which also includes instruction on New Age "Guided Relaxation," is headed up by Becky Martin, R.Y.T. (Registered Yoga Teacher).



Martin, the founder of "Christ Centered Yoga," believes that it was "prevenient grace that led" her "to first practice yoga in a church." Her Yoga "classes, workshops and retreats are open to people of all faiths and beliefs" ( http://www.christcenteredyoga.org/about.htm ).



Martin's Yoga workshop has gained considerable notoriety, and is even advertised and promoted on the New Age Yoga Journal website

( http://www.yogajournal.com/directory/teacher.cfm?teacherID=9214 ).



So too are Germantown Baptist Church's "50+ Yoga" classes ( http://www.yogajournal.com/directory/teacher.cfm?teacherID=7417 ).



Warnings from the past: the SBC's resolve on the New Age Movement



Germantown isn't the only Southern Baptist church that has bowed to Yoga and welcomed it with open arms. Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement have established a solid foothold within numerous Southern Baptist churches, which will be the subject of an upcoming article by Christian Research Service.



Within the past 30 years, the SBC has produced three resolutions concerning the New Age Movement. They are just as pertinent for today as the day they were introduced.



The first: Resolution on Transcendental Meditation (June, 1976), warns the SBC membership that "This movement has affinities with Hinduism and encourages practices of a religious nature..."



The second: Resolution on The New Age Movement (June, 1988), states in part that "The New Age movement has become a powerful political, philosophical, and economic force in our contemporary culture and is exerting its influence into every facet of American life," and that, "we encourage our Convention agencies, local associations, pastors, and church staffs to warn and educate our Baptist constituency of the deception and critical dangers of this movement."



The third: On The Threat Of New Age Globalism (June, 2000), states in part that "A key principle behind globalism is the philosophy of secular humanism, a foundational component of which is the belief that no religion can or does possess objective truth and that all religions are of equal worth..." (see also the SBC's June, 1981 Resolution on Secular Humanism ).



In addition, the Resolution On Southern Baptists and Ecumenism (June, 1996), resolves "That such efforts not commit Southern Baptists to any organizational or long-term relationship which would risk possible compromise of historic distinctives or the unique witness of Southern Baptists to the world..."



While the first three resolutions leave no doubt as to the "deception and critical dangers" the New Age Movement poses to Christians worldwide, secular humanism and the thrust for ecumenical unity among Christians and non-Christians are not only key factors within the New Age Movement, they are clearly defined in Scripture as doctrines of devils, philosophies of men, vain deceit, and traditions of worldly men.



But unless resolutions of this type are taken seriously, they are powerless and aren't worth the paper they are printed on.



SBC officials speak out against Yoga



Last year, while conducting research on how Yoga has worked its way into SBC churches, Christian Research Service made phone calls and wrote e-mailed letters to at least 20 officials within the SBC. The letters made a simple request for a positional statement on "Christian Yoga," and gave everyone the option to reply by e-mail or phone.



A letter was also sent to a few SBC pastors, as well as three apologists/cult-evangelists within the SBC's Cultural Evangelism Division of the North American Mission Board.



After experiencing the shuffling around from office-to office, the old duck-and-hide routine, and politically-correct excuses, the overall message was obvious: the subject of "Christian Yoga" within the SBC is a hot potato and is as important as a cheap can of soda pop at a taste-testing festival.



Nevertheless, two SBC officials did respond with specific statements that were free from excuses and political correctness.



Dr. Frank Page, President of the Southern Baptist Convention, stated:



"As for my personal statement regarding this issue, I would have to state that I know little about Yoga. I do affirm exercise and physical fitness. However, the little that I know about Yoga indicates that it is aligned with an eastern philosophy and/or theology that would render the use of Yoga as unacceptable for evangelical believers. While many persons are no doubt involved in Yoga without its understanding the alignment with these philosophies and theologies, I would encourage persons to avoid participation in such activity" (August 4, 2006).



Dr. Kenyn Cureton, then Vice President for SBC Convention Relations, stated:



"Thanks for your inquiry about Christian Yoga. The Southern Baptist Convention issues position statements through its resolutions, but even those resolutions are non-binding. To my knowledge, no resolution has addressed Christian Yoga. However, one resolution sets forth the principle of how Christians should relate to activities that conflict with clear biblical teaching."



As a part of his statement, Dr. Cureton provided the SBC's June 1992 "Resolution On Christian Witness And Voluntary Associations" (click HERE ), and ended his statement with the following:



"Maintaining personal purity in all activities and avoiding any association which conflicts with clear biblical teaching' would apply to yoga with its pagan Hindu foundations, even if it is called 'Christian Yoga'" (August 11, 2006).



In his April 19, 2007 Baptist Press article, Dr. Jimmy Draper (former president of the SBC and LifeWay Christian Resources), warned that Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement is demonic, and why Christians should avoid it:



"Our society is ripe for demonic activity. Our preoccupation and even 'flirting' with the occult invites demonic oppression. Even the seemingly innocent and careless use of occult tools is tragic. Things like the use of a Ouija board, astrological horoscopes, witchcraft, and even yoga are dangerous and provide openings for the demonic into unsuspecting lives" ("Dealing with the demonic," http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/BPFirstPerson.asp?ID=25452 ).



Dr. Page, Dr. Cureton, and Dr. Draper are right on target. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21).



Furthermore, Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a

greeting participates in his evil deeds (2 John 1:9-10).



Yoga is only one form of the New Age Movement that is testing the metal of Christians to find their weaknesses. Once the metal loses its temper, and Yoga is welcomed into a Christian church, other forms of deception are sure to follow.



This is evident with the aggressive invasion of New Age Contemplative Spirituality, Labyrinth, and the Emerging Church movement--all of which incorporate Yoga into their venue to some degree. They work together to cause confusion, controversy, strife and, in many cases, splits in churches.



Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).



As a side note: in the past, LifeWay has been exposed numerous times for the non-Christian materials within their online Christian bookstores. As stated in the introduction above, LifeWay removed Susan Bordenkircher's Yoga for Christians and Brooke Boon's Holy Yoga from its main online bookstore.



However, as of this writing, once again LifeWay is advertising and promoting Yoga within its online bookstore: Yoga Zone; Music for Meditation. Its release date is September 1998 (nine years ago).



God only knows how many innocent Christians have been deceived and misled by the spiritually corrupt within Christian churches and Christian bookstores alone. Instead of sitting back and watching the flowing river of deception run rampant through the body of Christ, Christians should be courageous and speak-out against it.



For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).



The new religion: non-Christian Christians



Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight! (Isaiah 5:20-21)



Concerning New Age influence in the Christian church, Baptist Press reporter, Andrea Higgens, reported novelist Ann Tatlock's concerns during a Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer's Conference:



"New Age and pagan influences--such as yoga, which means literally 'yoked' to the Hindu gods, and labyrinths, which originated as a pagan tradition--are seeping into the church and being billed as Christian practices, Tatlock said, voicing the need for writers to help people understand the serious concerns about such practices" ("Writers called to convey truth amid postmodern challenges," July 17, 2006, http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?id=23643 ).



In an e-mail response to Christian Research Service, Tracye Gano, Executive Director of Prophezine Ministries, summed up the roots of Yoga and a Biblical warning for Christians in one paragraph:



"No amount of re-labeling as Christian will change the roots or intent of yoga. It is a pagan practice, born from a pagan religion and therefore is condemned by Scripture. If Scripture forbids it so should we forbid it in our lives as Christians. There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (Proverbs 16:25, KJV)."



Tracye Gano's summation is correct. Regardless of how hard "Christian Yoga" instructors try to Christianize a pagan practice, Yoga's roots and its intentions cannot be changed, no more than a zebra can change its stripes. And what looks and smells good on the outside, may be poisonous on the inside.



It stands to reason that if Christians openly accept Yoga as harmless and valid, what about: Christian Astrology? Christian Atheists? Christian Feminism? Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Transsexual Christians? Christian Kabbalah? Christian New Age? Christian Psychic? Christian Shamanism? Christian Reincarnation? Christian Tai Chi? Christian Wicca? Christian Witchcraft? Christian Science? Christian Zen Buddhism? Christian Mormonism? Christian Jehovah's Witnesses? Christian Labyrinth? Christian Contemplative Prayer? Christian Emerging Church?



Those religious beliefs do exist. They are on the internet. They are self-proclaimed forms of Christianity, but they aren't Christian. Sun Myung Moon isn't the messiah and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il isn't God--although people bow down and worship them.



Nowadays, a person can claim to be practically anything and Christian at the same time. While there are many who maintain that Yoga can be intermingled with Christianity, Yoga is alien to the faith, foreign to Scripture, and an in-your-face form of evil. It must be rejected.



Regardless of how it is packaged, Yoga is self-worship ("Self-realization"). Self-worship is idolatry. And Scripture commands: Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:14) and Little children, guard yourselves from idols (1 John 5:21).



Demons on assignment



Take a careful look at the following quotes from New Age sources, and decide for yourself what it is that overshadows Yoga and those associated with it.



"Kailash, incidentally, is the abode of Shiva, the God associated with yoga, yogic powers and divine grace bestowed on mortals. Many Sai devotees believe that Baba is himself an incarnation of the Shiva-Shakti aspect of divinity" ("Master of Matter...The Divine Sport of [Sai] Baba on the sands of Chitravathi," http://www.srisathyasai.org.in/Pages/Devotees_Experiences/Master_Marvels.htm ).



And who is Sai Baba? In his own words, here is a dose of New Age reality:



"'I am God. And you too are God. The only difference between you and Me is that while I am aware of it, you are completely unaware.' This is the answer Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba gives to people who query Him about His identity and divinity" ( "Who is Sri Sathya Sai Baba?" ).



And how does one become aware of their own divinity? YOGA! How? Sri Swami Sivananda explains in part that,



"Yoga is unity, identity, homogeneity, oneness and sameness with God...The aim and end of Yoga is Self-realization. Yogic methods should not be applied for mere material gains. (Sri Swami Sivananda, "Foundation of Yoga," ( http://www.dlshq.org/discourse/sep96.htm ).



Throughout Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, God tells us that there is but one God--Father, Son, Holy Spirit--three Persons, one God. Since the God of the Bible is exclusive, all other "gods" are man-made and counterfeit. While men and women claim they are "gods" and "goddesses," in reality they are blaspheming the one and only true God of the Bible.



Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our

only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (Jude 1:3-4).



Void of the Spirit



Christian Research Service has made it a point to talk with Yoga instructors, including those who claim to be "Christian." While the "Christian" instructors maintained that Yoga is merely exercise and not a religious practice, they became annoyed, defensive, and disgruntled. And in most cases, they demonstrated the same spiritual attitude one would encounter while trying to reason with a Jehovah's Witness or loyal follower of Benny Hinn.



The same spirit encountered with the "Christian" Yoga instructors was the same spirit that has been encountered during witnessing sessions with Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and New Agers. They were void of the spirit of truth and filled with the spirit of error.



We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us; by this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error (1 John 4:6).



Professing Christians who participate in Yoga classes are being duped and deceived by mantra-chanting wolves in sheep's clothing. Make no mistake about it, "Christian Yoga" instructors are deceived and are deceiving others. They honor Jesus with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him. They worship Jesus in vain, and teach the doctrines of men (Matthew 15:8-9).



An appeal to those participating in "Christian Yoga"



Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning (1 Timothy 5:20).



A pastor who purposely and intentionally allows "Christian Yoga" into his church is not only sinning, he is deceived and is deceiving others, and is more likely to allow other forms of deception to enter the church. Frankly, if a pastor has little or no discernment, the "Doctorate" or "Masters Degree" he has framed on the wall of his office isn't worth the paper it is printed on.



If your church is bowing to Yoga, and the pastor and church officials refuse to listen to your concerns and, most importantly, what God's word says, you have at least three alternatives:



1. Remain in the church and take a chance on endangering your own spiritual welfare and being conditioned to compromise.

2. Leave the church, wipe the dust from your feet, and find a solid, Bible-based pastor and church that refuses to compromise. It may cost you your position in the church, job and paycheck, friends and family. But God blesses those who stand strong for Jesus Christ and the truth of His word.

3. If you are unable to find a new church, pray and continue to study your Bible on a daily basis. Have "church" in your home once-a-week. Start a Bible study fellowship with friends and family.



The SBC and a few officials warn against Yoga and the New Age Movement. But LifeWay, Branda Polk, and others at Germantown Baptist Church are purposely and intentionally promoting Yoga. This is not only tragic, it is sin and hazardous to the mental, physical, and spiritual welfare of Christians.



If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us (1 John 1:8-10).



SBC pastors, officials, and laymen need to awaken to the fact that the New Age Movement has already established a strong foothold, and will continue to spread until something is done about it--not next month or next year--but right now.



Recommended reading:



Books:

Yoga and The Body of Christ by Dave Hunt

Idolatry In Their Hearts by Sandy Simpson & Mike Oppenheimer

The Empty Pulpit: The Church in the Last Days by Mike Oppenheimer

Pass the Plate and Let Us Prey by Tim Wirth

For Many Shall Come in My Name by Ray Yungen

A Time of Departing by Ray Yungen

The Other Side of the River by Kevin Reeves



Articles on "Christian Yoga" and the New Age Movement:

http://www.erwm.com/NewAge.htm

http://www.erwm.com/Yoga.htm

http://www.letusreason.org/NAMdir.htm

http://emerging-church.blogspot.com/

http://www.spiritual-research-network.com/new_age.asp

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newage.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/labyrinth.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/cp.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/breathprayer.htm

http://www.christianresearchservice.com/ChristianYoga.htm

http://www.christianresearchservice.com/ChristianBookstores.htm

Hot off the Press

Another great article from my firend and brother in the Lord Bud Press.

LifeWay's Fitness Expert Promotes Yoga

New Age Movement continues to Haunt Southern Baptist Convention

by Bud Press, Director

Christian Research Service

June 29, 2007



For years, the Southern Baptist Convention (hereinafter SBC) has warned Christians about the dangers of Yoga and the New Age Movement.



The SBC has developed articles, resolutions, and Interfaith Evangelism Belief Bulletins warning against the New Age Movement and Yoga.



LifeWay Christian Stores, a division of the SBC, removed Susan Bordenkircher's Yoga for Christians and Brooke Boon's Holy Yoga from its main online bookstore.



SBC officials have spoken out against Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement.



For decades, solid, Bible-based Christian apologists and cult-evangelists have warned the body of Christ about Yoga and the New Age Movement.



God's word, the Bible, warns about false teachers, worldly philosophies, strange doctrines, and traditions of men, and commands Christians to avoid them.



But despite the warnings, LifeWay and its own fitness expert, Branda Polk, promotes Yoga and encourages Christians to participate in Yoga classes.



Meet Branda Polk



Branda Polk is a Certified Fitness Instructor, personal trainer, wellness coach, and Pilates Instructor at Germantown Baptist Church in Germantown, Tennessee ( http://www.sbc.net/redirect.asp?url=http://www.gbconline.net ).



Polk, a professing Christian, is also the developer of and national spokesman for FIT-4 (a Christian Wellness program for LifeWay), a featured writer for LifeWay.com and the Baptist Press, and author of the book, With All My Strength: God's Design for Physical Wellness.



In her article, "Develop an Intentional Exercise Plan," Polk states that,



"Flexibility training or stretching can be performed everyday and can be as simple as bending, reaching, and stretching at home, to taking yoga or a stretching class at a fitness center" (LifeWay Christian Resources, undated).



But Polk's involvement with yoga goes quite deeper than a simple promotion. At Germantown Baptist Church, Polk is surrounded with Yoga of all shapes and sizes: "50+ Yoga, Yoga, Beginner Yoga, Mommy & Me Yoga, Yoga Flow, Evening Yoga, Yoga/Pilates Fusion, and Yoga Basics" (Germantown's YOGA & PILATES CLASS DESCRIPTIONS).



Germantown also offers classes on Prenatal Yoga, where "Unification of the mind and body are fundamental to yoga. This focus brings relaxation and joy to the mother-to-be as she bonds with her baby."



And it was about nine years ago when Germantown first incorporated "Christian Based Yoga" into its recreational program.



Welcome to Germantown Baptist Church, where all Yoga bases are covered; where Yoga has become a way of life.



Kickin' Yoga classes up a notch



Those who desire to further their "uniquely soulful experience" with Hatha Yoga, may join "people of all faiths" and become a Certified Yoga Instructor--courtesy of Germantown Baptist Church--for a monetary fee, of course ( Yoga Certification ).



Germantown's Yoga Certification workshop, which also includes instruction on New Age "Guided Relaxation," is headed up by Becky Martin, R.Y.T. (Registered Yoga Teacher).



Martin, the founder of "Christ Centered Yoga," believes that it was "prevenient grace that led" her "to first practice yoga in a church." Her Yoga "classes, workshops and retreats are open to people of all faiths and beliefs" ( http://www.christcenteredyoga.org/about.htm ).



Martin's Yoga workshop has gained considerable notoriety, and is even advertised and promoted on the New Age Yoga Journal website

( http://www.yogajournal.com/directory/teacher.cfm?teacherID=9214 ).



So too are Germantown Baptist Church's "50+ Yoga" classes ( http://www.yogajournal.com/directory/teacher.cfm?teacherID=7417 ).



Warnings from the past: the SBC's resolve on the New Age Movement



Germantown isn't the only Southern Baptist church that has bowed to Yoga and welcomed it with open arms. Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement have established a solid foothold within numerous Southern Baptist churches, which will be the subject of an upcoming article by Christian Research Service.



Within the past 30 years, the SBC has produced three resolutions concerning the New Age Movement. They are just as pertinent for today as the day they were introduced.



The first: Resolution on Transcendental Meditation (June, 1976), warns the SBC membership that "This movement has affinities with Hinduism and encourages practices of a religious nature..."



The second: Resolution on The New Age Movement (June, 1988), states in part that "The New Age movement has become a powerful political, philosophical, and economic force in our contemporary culture and is exerting its influence into every facet of American life," and that, "we encourage our Convention agencies, local associations, pastors, and church staffs to warn and educate our Baptist constituency of the deception and critical dangers of this movement."



The third: On The Threat Of New Age Globalism (June, 2000), states in part that "A key principle behind globalism is the philosophy of secular humanism, a foundational component of which is the belief that no religion can or does possess objective truth and that all religions are of equal worth..." (see also the SBC's June, 1981 Resolution on Secular Humanism ).



In addition, the Resolution On Southern Baptists and Ecumenism (June, 1996), resolves "That such efforts not commit Southern Baptists to any organizational or long-term relationship which would risk possible compromise of historic distinctives or the unique witness of Southern Baptists to the world..."



While the first three resolutions leave no doubt as to the "deception and critical dangers" the New Age Movement poses to Christians worldwide, secular humanism and the thrust for ecumenical unity among Christians and non-Christians are not only key factors within the New Age Movement, they are clearly defined in Scripture as doctrines of devils, philosophies of men, vain deceit, and traditions of worldly men.



But unless resolutions of this type are taken seriously, they are powerless and aren't worth the paper they are printed on.



SBC officials speak out against Yoga



Last year, while conducting research on how Yoga has worked its way into SBC churches, Christian Research Service made phone calls and wrote e-mailed letters to at least 20 officials within the SBC. The letters made a simple request for a positional statement on "Christian Yoga," and gave everyone the option to reply by e-mail or phone.



A letter was also sent to a few SBC pastors, as well as three apologists/cult-evangelists within the SBC's Cultural Evangelism Division of the North American Mission Board.



After experiencing the shuffling around from office-to office, the old duck-and-hide routine, and politically-correct excuses, the overall message was obvious: the subject of "Christian Yoga" within the SBC is a hot potato and is as important as a cheap can of soda pop at a taste-testing festival.



Nevertheless, two SBC officials did respond with specific statements that were free from excuses and political correctness.



Dr. Frank Page, President of the Southern Baptist Convention, stated:



"As for my personal statement regarding this issue, I would have to state that I know little about Yoga. I do affirm exercise and physical fitness. However, the little that I know about Yoga indicates that it is aligned with an eastern philosophy and/or theology that would render the use of Yoga as unacceptable for evangelical believers. While many persons are no doubt involved in Yoga without its understanding the alignment with these philosophies and theologies, I would encourage persons to avoid participation in such activity" (August 4, 2006).



Dr. Kenyn Cureton, then Vice President for SBC Convention Relations, stated:



"Thanks for your inquiry about Christian Yoga. The Southern Baptist Convention issues position statements through its resolutions, but even those resolutions are non-binding. To my knowledge, no resolution has addressed Christian Yoga. However, one resolution sets forth the principle of how Christians should relate to activities that conflict with clear biblical teaching."



As a part of his statement, Dr. Cureton provided the SBC's June 1992 "Resolution On Christian Witness And Voluntary Associations" (click HERE ), and ended his statement with the following:



"Maintaining personal purity in all activities and avoiding any association which conflicts with clear biblical teaching' would apply to yoga with its pagan Hindu foundations, even if it is called 'Christian Yoga'" (August 11, 2006).



In his April 19, 2007 Baptist Press article, Dr. Jimmy Draper (former president of the SBC and LifeWay Christian Resources), warned that Yoga and other forms of the New Age Movement is demonic, and why Christians should avoid it:



"Our society is ripe for demonic activity. Our preoccupation and even 'flirting' with the occult invites demonic oppression. Even the seemingly innocent and careless use of occult tools is tragic. Things like the use of a Ouija board, astrological horoscopes, witchcraft, and even yoga are dangerous and provide openings for the demonic into unsuspecting lives" ("Dealing with the demonic," http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/BPFirstPerson.asp?ID=25452 ).



Dr. Page, Dr. Cureton, and Dr. Draper are right on target. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons (1 Corinthians 10:21).



Furthermore, Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a

greeting participates in his evil deeds (2 John 1:9-10).



Yoga is only one form of the New Age Movement that is testing the metal of Christians to find their weaknesses. Once the metal loses its temper, and Yoga is welcomed into a Christian church, other forms of deception are sure to follow.



This is evident with the aggressive invasion of New Age Contemplative Spirituality, Labyrinth, and the Emerging Church movement--all of which incorporate Yoga into their venue to some degree. They work together to cause confusion, controversy, strife and, in many cases, splits in churches.



Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).



As a side note: in the past, LifeWay has been exposed numerous times for the non-Christian materials within their online Christian bookstores. As stated in the introduction above, LifeWay removed Susan Bordenkircher's Yoga for Christians and Brooke Boon's Holy Yoga from its main online bookstore.



However, as of this writing, once again LifeWay is advertising and promoting Yoga within its online bookstore: Yoga Zone; Music for Meditation. Its release date is September 1998 (nine years ago).



God only knows how many innocent Christians have been deceived and misled by the spiritually corrupt within Christian churches and Christian bookstores alone. Instead of sitting back and watching the flowing river of deception run rampant through the body of Christ, Christians should be courageous and speak-out against it.



For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).



The new religion: non-Christian Christians



Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight! (Isaiah 5:20-21)



Concerning New Age influence in the Christian church, Baptist Press reporter, Andrea Higgens, reported novelist Ann Tatlock's concerns during a Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer's Conference:



"New Age and pagan influences--such as yoga, which means literally 'yoked' to the Hindu gods, and labyrinths, which originated as a pagan tradition--are seeping into the church and being billed as Christian practices, Tatlock said, voicing the need for writers to help people understand the serious concerns about such practices" ("Writers called to convey truth amid postmodern challenges," July 17, 2006, http://www.sbcbaptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?id=23643 ).



In an e-mail response to Christian Research Service, Tracye Gano, Executive Director of Prophezine Ministries, summed up the roots of Yoga and a Biblical warning for Christians in one paragraph:



"No amount of re-labeling as Christian will change the roots or intent of yoga. It is a pagan practice, born from a pagan religion and therefore is condemned by Scripture. If Scripture forbids it so should we forbid it in our lives as Christians. There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death (Proverbs 16:25, KJV)."



Tracye Gano's summation is correct. Regardless of how hard "Christian Yoga" instructors try to Christianize a pagan practice, Yoga's roots and its intentions cannot be changed, no more than a zebra can change its stripes. And what looks and smells good on the outside, may be poisonous on the inside.



It stands to reason that if Christians openly accept Yoga as harmless and valid, what about: Christian Astrology? Christian Atheists? Christian Feminism? Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Transsexual Christians? Christian Kabbalah? Christian New Age? Christian Psychic? Christian Shamanism? Christian Reincarnation? Christian Tai Chi? Christian Wicca? Christian Witchcraft? Christian Science? Christian Zen Buddhism? Christian Mormonism? Christian Jehovah's Witnesses? Christian Labyrinth? Christian Contemplative Prayer? Christian Emerging Church?



Those religious beliefs do exist. They are on the internet. They are self-proclaimed forms of Christianity, but they aren't Christian. Sun Myung Moon isn't the messiah and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il isn't God--although people bow down and worship them.



Nowadays, a person can claim to be practically anything and Christian at the same time. While there are many who maintain that Yoga can be intermingled with Christianity, Yoga is alien to the faith, foreign to Scripture, and an in-your-face form of evil. It must be rejected.



Regardless of how it is packaged, Yoga is self-worship ("Self-realization"). Self-worship is idolatry. And Scripture commands: Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:14) and Little children, guard yourselves from idols (1 John 5:21).



Demons on assignment



Take a careful look at the following quotes from New Age sources, and decide for yourself what it is that overshadows Yoga and those associated with it.



"Kailash, incidentally, is the abode of Shiva, the God associated with yoga, yogic powers and divine grace bestowed on mortals. Many Sai devotees believe that Baba is himself an incarnation of the Shiva-Shakti aspect of divinity" ("Master of Matter...The Divine Sport of [Sai] Baba on the sands of Chitravathi," http://www.srisathyasai.org.in/Pages/Devotees_Experiences/Master_Marvels.htm ).



And who is Sai Baba? In his own words, here is a dose of New Age reality:



"'I am God. And you too are God. The only difference between you and Me is that while I am aware of it, you are completely unaware.' This is the answer Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba gives to people who query Him about His identity and divinity" ( "Who is Sri Sathya Sai Baba?" ).



And how does one become aware of their own divinity? YOGA! How? Sri Swami Sivananda explains in part that,



"Yoga is unity, identity, homogeneity, oneness and sameness with God...The aim and end of Yoga is Self-realization. Yogic methods should not be applied for mere material gains. (Sri Swami Sivananda, "Foundation of Yoga," ( http://www.dlshq.org/discourse/sep96.htm ).



Throughout Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, God tells us that there is but one God--Father, Son, Holy Spirit--three Persons, one God. Since the God of the Bible is exclusive, all other "gods" are man-made and counterfeit. While men and women claim they are "gods" and "goddesses," in reality they are blaspheming the one and only true God of the Bible.



Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our

only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (Jude 1:3-4).



Void of the Spirit



Christian Research Service has made it a point to talk with Yoga instructors, including those who claim to be "Christian." While the "Christian" instructors maintained that Yoga is merely exercise and not a religious practice, they became annoyed, defensive, and disgruntled. And in most cases, they demonstrated the same spiritual attitude one would encounter while trying to reason with a Jehovah's Witness or loyal follower of Benny Hinn.



The same spirit encountered with the "Christian" Yoga instructors was the same spirit that has been encountered during witnessing sessions with Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and New Agers. They were void of the spirit of truth and filled with the spirit of error.



We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us; by this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error (1 John 4:6).



Professing Christians who participate in Yoga classes are being duped and deceived by mantra-chanting wolves in sheep's clothing. Make no mistake about it, "Christian Yoga" instructors are deceived and are deceiving others. They honor Jesus with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him. They worship Jesus in vain, and teach the doctrines of men (Matthew 15:8-9).



An appeal to those participating in "Christian Yoga"



Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning (1 Timothy 5:20).



A pastor who purposely and intentionally allows "Christian Yoga" into his church is not only sinning, he is deceived and is deceiving others, and is more likely to allow other forms of deception to enter the church. Frankly, if a pastor has little or no discernment, the "Doctorate" or "Masters Degree" he has framed on the wall of his office isn't worth the paper it is printed on.



If your church is bowing to Yoga, and the pastor and church officials refuse to listen to your concerns and, most importantly, what God's word says, you have at least three alternatives:



1. Remain in the church and take a chance on endangering your own spiritual welfare and being conditioned to compromise.

2. Leave the church, wipe the dust from your feet, and find a solid, Bible-based pastor and church that refuses to compromise. It may cost you your position in the church, job and paycheck, friends and family. But God blesses those who stand strong for Jesus Christ and the truth of His word.

3. If you are unable to find a new church, pray and continue to study your Bible on a daily basis. Have "church" in your home once-a-week. Start a Bible study fellowship with friends and family.



The SBC and a few officials warn against Yoga and the New Age Movement. But LifeWay, Branda Polk, and others at Germantown Baptist Church are purposely and intentionally promoting Yoga. This is not only tragic, it is sin and hazardous to the mental, physical, and spiritual welfare of Christians.



If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us (1 John 1:8-10).



SBC pastors, officials, and laymen need to awaken to the fact that the New Age Movement has already established a strong foothold, and will continue to spread until something is done about it--not next month or next year--but right now.



Recommended reading:



Books:

Yoga and The Body of Christ by Dave Hunt

Idolatry In Their Hearts by Sandy Simpson & Mike Oppenheimer

The Empty Pulpit: The Church in the Last Days by Mike Oppenheimer

Pass the Plate and Let Us Prey by Tim Wirth

For Many Shall Come in My Name by Ray Yungen

A Time of Departing by Ray Yungen

The Other Side of the River by Kevin Reeves



Articles on "Christian Yoga" and the New Age Movement:

http://www.erwm.com/NewAge.htm

http://www.erwm.com/Yoga.htm

http://www.letusreason.org/NAMdir.htm

http://emerging-church.blogspot.com/

http://www.spiritual-research-network.com/new_age.asp

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newage.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/labyrinth.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/cp.htm

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/breathprayer.htm

http://www.christianresearchservice.com/ChristianYoga.htm

http://www.christianresearchservice.com/ChristianBookstores.htm

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