In This Issue:
"The Era of the Single Savior
is Over" - A New Age Peace Plan
Yoga Academy Writes to Lighthouse
Trails
Calvary Chapel May Face Challenge
in Upholding Position Paper
Yoga: Posture of Apostasy
Oswald Chambers on Church Growth
and an End-Time World Religion
Update: World Vision and Brian
McLaren
Do You Really Want Your Child
to Learn New Age Meditation?
Probe Ministries Administrator
Fond of Dallas Willard's Spiritual Disciplines
Focus on the Family Continues
its Dive into Contemplative
The Message "Bible" Omits the
Warnings of II Timothy |
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It is important to remember
that when we speak of contemplative
spirituality, we speak not just
of the act of contemplative prayer
but also the belief system behind
the practice. The foundation of
contemplative prayer is contemplative
spirituality. The "fruit" or outcome
of contemplative spirituality is
panentheism (God in all things)
and interspirituality (all religions
are united), both of which negate
the gospel message of Jesus Christ.
With the world and much of Christendom
racing towards global peace and
unity, meditation is the glue that
binds it all together, and ironically
meditation is also at the heart
of the occult. From Harry Potter
to Yoga, from Purpose Driven to
the emerging church, from Spiritual
Formation to Ancient Wisdom, this
mysticism is weaving through humanity
at an alarming rate. This mystical
realm that is taking hold is not
the Kingdom of God, as many project,
but rather is part of the kingdom
of this world and will never lead
to life or truth.
"The coming of the lawless one is according
to the working of Satan, with all
power, signs and wonders, and with
all unrighteous deception among those
who perish, because they did not receive
the love of the truth, that they might
be saved. And for this reason God
will send them strong delusion, that
they should believe the lie." II Thessalonians 2:9- 11
We praise God that there is a way
out of that kingdom of darkness, which
is through our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ: "Who hath delivered us
from the power of darkness, and hath
translated us into the kingdom of
his dear Son: In whom we have redemption
through his blood, even the forgiveness
of sins." Colossians 1:13-14 |
"The Era of the Single Savior
is Over" - A New Age Peace Plan
One
year after the events of September
11th, 2001, New Age leader Neale
Donald Walsch's new book The New
Revelations: A Conversation with God
was published. In this book Walsch
announced that "God" was now offering
humanity an opportunity to avert self-destruction,
and achieve world peace, by accepting
the principles of his New Spirituality.
Walsch explained that "God" was proposing
a post-September 11th "PEACE Plan"
that would help to bring the world's
widely varying religions and belief
systems closer together. Walsch's
"God" was calling his PEACE Plan "The
Five Steps to Peace." And both Walsch
and his "God" were citing Robert Schuller
as the kind of "extraordinary minister"
who could help make the PEACE Plan
and the New Spirituality work for
everyone. Walsch's "God" quoted a
statement that Schuller had made in
his 1982 book, Self-Esteem: The New
Reformation. Schuller had written
that "theologians must have their
international, universal, transcreedal,
transcultural, transracial standard."
Walsch's
"God" suggested that this universal
standard be the statement: "We Are
All One." Prior to Walsch and his
"God" bringing Schuller into their
conversation, they discussed their
thoughts about the PEACE Plan and
the world's need for a New Spirituality.
In
his introduction to New Revelations:
A Conversation with God, Walsch
wrote:
The
world is in trouble. Bigger trouble
than it has ever been in before.
This
book provides an explanation of
the crisis we are facing in a
way that not only clarifies the
crisis, but clarifies how to resolve
it.
This
is a life-altering book. It contains
New Revelations. It provides the
tools with which to pull ourselves
out of despair, lifting the whole
human race to a new level of experience,
to a new understanding of itself,
to a new expression of its grandest
vision.
"God"
told Walsch that people are not
being terrorized by other people.
They are being terrorized by people's
"beliefs." In a language and tone
reminiscent of the serpent in the
Garden of Eden, Walsch's "God" explained
that people don't have to change
their individual beliefs, they just
need to "transcend" them. He said
that "transcending" does not mean
that you have to abandon your beliefs
completely, but rather just modify
and "enlarge" them.
"Transcending"
does not mean always being "other
than," it means always being "larger
than." Your new, larger belief system
will no doubt retain some of the
old—that part of the old belief
system that you experience as still
serving you—and so it will be a
combination of the new and the old,
not a rejection of the old from
top to bottom.
Walsch's
"God" cunningly advised that most
people couldn't and shouldn't abandon
all their beliefs because it would
make everything suddenly seem "wrong."
It would make their Scriptures and
traditions seem wrong. It would
make their lives seem wrong. "God"
told Walsch:
In
fact, you don't have to declare
that you were "wrong" about anything,
because you weren't. You simply
didn't have a complete understanding.
You needed more information.
Transcending
current beliefs is not an outright
rejection of them; it is an "adding
to" them.
Now
that you have more information
that you can add to what you presently
believe, you can enlarge your
beliefs—not completely reject
them, enlarge them—and move on
with your lives in a new way.
A
way that works.
But
then there is the "catch." Walsch's
New Age "God" warned that the New
Spirituality will necessitate a
willingness to compromise. To achieve
world peace, people will have to
sincerely dialogue about their perceived
differences and perhaps even "give
up" some of their most sacredly
held beliefs. "God" explained to
Walsch:
It
will take an unprecedented act
of courage, on a grand scale.
You may have to do something virtually
unknown in the annals of human
history.
You
may have to give up some of your
most sacred beliefs.
Walsch's
"God" explained that in the near
future established religions may
still retain the general nature
of their individual identities.
But he severely warned that a "self-centered"
and "exclusivistic" belief in a
personal Savior would not be conducive
to a world seeking peace and harmony.
In other words, he was telling Christians
that, in the days of the New Spirituality,
Jesus can be your friend but not
your Lord and Savior. In a statement
that should sober every Christian
believer on the face of the earth,
Walsch's "God" warned:
Yet
let me make something clear. The
era of the Single Savior is over.
What is needed now is joint action,
combined effort, collective co-creation.
For
the entire
article and a printer friendly version
of it, click here.
Editor's
Note: When Lighthouse Trails editors
first read Deceived on Purpose in 2004, they knew this was a
book that the church needed to read.
That is why they decided to carry
Smith's book. It is a powerful testimonial
showing the New Age implications of
the Purpose Driven Life. Couple that
with the solid documentation that A Time of Departing presents,
showing the connections between Purpose
Driven and contemplative, and there
leaves no doubt that Christians should
not become Purpose Driven.
"The Era of the Single Savior
is Over" - A New Age Peace Plan |
Yoga Academy Writes to Lighthouse
Trails
The term Christian
Yoga is an insult to Hindus and
an oxymoron at best.
On May 19th, Danda of the Dharma Yoga
Ashram wrote to Lighthouse Trails
and said the following. We asked permission
to post their email:
"Is Yoga a religion that denies Jesus
Christ? Yes. Just as Christianity
denies the Hindu MahaDevas such as
Siva, Vishnu, Durga and Krishna, to
name a few, Hinduism and its many
Yogas have nothing to do with God
and Jesus (though we do respect that
others believe in this way).
"As Hindus who live the Yogic lifestyle,
we appreciate when others understand
that all of Yoga is all about the
Hindu religion. Modern so-called 'yoga'
is dishonest to Hindus and to all
non-Hindus such as the Christians."
Danda, Dharma Yoga Ashram
(Classical
Yoga Hindu Academy)
For
those who think that Yoga can be utilized
as just a harmless exercise, we recommend
you check out the Classical
Yoga Hindu Academy. For
Christians to use the phrase "Christian
Yoga" such as Thomas Nelson publishers
did in their recent book, Yoga
for Christians, would
be like Hindus calling our communion
service, Hindu
Communion. Listen to what
former Hindu guru, Rabi Maharaj said
in his book, Death
of a Guru (Rabi Maharaj
and Dave Hunt, 1977):
Nothing
was more important than our daily
transcendental meditation, the heart
of Yoga, which Krishna advocated
as the surest way to eternal Bliss....
Although the peace I experienced
in meditation so easily deserted
me, the occult forces that my practice
of Yoga cultivated and aroused lingered
on and began to manifest themselves
in public.... Often while I was
in deep meditation the gods became
visible and talked with me. At times
I seemed to be transported by astral
projection to distant planets or
to worlds in other dimensions. It
would be years before I would learn
that such experiences were being
duplicated in laboratories under
the watchful eyes of parapsychologists
through the use of hypnosis and
LSD. (pp. 31, 75).
Related information:
Research
on Yoga
Gimme
Yoga, a Burger and Fries
Christian
Yoga, an Oxymoron
|
Calvary Chapel May Face Challenge
in Upholding Position Paper
According
to a position paper that was issued
earlier this week by Calvary Chapel,
the movement (founded in the 70s
by Chuck Smith), is rejecting certain
practices that are associated with
contemplative spirituality. The
paper goes so far as to say that
those Calvary Chapel churches which
adhere to such practices should
no longer call themselves Calvary
Chapel.
In a time when it appears that most
Christian leaders are either heading
towards contemplative or are remaining
silent on the issue, it is commendable
that Calvary Chapel is speaking
up.
The new Calvary Chapel position
paper came on the heels of a discovery
that a book written by Pastor Chuck
Smith (When Storms Come)
had been tampered with, and an editor
placed contemplative language in
the book, unbeknownst to Smith.
There is a growing concern that
Calvary Chapel may face an immense
challenge in attempting to uphold
the new position paper. Roger Oakland,
founder of Understand
the Times, has been traveling
around the world for over 20 years,
focused primarily on ministering
to Calvary Chapels. After the paper
was released, Oakland told us:
Calvary
Chapel is at a critical point
in the history of the movement.
If clear correction is made, then
the movement will go on and become
a lighthouse in these last days.
If nothing more happens than a
written statement, and pastors
and churches are permitted to
carry the name Calvary Chapel
but embrace contemplative, purpose
driven, seeker friendly market
driven ideas, the movement will
break into various segments. There
are many Calvary Chapel pastors
who are asking for this kind of
clear cut direction and want Calvary
Chapel to remain what it once
was.
Calvary
Chapel has made a courageous and
bold step towards doing what is
right. We must pray for its leaders
and pastors that the position paper
will be just the first of many steps
that are now needed to stay on track
with preaching the gospel of Jesus
Christ. The annual Calvary Chapel
pastor's conference will be taking
place the first week of June. Please
keep these pastors in your prayers
during this time.
Related Information:
Our
Press Release on the Calvary Chapel
Position Paper (linking to the
position paper)
Purpose Driven Conflicts with Calvary Chapel |
Yoga: Posture of Apostasy
Can yogic practices
be integrated with the Christian faith?
by Larry De Bruyn
"Oh,
East is East, and West is West,
and never the twain shall meet .
. ." Rudyard Kipling's words accent
the difference between eastern and
western spirituality, between Hinduism
and Christianity. But the two, "the
twain" as it were, are now meeting
via yogic practices being promoted
in various places of worship and
activities of spirituality. Take
for example, one Jewish synagogue.
The weekly Shabbat services of Congregation
Beth-El Zedek have included such
activities as "Torah Yoga," which
asks congregants to "stretch and
take deep breaths" as the Torah
is read, or when as worshippers
enter the synagogue, they are "welcomed
by Torah meditations set to drums
and chanting."[1] But Jews are not
alone in adopting yogic postures
and practices.
"Christian
yoga" is also gaining popularity.
Thomas Nelson, a Christian publisher,
recently released a book titled, Yoga for Christians, by Susan
Bordenkircher.[2] In an interview
with the Denver Post, the author,
a fitness instructor, explained,
"What we are attempting to do with
a Christ-centered practice is fill
the heart and mind with God, becoming
'single-minded' as Scripture calls
it." Unapologetic for promoting
so called "Christian yoga", she
explains that "Christ-centered yoga
is definitely not just a repackaging
of . . . yoga. The difference, she
says, lies in the intention: shifting
the focus from self to God with
yogic postures ('breathing in' the
Holy Spirit, for instance), integrating
health as critical to effective
godly service, and slowing down
enough 'from our fast-paced lives
to actually hear God's voice.'"[3]
Wow . . . "breathing in the Holy
spirit . . . slowing down . . .
to actually hear the voice of God."
The
instructor's words betray an ominous
and foreboding ignorance of Christian
truth. Believers do not breathe
in the Holy Spirit. When by faith
people are justified (i.e., saved),
in a millisecond of time they are
regenerated (Jn. 3:3, 5-7) and instantly
indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God.
Corporately and individually believers
are the "temple" of the Holy Spirit
(1 Cor. 6:19). As Paul wrote to
the Roman believers, "However, you
are not in the flesh but in the
Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of
God dwells in you. But if anyone
does not have the Spirit of Christ,
he does not belong to Him" (Rom.
8:9). There are only two types of
persons in the world: saints and
"ain'ts"--those in whom the Holy
Spirit lives, and those in whom
He does not. Given the Spirit's
abiding presence in the life of
the believer, how can He then be
inhaled into the soul via yogic
practice? Answer: He can't, because
at salvation the Holy Spirit makes
the justified believer's soul His
sanctuary! Hopefully this yoga instructor
isn't suggesting that regeneration
takes place by a sort of yogic "in breathing"
of the Holy Spirit. If she really
is, then by adding a human mechanism
(i.e., "breathing in"), her version
of spirituality stands in blatant
contradiction to the salvation that
comes "by grace . . . through faith"
(Eph. 2:8-9). Her spirituality formula
also opposes Jesus' testimony that
like the wind, the Sovereign Spirit
blows when and where He "wishes"
(Jn. 3:8). The Sovereign Spirit
will not be manipulated or controlled
by yogic "in breathing."
Read entire article, Yoga: Posture
of Apostasy |
Oswald Chambers on Church
Growth and an End-Time World Religion
"Oswald Chambers is the author
of the well-known devotional My
Utmost For His Highest. It was
recently said of one of America's
top church-growth pastor/experts (in
the jacket of his book) that he ministers
'his distilled wisdom' in the 'tradition
of Oswald Chambers.' Evidently the
one who made this statement never
read what Oswald had to say ..."Read
Oswald Chambers quotes. Courtesy of David Sheldon, Scriptural Visuals
|
Update: World Vision and
Brian McLaren
In
our May 17th newsletter, we carried
an article titled: World Vision Promotes
Emerging Leader, Brian McLaren. The
article stated that in a recent issue
of World Vision's magazine Child View,
there was a full page article by emerging
leader Brian McLaren. World Vision
has responded to this situation with
the following comments:
[R]
egarding Brian McLaren's column
in the "Faith in Action" section
of Childview. At World Vision, we
recognize that the body of Christ
includes all who follow Jesus and
who seek God's kingdom here on earth.
As Christians, we may not all agree
on the same doctrines. But let us
strive for tolerance and inclusion
as we work toward our common purpose
of being the hands and feet of Jesus
in a suffering world.
Please refer to our
05/17/06 newsletter for
background information on this story.
|
Do You Really Want Your Child
to Learn New Age Meditation?
Children are learning
to meditate, and Christian organizations
are helping out.
"Going
to the next level with Jesus in
contemplative prayer really can
be more exciting than your favorite
video game. Why not take a God-break
right now and discover what's at
the next level?"
"Contemplate:
Be still before God. Get a picture
of a sunset in your mind . . . or
something else He has made that
amazes you. Wait quietly to let
Him tell you about Himself. Now
contemplate God the Father, or Jesus,
using Lectio Divina with these passages:
Exodus 15:11; Psalm 145:13; Ephesians
1:18-23."
"If
you've picked a topic for your time
with Jesus, find something to hold
that will remind you of it. For
instance, if you are contemplating
His many thoughts about you, hold
a cup of sand (Psalm 139:17-18,
New Living Translation). If you
are thinking about His tender care,
hold a strand of your hair (Matthew
10:30)."
These quotes are from the NavPress
magazine, Pray Kids.
But NavPress isn't the only Christian
venue that is promoting meditation
for kids. See the following examples:
|
Probe Ministries Administrator
Fond of Dallas Willard's Spiritual
Disciplines
Director of Administration
of Probe Ministries, Don Closson,
has written an article stating his
fondness for Dallas
Willard's book, Spirit of the
Disciplines, saying he "found
it to be a jewel." Willard, who works
closely with Richard Foster, makes
no secret of his affinity with contemplative
spirituality.
Don Closson's article |
Focus on the Family Continues
its Dive into Contemplative
The well-respected
ministry posts another article which
promotes contemplative spirituality.
TrueU.org is a ministry of Focus on the Family.
The ministry website states that the
ministry is "an online community for
college students who want to know
and confidently discuss the Christian
worldview. Our hope is that you'll
graduate with your faith not only
intact, but stronger than it was before."
With Focus on the Family's recent
statements that they have no problem
with the "tradition of contemplative
prayer" or the writings of contemplative
Gary Thomas (who encourages his readers
to repeat a word or phrase for twenty
minutes), it may not be possible for
students of the TrueU online community
to graduate with their faith "intact"
and stronger. A
four part article on the TrueU website written by J. P. Moreland (professor
at Talbot School of Theology) espouses
the spiritual disciplines (i.e., contemplative
spirituality).
Moreland says, a "Christian spiritual
discipline is a repeated bodily practice"
and leaves one to view the Christian
life as regimented rituals that just
might eventually make us holy if we
practice them enough. Moreland continues:
"People are coming to see that repeated
bodily practice in the form of spiritual
exercises/disciplines is at the heart
of spiritual transformation." These
spiritual disciplines that Moreland
speaks of include journalling, not
just writing down our own thoughts
but also a channeling of God's thoughts
to us. Other disciplines fall into
two categories, Disciplines of Abstinence
and Disciplines of Engagement. If
you are beginning to feel concerned
that this kind of language is similar
to Catholic rituals, there is just
cause for your concerns - Moreland,
in talking about silence and solitude
says, "In my experience, Catholic
retreat centers are usually ideal
for solitude retreats." In light of
the fact that the modern day contemplative
prayer movement began in Catholic
monasteries, it is actually not surprising
that Moreland would recognize this.
As do many contemplatives, Moreland
finds it necessary to tell readers
that even though what he is saying
may "sound" like it is from a "New
Age guru," it really isn't. And using
Psalm 46:10 (frequently used by contemplatives)
as his scriptural basis for practicing
silence, Moreland says that terms
like meditation, solitude and being
still are "common to both Christianity
and the New Age (or many Eastern religions),"
but insists their meanings are different.
Moreland is vague about the techniques
to enter these states of silence but
admits there is no "thus saith the
Lord" regarding them. Furthermore,
he encourages readers to focus on
objects or images of loved ones or
Jesus to help during times of solitude
and silence. He adds, "Take a passage
you have memorized and which you dearly
love and pray it repeatedly to God."
For more on Focus on the
Family and Their Promotion of Contemplative
Prayer:
J P Moreland Article Series on
Focus on the Family website |
The Message "Bible" Omits
the Warnings of II Timothy
In the popular Biblegateway.com
website, an apparent blunder has left
out II Timothy, which warns of perilous
last days to come.
II Timothy carries strong
warnings, speaking of perilous last
days when men shall be lovers of self
rather than lovers of God. It is also
says that Scripture is inspired by
God and given to us for doctrine,
reproof, correction and instruction.
Somehow, this entire book of the Bible
has been left out of the popular Message "Bible" on at least two online websites, www.biblegate
way.com and www.bibleresources.com.
Replacing II Timothy is a duplicate
of I Timothy. (Update: These
have now been corrected. 10/3/06)
Interestingly, and sadly, The Message has also left out every reference of Lord Jesus (found over
110 times in both KJV and NKJV) and
replaced it with Master Jesus,
a term often used by New Agers.
For more on The Message. |
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