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More on the New Calvinist /YRR Mystic Tim Keller and Rezolution Conference 2013

New Calvinists OR YRR

Concerning Tim Keller the Mystic and the New Calvinist/YRR movement. Here are further concerning reasons why we should be aware of,  and Why We Cannot Endorse Rezolution 2013, as Tim Keller is a leader in this movement where the so called Young Reformed and Restless all work in unity to further the New Calvinist Charismatic movement.  Some of the major figures in this movement are John Piper,  Mark Driscoll, Al Mohler,  Mark Dever,  C.J. Mahaney,  Joshua Harris.

It has come to our attention, that many Reformed brothers and sisters in South Africa are excited about the coming Rezolution Conference , being held in South Africa in April 2013. We have some concerns about the speakers as they are all from the Young, Restless, Reformed movement also known as the New Calvinism movement.  Hearing names like Tim Keller , who is a leader in this new movement is concerning,  as Keller has, in recent years embraced  mysticism ,   theistic evolution and more recently his church has now embraced Lectio Divina. Tim Keller’s books are also highly recommended by pastors and teachers across South Africa in many Reformed churches. Continue reading →

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The Apostle Paul: a product of Free-willism, or saved by Sovereign Grace?

damascus 1

Grant Swart

If God hides our sin or lessens it, He is faulty; if He leaves it still upon us, we die. He must then take our iniquity to Himself, make it His own, and so deliver us; for thus having taken the sin upon Himself, as lawfully He may and lovingly He does, it follows that we live if He lives; and who can desire more?

 – John Bunyan

These represent a few notes from my evening of contemplating the biblical attitude which should be adopted toward the free-will worldly attitude of those advocates trying to  impress God. 

I certainly did not “choose”, summon or influence Christ, nor did I ever make a decision “for” Him. I never did anything good and, according to my own ability, I never will. I can never be a better person “for” Christ. I never sought God, I never understood God (Rom 3:11). I never called out to God in a way which could have encouraged Him to come running to my eternal aid. He reached out and grabbed me when I was dying, because He willed it to be so.

I am and will always be a sinner, I am worth no more today than I was before God called me to Himself, save for the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am satisfied, humbled and overjoyed at what Christ did for me, when I least of all people deserved to be saved. I desire nothing more, I require nothing more, I do not need to, nor can I ever,  convince anyone of the facts. I have Christ, God Himself, who gave Himself for me. I did not pay for my salvation in part, I did not work for it, it was given freely to me by my Christ, who paid for it in full. There are no refunds, what is finished (John 19:30), cannot be made unfinished.

Throughout all of the Apostle Paul’s post- salvational life, he never denied nor tried to deny the truth of what he was. He consistently referred to his previous self-righteousness, opposition and hatred toward God (1 Tim 1:13). He made it clear that, even after his salvation, he remained just as wickedly sinful and incapable of doing enough to please God, as he had been before the day on the road to Damascus. He referred to that by saying: “O wretched man that I am” (Rom. 7:24). Continue reading →

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Heaven Sent Preachers and Man Made Preachers – There is a Difference

dove in sky 1

Man Made Preachers today are licensed and ordained by “the church”; Heaven Sent men of old were ordained and sent by God.

Man Made Preachers today go forth armed with degrees and credentials; Heaven Sent men of old went forth anointed by the Holy Spirit.

Man made Preachers today are questioned by committees and hired to preach what the church believes; Heaven Sent men of old came preaching “Thus saith the Lord”.

Man Made Preachers today give themselves to programs, visitation, and church business; Heaven Sent men of old gave themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word.

Man Made Preachers today preach and men are persuaded to move their membership; Heaven Sent men of old preached and, “they were pricked in their hearts and cried, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

Man Made Preachers today pray while the organ plays softly; Elijah prayed and the fire of God fell.

Man Made Preachers today are afraid that they will offend someone; Paul was afraid that he wouldn’t. If there is no offence, the cross has not been preached. Continue reading →

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The Dangers of Arminianism: Part 1 of 2

All free will, works religion, Arminianism in every form, under any denominational name is false religion. It may call itself Christian. But it is not Christian at all. Such religion is utter paganism! It is a total denial of God’s free and sovereign grace in Jesus Christ (Gal. 5:2, 4). Any mixture of works with grace is a total denial of grace (Rom. 11:6). To assert that salvation is by the will of man is to deny that “Salvation is of the Lord” (Jon. 2:9; Rom. 9:16). – Don Fortner

I do not serve the god of the Arminians at all; I have nothing to do with him, and I do not bow down before the Baal they have set up; he is not my God, nor shall he ever be; I fear him not, nor tremble at his presence…The God that saith today and denieth tomorrow, that justifieth today and condemns the next…is no relation to my God in the least degree. He may be a relation of Ashtaroth or Baal, but Jehovah never was or can be his name.” – C.H. Spurgeon

 

The Dangers of Arminianism (Part 1 of 2)

by Jim Van Winkle
re-posted by Grant Swart


OUTLINE

I. ARMINIANISM FOSTERS THEOLOGICAL CONFUSION

A. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF PREDESTINATION
B. A FALSE TEACHING ON GOD’S DECREE
C. A FALSE TEACHING ON FOREKNOWLEDGE
D. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF ELECTION
E. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF CALLING
F. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF REGENERATION
G. A FALSE UNDERSTANDING OF THE ATONEMENT
H. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION
I. A FALSE TEACHING ON GOD’S PROVIDENCE
J. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF SOVEREIGNTY
K. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF ASSURANCE
L. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF OMNISCIENCE
M. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF IMPUTATION
N. A FALSE DOCTRINE OF DEPRAVITY

INTRODUCTION

Having been reared in American Evangelicalism for the better part of our lives most of us have come to hold very benign views of Arminianism. To us Calvinism versus Arminianism debates have always been rather peripheral arguments not founded upon anything substantial, doctrinally (although it was at the heart of the Protestant Reformation). Many of us in fact were taught that we were a little Continue reading →

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The Rich Family

Adapted by Grant Swart

I will never forget the Easter of 1946. The devastating economic effects of the recent World War were still being strongly felt in South Africa. I was 14, Ocy was 12 and Darlene, 16. The three of us lived with Mommy and we were accustomed to getting by with fewer things than most. The death of my father five years earlier, had left my mother penniless, with seven children to take care of. By 1946, the four older children had already left home. About a month before Easter, the pastor announced that there would be a special collection made at Easter in aid of a poor family. He appealed to everyone to save up some money and to contribute as best they could.

On arriving back at home that day, we discussed what we could do to contribute to the collection. We decided to buy 50 pounds (about 23kg) of potatoes to feed ourselves for the whole month. This would enable us to save $20 on our grocery budget, which we would contribute to the collection fund. We also decided to use electricity sparingly and to save a little extra in that way. We offered to clean other homes and gardens and we leaped at every opportunity to do babysitting. Every 15 cents that we earned in this way, enabled us to buy enough wool to knit three potholders which we sold for $1. In this way we were able to save up another $20.

That month was one of the best of our lives. We counted the money every day to see how much we had saved. In the evenings we sat in the dark and discussed how the poor family who was to receive the money, would have a little joy put back into their lives. Taking into account that there were approximately 80 people in our church, we estimated that the congregation would be able to give at least 20 times more than our contribution. After all, the pastor was reminding the community about the special collection at every Sunday service. Continue reading →

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Are you a “Fundamentalist”? More problems with man-made labels

 by Grant Swart

A related post which I placed a few weeks back can be read by clicking here: Are you a Calvinist? The problem with man-made labels . Rather than repeating what I wrote in that post regarding man-made labels, I recommend reading that post in conjunction with this one, which will place the subject in perspective.

It is with predictable regularity that Bible believing Christians today, are confronted with the question: “Are you a Fundamentalist?” More often than not, the question is posed rather as a piercing accusation than an interested or genuine inquiry.  Those who pose the question have generally made up their minds beforehand, what the qualifications for being a Fundamentalist are and accordingly, they label the Bible believer a “Fundamentalist”. However, their assumption is inherently skewed, as most of what the world views as being Fundamentalism, is not akin to biblical Christianity, therefore a truly biblical Christian cannot be that kind of Fundamentalist. Continue reading →

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His Number is 666

“His Number is 666”
By Kim Riddlebarger ~ Sermons on the Book of Revelation # 20
Texts: Revelation 13:11-18; Daniel 8:15-26

There is no subject–with the possible exception of the unpardonable sin–which has caused as much consternation for the people of God as has the so-called “mark of the beast.” John pointedly warns his hearers against taking such a mark on the back of the hand or the forehead. He also tells us that anyone who takes such a mark swears allegiance to the beast. This has given Christians throughout the ages a healthy suspicion of any government which persecutes the church or hinders the preaching of the gospel. It has lead to a number of questions in our own day about advancing technology and increasing government control over many areas of our personal lives. Such a warning from an apostle creates a climate in which sensational predictions and warnings about political events and technology are the norm. So we must do our best to bring clarity to this most difficult and controversial of subjects.

In past sermons, we have been working our way through Revelation 12-14 in which John introduces his reader to seven of the main characters in the great drama of redemption. Like the seal judgments of Revelation 6-8:1 and the trumpet judgments of Revelation 8-11, the vision recorded in Revelation 12-14 describes the entire period of time between the first advent and the second coming of Christ from a distinct theological perspective (or “camera” angle as we have been calling it). In this section of Revelation, John gives us a vivid description of the struggle between the people of God and our great adversary, Satan, who has been cast down from heaven to earth where he now seeks to wage war upon the church of Jesus Christ through the agency of his henchmen, the beast and the false prophet. Continue reading →

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Do all dogs really go to heaven, (or did they never leave?)

 

If you are interested, you can read the main article on the subject “Do all dogs really go to heaven”  by clicking here. 

You can also partake in our Poll on the same subject by clicking here.  

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Are you a Calvinist? The problem with man-made labels

by Grant Swart

It is with predictable regularity that Bible believing Christians are confronted with the question: “Are you a Calvinist?” More often than not, the question is posed rather as an accusatory punch than as a genuine inquiry.  Those who pose the question have generally made up their minds beforehand, what the qualifications for a Calvinist ought to be and accordingly to label the Bible believer as a Calvinist.

After just a few short years, those who have upheld Sola Scriptura, become accustomed to (and frankly quite bored by) being labelled Calvinists, based on the fact that they have steadfastly opposed the authority of man-centered teaching by holding to the sole authority of Scripture and the Sovereignty of God. Continue reading →

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How to Discern : Orthodoxy ( Part 3/6)

By Pastor Anton Bosch 

Orthodoxy ( Part 3/6)

The Roman church has for a long time believed that only the “clergy” may interpret the Bible. In fact, until recently, they did not even allow translations of the Bible into the common language of the people because they did not believe that ordinary people were equipped to read the Bible, let alone interpret it.

Since the Reformation, the Bible has been made available to ordinary people and now anyone in the free world is able to read, study and own Bibles. But the pendulum has swung to the other extreme so that today every Tom, Dick and Harry feels he has the right to interpret the Bible as he feels fit. This is an equal but opposite error to that of the Roman clerical system.

It is therefore important that we understand that while each of us has the privilege of reading the Bible for ourselves, no individual has the right to interpret the Scriptures as he wishes. We can all understand the Bible, and the Spirit will lead us into all Truth, but it is not up to us to formulate our own “new” doctrine. There is a body of truth that is not open for reinterpretation. We refer to this as “orthodox” teaching. “Orthodox” means “conforming to established and traditional doctrine”. (Not to be confused with Eastern Orthodox churches.) Continue reading →

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Christian Legalism (Part 3): The foolish ignorance of opposing God’s Grace

Grant Swart

“But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient “ (1 Tim. 1:8-9).

At the heart of Christian legalism is a denial of the truth of the Gospel, and therefore a denial of God’s Sovereignty, of His Son and of the work of His Holy Spirit. It places God’s people into cruel, oppressive bondage and replaces the perfection and completion of the salvific work of Jesus Christ, with sick, depraved human traditions. Speaking out against the error of legalism, as I have done previously in Parts 1 and 2 of this article, by accepting the example set by Jesus, in no way constitutes creating a licence to sin. There are no two things in the world more directly opposed to one another than law and grace.

Righteousness and our acceptance by God can never come by way of legalism. Neither can justification, nor sanctification. By no means do I intend to indicate hereby that true, saved believers are antinomian (against the law), which seems to have become a fashionable term being bandied about with much self-righteous zeal. The boundaries which govern that which constitutes true antinomianism are subject to a million varied interpretations, remain practically undefined and are all subject to human interpretation. However, many legalists seem to be under the impression that every true believer who opposes legalism and works based salvation, or for that matter is found to have committed sin, is by definition antinomian.  Continue reading →

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Why Discernment Ministries Fail (and Succeed) (1)

Grant Swart

SHINY FAKE GOLD-PLATED COINS

Regrettable and diverse are the failures of an overabundance of internet based “discernment” ministries, websites, programs and blogs. Frequently, these self-titled so-called discernment ministries are highly visible, easily accessible and are presented to the world as being representative of the truth. These presentations are the creations of self-appointed “watchmen” who claim divine inspiration for their discernment ability over and above that which is available to the average Christian believer. In addition, these “watchmen” defend their position, which by the very nature of their “ministries” cannot be described as biblical, with an aggressive fervour which borders on occultic fanaticism.

Undeniably, there has always been a biblical imperative for true watchmen to guard against and warn the faithful in the church about attacks launched by the Evil one and his followers against the truth. Continue reading →

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Hear This: A Pastor Who Protects His Sheep From Wolves


Act 20:29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock;

By Amy Spreeman

Here is something we don’t come across very often: A pastor protecting his flock from the latest heresies and fads that are sweeping Christendom through popular books, teachings and teachers leading millions off the path of Truth. I first heard this preacher from  First Baptist Church of Johnson City, NY last weekend after several friends shared it with me.  I was personally touched and impacted by Pastor Jim Murphy’s gracious and humble but firm conviction to stand on God’s Word and nothing else.

He titled his message, The Subtlety of Satan. Continue reading →

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Why We Must Contend Earnestly For The Faith

Why We Must Contend Earnestly For The Faith
Presented by Pastor Bob DeWaay

The book of Jude warns believers about the deception that false teachers bring into the church and the dangers they pose for the flock. We live in a time of massive deception yet many Christians think that tolerance is more important than truth. Pastor DeWaay shows from Scripture how dangerous this attitude is and how we must contend for the faith. Continue reading →

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Justin Peters A Call for Discernment South African Seminar Tour Mp3’s

We will update this page as Justin tours South Africa for the next 2 weeks.

A call for discernment (A sermon)

Preached by: Justin Peters
Sunday, June 3, 2012 – 08:30

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5) Question and answer

Preached by: Justin Peters
Saturday, June 2, 2012 – 11:3

4) The hurt of healing

Preached by: Justin Peters
Saturday, June 2, 2012 – 10:30

3) Mangled manifestations

Preached by: Justin Peters
Saturday, June 2, 2012 – 09:00

2) Dangerous doctrines

Preached by: Justin Peters
Friday, June 1, 2012 – 20:00

1) Why discernment?

Preached by: Justin Peters
Friday, June 1, 2012 – 19:00

 

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Thank you to Antioch Bible Church for the resources provided as free downloads. please click on picture to visit the website that contains many wonderful resources !!