When False Prophets Teach About False Prophets - Kris Vallotton Edition - By Rev. Anthony Wade

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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We've been enjoying our respite from Rev. Wade, but we are now forced to consider his latest screed. And it is a screed, a typically long one at 2215 words. But of course, that's what Rev. Wade does. He goes on and on about things without explaining anything. He doesn't quote a single Scripture aside from the introductory verse. He seems able only to toss around vague accusations and undocumented assertions.

We do not intend to defend Kris Vallotton, we only desire to examine the author's vain pronouncements.

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Jesus and gay marriage

From time to time we find leftists pontificating on the Bible and what Jesus believed or didn't believe. One thing we are certain about is when a leftist starts explaining the Bible, they will never get it right. But why should they? They don't believe it. The reason they're explaining the Bible is not because they love the word of God, it's because they hate it. Their explanations are designed to not only cast doubt on the Bible, but especially to bolster their ideology.

They are doctrinaire leftist partisans first, and theologians second (or third. Or not at all...)

Today we examine the idea of Jesus approving of gay marriage.

The Danger To Our Democracy Is The Republican Party - By Alon Ben-Meir

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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This is a screed in the worst sense of the word. The author offers seemingly endless lists of evils perpetrated by his political opponents, none of it explained, referenced, or defended, for example:

• aberration
• demagogue 
• thrives on hatred, division, and contempt.
• bald-faced authoritarianism
• lost its moral compass
• extreme Republican conservatism
• resorting to any sinister scheme
• catered to white supremacists
• disparaging scientific truths
• belittling political opponents 
• would-be dictator 
• determined to dismantle the fundamentals of our democracy
• morally debased elements of Republican politics
• onslaught of disinformation
• falsehood
• treachery
• ravaging our democratic way of life
• plunging us anew into ominous social and political strife
• darkest chapters in American history
• moral bankruptcy
• sacrifice the well-being of the nation 

It goes on and on and on. The author then calls for civility. Hmm.

This article is anti-intellectualism at its worst. It is leftist jingoism, blank-eyed sloganeering, a perfect expression of agitprop.

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It's never been about if masks are justified. It's always about if mandates are justified - FB Post

• I posted:

  It's never been about if masks are justified. It's always about if mandates are justified.

• Paul 

  I understand that sentiment, and it seems like the ones who will not wear a mask, are even less likely to do so if mandated to. Meanwhile, people I know are getting sick. I've had a healthy friend die from it here in Bozeman. Every week, folks I have been on the same job as, end up with the virus. I wear a mask and avoid large gatherings not out of fear of contracting it, but as way to limit the spread of the virus and not give it to someone who may not tolerate it well. My personal freedom is not worth more to me than even one life. That sentiment is not widely shared though.

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• Me

  Then you should stop driving your car.

  
  

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  • Paul

    I keep my vehicle well maintained. I put snow tires on in the winter. I actually strive to follow the speed limit. I stop at stop signs and red stop lights. I use my turn signals. I do not drink alcohol, let alone drive under the influence. In short, I follow a set of rules to be as safe as I can on the road and limit the danger to others around me. I wear a seat belt to help ensure my safety in the event of any problems on my end or someone else's. I think all of that is a good comparison to mask wearing.

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  • Me

    "My personal freedom is not worth more to me than even one life." That seems like a pretty clear standard, but the precautions you describe are not even close to sufficient to ensure it.

    You can only succeed by staying home and having no contact with anyone. Anything else has the capacity to imperil lives.

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  • Paul

    Turns out I'm a selfish hypocrite. On paper I see your argument. Life is more nuanced than that. I'll continue to do what I can to limit the loss of life in all aspects of life. I won't stop all loss of life, but I will be intentional about guarding life in all its forms.

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  • Me

    No, you're embracing a standard because it is noble, but it's also impossible. There is a degree of risk and danger no matter what. It's where we decide to draw the line that determines how much peril vs. personal liberty.

    And my point is, we draw that line, except when someone draws it for our own good.

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What kind of condemnation is contained in "therefore there is no condemnation?"

We have been pursuing our Doctrinal Rethink for some time now. In the process of engaging it we have begun to question certain beliefs, church structures, and practices of the western church. Too often we have discovered unbiblical doctrines and activities. This causes us concern.

Why do churches do what they do? What is the biblical basis of church leadership structure? Why do certain traditions get entrenched? How did we arrive at our doctrines?

Here's today's verse:

Ro. 8:1-3 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus...

We regularly hear people reference this verse when they're feeling discouraged or when they're laboring under guilt for failing, or for sin. It's a "remind me" verse that any condemnation they're feeling is wrong, because there is no condemnation.

But is this what Paul is discussing? 

Is the Bible Enough for Us? – Sufficiency - by Eric Davis

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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Happily, the author manages to quote a couple of Scriptures, but these do not speak to the issues at hand. This is astonishing, considering the topic is the sufficiency of the Bible. One would think that quoting the Bible would be an important part of explaining how the Bible is sufficient.

The author thinks "sufficiency" means "the end of revelation." He never demonstrates this.

Nor does he actually get to the central thesis of his article. He spends a lot of time discussing the "sufficiency" part, but contents himself at the end to only offer a series of undocumented bare assertions regarding the other part, "is the Bible enough for us?"

We deal extensively with "sufficiency" here, so we will try not to duplicate those arguments.

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IS SPEAKING IN TONGUES AND THE SIGN GIFTS VALID TODAY? By Cooper Abrams

Link broken. Our comments in bold.

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The author proposes a question in the title, but answers a different one. He doesn't actually examine the idea of the gifts of tongues persisting till today. Rather, he wants to prove that the way charismatics practice tongues is incorrect. The question he actually answers is, "Is the way charismatics practice tongues valid?" 

Despite this and other problems, one thing does bring joy to our hearts, and that is that the author actually quotes some Scripture. This is an extremely rare phenomenon among the "Doctrinal Police." And his presentation is largely absent of the mockery and derision often leveled against theological opponents.

Nevertheless, the author spectacularly fails to make his case. Since we covered tongues in detail here, we shall try to avoid repeating those arguments.

Lastly, we are going to provide red typeface for any appeal to contemporary practice. What charismatics do or believe is not relevant to the author's stated purpose to biblically demonstrate the practice or non-practice of tongues.

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Are There Modern-Day Apostles? - by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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We have covered much of this ground in our episodic examination of cessationism, particularly episode 2. Thus we shall attempt to not repeat our arguments, instead providing links when necessary.

Reading this presentation is frustrating, for the author makes numerous assertions documented by voluminous Scripture references. But when we actually look them up, none of them bolster the author's case. Is this laziness, or is the author counting on readers not checking for themselves what he asserts?

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(...)

THE DEFINITION OF AN APOSTLE

Such being the case, we must go to the Bible to determine God’s will with regard to modern-day apostles. When we do so, we first learn that the word “apostle” comes from the Greek word apostolos, which means “one sent from or forth, a messenger, delegate” (Arndt and Gingrich, 1957, p. 99; Thayer, 1901, p. 68). The term is used in the New Testament in two distinct senses. It can refer to an individual who is sent by other humans to accomplish a particular mission or task. The term is so used to refer, for example, to Barnabas (Acts 14:14). He was an “apostle” in the sense that he accompanied Paul on an evangelistic trip. (The author diminishes Barnabas without any explanation. However, he is simply described as an apostle with no qualification, not someone who just happened to accompany Paul:

Ac. 14:14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd...

Paul and Barnabas were partners in their mission work [Ac. 12:25]. They were specifically set apart by the Holy Spirit for work [Ac. 13:2]. They preached together [Ac. 13:46]. They were persecuted together [Ac. 13:50]. They appointed elders together [Ac. 14:23]. They brought a doctrinal dispute to the apostles [Ac. 15:2]. They had a serious disagreement and parted ways [Ac. 15:39]. The two men ministered together for more than a decade [Ga. 2:1]. 

But Barnabas wasn't prefect [Ga. 2:13]. Nevertheless, it is a grave disservice to the biblical testimony to relegate Barnabas to an "also ran" status.

We also note that the author acknowledging a variety of apostolic expressions argues against him. For if there can be different kind of apostles, then a "modern day" apostle doesn't have to be like the Twelve.)

Why Antifa and BLM matter

Many have rightly criticized Antifa and BLM for their extremist views and violent behavior. Steeped in socialist agitprop, these groups espouse a political perspective ignorant of history and economics. They were maleducated by a corrupt public school system, and they were raised poorly by our generation. 

We are to blame, because so many of us did not teach this generation well, we coddled them and told them they were wonderful and special without holding them to any standard of behavior, intellectual rigor, or spiritual development which would entitle them to such praise.

Christians Fleeing from the Truth to Parler Need to Stop - by Rev. Anthony Wade

Found here. Our comments in bold.

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We have suspected the author is a closet leftist for some time now. Aside from his political proclamations, he argues like a leftist, reasons like a leftist, pretends to tell the truth like a leftist, denigrates like a leftist, and presumes his own superiority like a leftist.

Rev. Wade presumes without evidence that what Christians are fleeing from is the truth, without documenting this. Neither does he explain what's wrong with moving to Parler.

The below screed furthers our case. There isn't a single documented statement or biblical explanation contained here. Scattered, unfocused, and explaining absolutely nothing, Rev. Wade edifies no one.

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Cessationism - Episode 15 - Is revival excluded because of apostasy?

Our next Episode in the cessationism series.

Additional Episodes:

• Episode 1, the Perfect.
• Episode 2, the apostles.
• Episode 3, prophecy.
• Episode 4, the closed canon.
• Episode 5, extra biblical reasons.
• Episode 6, only the apostles had all truth.
• Episode 7, there were only limited periods of miracles.
• Episode 8, tongues.
• Episode 9, the work of the Holy Spirit.
• Episode 10, does God speak only through the Scriptures?
• Episode 11, what about impressions?
• Episode 12, what is discernment? 
• Episode 13, the sufficiency of Scripture.
• Episode 14, Was the purpose of miracles restricted to the authentication of the apostles?
• Episode 15, Is revival excluded because of apostasy?
• Episode 16, is prophecy subjective?
• Episode 17, Could only the apostles confer miraculous powers or gifts?
• Episode 18, are charismatics functional cessationists?

Our criteria for the cessationism debate is that the argument must

1. be from the Bible
2. not appeal to contemporary expressions of charismata
3. not appeal to silence
4. not appeal to events or practices of history

That is, any defense of cessationism must be Sola Scriptura.
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Explaining 2 Peter 1:16-19 - Cleverly invented stories

We have been pursuing our Doctrinal Rethink for some time now. In the process of engaging it we have begun to question certain beliefs, church structures, and practices of the western church. Too often we have discovered unbiblical doctrines and activities. This causes us concern.

Why do churches do what they do? What is the biblical basis of church leadership structure? Why do certain traditions get entrenched? How did we arrive at our doctrines?

We often consider the claims of cessationists in the pages of this blog, especially when famous teachers misuse or misinterpret Scripture.

Let's quote the passage:

2Pe. 1:16-19 We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eye-witnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” 18 We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. 19 And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.