Herescope: August 2016

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Betraying the Reformers - Betraying the Gospel

Resetting the Reformation: Part 2

Read Part 1: TOGETHER 2016: Unbiblical Unity on the National Mall

Reformation?

Nicholas Ridley and Hugh Latimer before being burned at the stake.
Ridley: “Be of good comfort, Master Ridley and play the man;
we shall this day light such a candle, by God's grace,
in England, as I trust shall never be put out.”[1]

“Remember your promise in baptism; Christ His mercy and blood-shedding: By whose most holy sprinkling, of all your sins you have free pardoning. Of Christ's body this is a token, which on the cross for your sins was broken. Wherefore of your sins you must be forsakers, if of Christ's death ye will be partakers.”
~ Hugh Latimer, rejecting Roman Catholic dogma, martyred on October 16, 1555[2]

or
“Recycling and Reprocessing”?

Drawing by Theodoros Pelecanos, in a 1478 copy
of a lost alchemical tract by Synesius.[3]

OUROBOROS: Gnostic/alchemical image of the serpent swallowing its own tail, used in alchemical manuals.... Also as a general symbol of INFINITY in its dynamic function of inexhaustible recycling and reprocessing.[4][bold added]

By Gaylene Goodroad

TOGETHER 2016: Building the Apostate Unity Bridge
In July, a massive rally[5] took place on the Washington Mall in an effort to forge Christian unity and solidarity, and to undoubtedly eliminate the centuries-long rift between Evangelicals and Catholics. The event was called Together 2016. Not only did many Christian celebrities, authors, musicians, and popular teachers head the event lineup[6], but Pope Francis was also scheduled to promote the gathering and its broader message from Rome via video. We reported on this disquieting rally in a detailed post called “Resetting the Reformation: Together 2016 – Unbiblical Unity at the National Mall.”

Screenshot from Pope Francis’ Together 2016 endorsement video[7]

In promotional statements made by Together 2016 organizer Nick Hall, it was clear that he believed the Pope’s endorsement was necessary to facilitate this false unity and negate polar differences between Evangelicals and Catholics going back five hundred years. Hall even referred to the Pope as “His Holiness”, a title reserved for the Lord Jesus Christ alone:

“We are humbled and honored by his [the Pope’s] involvement and are eager to share his message with the crowd that gathers at Together 2016,” he [Hall] told the Christian Post last month. “That His Holiness would choose to speak into this historic day is a testament to the urgency and the need for followers of Jesus to unite in prayer for our nation and our world.”

Hall also traveled to Rome to meet with the Roman Catholic leader and other Vatican officials ahead of the event.

“We’ve been praying for this and God has been answering our prayers,” he said in an online video in speaking of Bergoglio’s [Pope Francis’] support of the gathering, explaining that he and a representative from the Vatican discussed how to unite Christians and Catholics.

An endorsement from Bergoglio, which had been posted online, was also played on the jumbotron for Together 2016 attendees.[8][bold added]

In the video[9], the Pope even holds up a Together 2016 T-shirt, adorned with Hall’s Reset logo and an American flag, inviting viewers to wear one “in unison.”[10]

Screenshot of Pope Francis video endorsement of Together 2016[11]

Refashioning Occult Symbolism
A careful examination of the Together 2016 T-shirt that the Pontiff displayed for his vast video audience reveals Nick Hall’s Reset/Together 2016 logo which is hidden-in-plain-sight in the word “TO-GE-TH-ER.” Note the letter “O” in the T-shirt held by the Pope in the graphic above.

After seeing this familiar “O” symbol repeatedly in Hall’s ministry websites[12], event advertisements[13], and prominently displayed on the cover of Hall’s book, Reset, it finally occurred to me that I’d seen a variation of the same symbol in occult materials. This “O” is called an Ouroboros and it is the circular depiction of a serpent eating its own tail, symbolizing monistic oneness—and thus it is not true Christian unity (John 17:20-23).[14]

The Ouroboros forms an “O”[15]

Note this definition of the Ouroboros from the Encyclopedia Britannica online:

Ouroboros, emblematic serpent of ancient Egypt and Greece represented with its tail in its mouth continually devouring itself and being reborn from itself. A Gnostic and alchemical symbol, Ouroboros expresses the unity of all things, material and spiritual, which never disappear but perpetually change form in an eternal cycle of destruction and re-creation.[16][bold added]

The Ouroboros is also a prominent feature of the Theosophy emblem depicted below,[17] an occult society founded by Madame Helena Petrovna Blavatsky[18]:

Note the snake eating its tail at the top of the circle, at the swastika.

The Ouroboros is also found in other esoteric societies such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (alchemy).[19]

Why is Hall using the Ouroboros “O” as his Reset logo?
This is an important question. Compare the unbiblical and esoteric form of unity symbolized in the Ouroboros with its idea of “an eternal cycle of destruction and re-creation” to Hall’s concept of a “reset” button which, when mystically pushed, formulates profound spiritual change. Here is Hall's vision of his RESET Movement:

A reset to our created purpose.

In 2012, a group of people from different backgrounds, known then as RESET Movement, began sharing the message of a “reset” at events and gatherings. The term relates to technology, where a reset clears past errors and gets the system working toward its created purpose. In the same way, every person is created for a purpose—but we have downloaded the wrong files, corrupted the system, and fallen away from God’s best for our lives. Each of us needs a reset, and Jesus offers everyone a supernatural reset.[20][bold added]

Clever as it sounds, Hall’s “reset” message is not biblical. It is NOT the true Gospel. We aren’t hapless victims who have unwittingly “downloaded the wrong files” that have “corrupted the system.” We are sinners born of Adam who need to confess and repent of our sin and believe that Jesus Christ alone, the Lamb of God, paid for our sin on the Cross with His own blood. It is His sacrifice that redeems true believers from the deadly eternal sin that corrupts us from within and cleanses us anew to walk in His light until we see Him in glory (Rom. 5:12-21; Rom. 10:9-13; Titus 2:14; 1 Jn. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Acts 17:30-31; Acts 2:38; Matt. 4:17).

The saving Gospel of Jesus Christ cannot be equated to a crude computer virus that has invaded the human system from without. Rather than a conscious and contrite inner acknowledgment of unrighteousness and a hearty recognition of the eternal saving gift of the Creator to completely purge that sin, the artificial remedy of this false gospel says that those infected by such an outside invader simply need to push the master ‘reset’ button, named ‘Jesus’, and rid themselves of unwanted and corrupted data enabling them to live up to a ‘purpose’. Sounds like Rick Warren.[21]

Here is the simplicity of the Gospel of salvation:

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
(1 John 1:9)

Is Hall's use of the Ouroboros “O” intentional? Does he mean to convey the esoteric meaning of this symbol? After all, there is not much difference between the term “reset” and what the Ouroboros symbol stands for. Plus Hall's expansive “reset” of Christianity even includes the logo-flashing Pope. Does Hall's “reset” pave the way for unity and oneness with other world religions?

For example, the Ouroboros “O” is also paralleled by the Japanese Enso symbol representing Zen Buddhism:

The Zen Enso “O” symbol[22]

The anti-Christian spiritual meaning of the Enso is explained in an article titled, “Zen Circles of Illumination”:

ZEN ART IS SPIRITUAL art in its purest sense. It was done not by professional artists, but by Zen monks and nuns who spent extremely disciplined lives of meditation, in a search for enlightenment and awakening to the true nature of reality. That they were painting from their own personal knowledge of this reality, rather than from doctrines handed down, is the very foundation of this art-form's compelling power. It is believed in Japan that the character and spiritual realization of the monk or nun are transmitted into the painting itself… The Enso, or Zen circle, is one of the most appealing themes in Zen art. The Enso itself is a universal symbol of wholeness and completion, and the cyclical nature of existence, as well as a visual manifestation of the Heart Sutra, "Form is void and void is form."[23][bold added]

The fact that this unbiblical knowledge is channeled onto canvas by Zen monks seeking spiritual enlightenment apart from “doctrines handed down” should alarm any true believer in Christ. This belief system is at complete odds with God’s Word. This entire Eastern concept of unity and enlightenment is diametrically opposed to sound Christian doctrine.[24] One Zen Buddhist source defines enlightenment—achieved through Eastern meditation—this way: “Illumination: This mighty word in essence and strength is used…to emphasize the transcendental mystic experience that consists of experiencing the Tao, true Zen, Reality.”[25] It could also be expressed in the ancient occult maxim, “as above, so below”; i.e., “all is One.”[26]

It is quite alarming, therefore, to discover that Nick Hall, the organizer of the Pulse/Reset/Together 2016 movement chose a re-crafted Ouroboros/Enso “O” to symbolize his Christian ministry and to further signify Christian unity. The following exhibits are a montage of this occult symbol used throughout Hall’s media graphics:

Reset/Ouroboros logo in the “O” of “Together”[27]

Hall’s “Jesus is the Reset” Pulse/Reset/Ouroboros logo[28]

Hall’s Together 2016/Reset/Ouroboros logo appears on stage floor[29]

Nick Hall’s Reset Movement/Ouroboros logo[30]

Hall’s book jacket prominently displaying the Reset/Ouroboros symbol[31]

Popular evangelicals, Josh McDowell, Luis Palau, and Ravi Zacharias wrote the Foreword[32]

Re-Sparking a Global Movement
On July 15, 2016, I published an extensive article titled “Resetting the Reformation: TOGETHER 2016: Unbiblical Unity on the National Mall” detailing concerns about Nick Hall's movement and his event at the Washington Mall.

As it turned out, things did not go as event organizers had planned on July 16. Together 2016 was shut down by the U.S. Park Police five hours ahead of schedule due to enormous heat casualties.[33] It is unclear whether or not the Pope’s endorsement video was shown to the crowd or live streamed online before the plug was abruptly pulled at 4 p.m., but the unprecedented video of Pope Francis’s ecumenical invitation is currently posted on the Together 2016 Facebook page.[34]

Nonetheless, this enormous event re-sparked a global movement that has been smoldering in the background ever since the late Pope John Paul II became the Roman Pontiff in 1978. . . .

To be continued....

The Truth:

“For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.”
(Romans 1:16-17)

Saturday, August 13, 2016

An Olympic Challenge

“Ye did run well;
who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?”
(Galatians 5:7)

By Dr. Jim Jenkins

Defrocked Irish priest Neil Horan, right, grabs Vanderlei de Lima of Brazil
and knocks him into the crowd during the men's marathon
at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Sunday, Aug 29, 2004. (Source)

During the opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics, the camera panned to a group of no-name athletes from a nation that few could find on a map. One young man burst into tears as he entered the stadium. As he wiped away the tears and tried to compose himself, the commentator made a remark that captures the essence of that moment: “Look at him… for most of these athletes, this is their Olympic experience… just getting to this point… enduring what they had to endure… to enter this stadium with the world looking on.”

Like millions around the world, I wondered who it was that would be given the singular honor to receive the torch, and light the cauldron to begin the games. Who could forget the surprise when Mohammed Ali emerged and fought through the tremors of Parkinson’s to hold the torch aloft and light the fire.

Everyone expected that it would be Pele' an Argentinian… the greatest name associated with the game of soccer. For health reasons, he declined that honor just before the opening ceremony. Who would they choose? If I was to take a straw poll, I am certain that no one would have guessed, nor been able to name the man they picked to light the flame. Vanderlei de Lima. You know… Vanderlei de Lima.

Vanderlei de Lima lights the Olympic flame in Rio (Source)

Of course no one remembers that name. Two reasons come to mind. He is no Pele' or Ali. And second, he lost the Gold in his event.

“Alone in his apartment in south London, a 69-year-old man named Neil Horan watched a middle-of-the night broadcast of the opening ceremony for the Summer Olympics. Like other viewers, he wondered which Brazilian would get the honour of lighting the Olympic caldron.

And when he saw that it would be Vanderlei de Lima, best known for being accosted by a spectator while leading the 2004 Olympic marathon in Athens, Greece, he was aghast.”

New York Times columnist John Branch sums up the incident:

It was Horan who (at the 2004 Olympics) jumped onto the course near the 35-km mark and shoved de Lima into the crowd in Athens — “Put him aside like a rugby tackle,” he recalled in a phone conversation Saturday — and was blamed for de Lima finishing third.

“When I actually saw him with my own eyes, I really got angry,” Horan said. “I look at Vanderlei, and I think, ‘You would be nowhere near the star if not for me.'”

Horan a defrocked Catholic Priest had disrupted other sporting events. In 2003, laicized by the Roman Catholic Church and an outspoken believer that the end of the world was coming, Horan interrupted the British Grand Prix by running onto the racetrack, forcing cars to swerve past him.[1]

So right at a crucial point in the race of his life, an unsuspecting marathon runner is knocked down by a religious fanatic and loses the Gold Medal. Now, twelve years later, he is chosen to light the cauldron in Rio.

A few days after this strange turn of events, I attended the dedication of my newest grandchild, Camden Jonathan Riddle. My daughter Hannah and her husband Jonathan stood before a large congregation as Camden’s smile was flashed on the huge screen. Hannah read a prayer that she composed for the occasion. She prayed that he would be a “world changer” in his generation.

On the way out of church I just happened to see a man who (later that week) was about to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I happened to hear his acceptance speech. He freely acknowledged that it was the grace of God in his life that afforded him the coaching career he enjoyed.

I started to see a theme emerging when (at week’s end) I tried to contact my friend, Pastor Larry Johnson who is in the battle of his life due to a brain tumor. Larry and I have been in touch every week since we were ordained together into public ministry in 1978. He is having great difficulty in speaking because his speech has been damaged by the growing tumor, but there is absolutely no doubt that he is has all his mental capacity,

The enemy of our souls has no hesitation when it comes to impeding the progress toward the goal for those who name the Name of Jesus. In the case of the marathon racer, it was a defrocked priest whose twisted mind convinced him that the was actually serving God by attacking the runner in the midst of his race.

In the case of the NFL coach it was the long standing tension of who would be the first African American head coach. On more than one occasion, he spoke frankly about the setbacks and disappointments he had to endure along the way to receiving his Super Bowl ring.

In the case of Baby Camden, I was struck by the fact that in his lifetime he will most probably face challenges we can’t even imagine as he walks with Jesus in an age of lawlessness. I prayed for him.

Finally, I thought of my friend Pastor Larry Johnson. He has served the Lord faithfully for over forty years. He has labored in relative obscurity. His columns appear in a newspaper that reaches thousands. His work as chaplain to his local police department cannot be measured for its efficacy in the eyes of God. His congregation would to a man say that he prepared to preach each week as if he was addressing thousands.

At a time only know to our Lord, each of these individuals will enter into the arena surrounded, and cheered on by a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1-2). Van der lei Lima will (if he has walked with God) will have the satisfaction that the challenges in his race were not hidden from the Lord; neither was the injustice of the attack that thwarted him unnoticed by those whose races are long over.

Camden will enter, Lord willing, to experience the satisfaction of hearing his Lord say “Well Done, thou good and faithful servant… enter into the rest of thy Lord.” For Pastor Larry, the battle is on. The Apostle Paul is looking on… as are Martin Luther, and Charles Spurgeon, and Bob and Shirley his beloved parents. I can hear them. “The Lord is your portion… you are going to make it!”

De Lima is voted Brazilian sportsman of the year. (Source)

Those entering the stadium in Rio were aptly called contenders. For some who read this… it is time to get up and get back into the race. For others, it is time to find your help in the Name of the Lord. For us all, it is time to “contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints.”

“But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.... For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.”
(Hebrews 3:6;14)

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”
(2 Tim. 4:7)

Endnotes:
1. http://news.nationalpost.com/sports/rio-2016/he-miserably-failed-in-basic-manners-man-who-tackled-vanderlei-de-lima-during-the-2004-olympic-marathon-furious-he-lit-rio-cauldron-dont-export

Dr. Jim Jenkins is the author of Fatal Drift: Is the Church Losing Its Anchor? (Deep River Books, 2014).

Sunday, August 07, 2016

Contending?

Or Contentious?

By Dr. Jim Jenkins

Legendary Chicago Bears linebacker Mike Singletary... look at his eyes.

If the last 5 years have taught me anything, it is that how we say what we say about the Bible and Jesus is very important... and very delicate. Note that I did not say that the Gospel or the Bible are delicate. No, I said how we come across as we attempt to communicate these timeless truths in an era of increasing lawlessness is of major concern.

I am remembering a guy from the seminary I attended who was formerly a linebacker on his college football team. He was extremely 'ripped' as the saying goes. He probably had a body fat index that would rival Olympic athletes. He also had an intensity about him that often came across as a menacing countenance. I knew him and I was intimidated by him sometimes.

A Christian music artist (who was attending the seminary at the time) planned an outdoor concert in Los Angeles... right in the heart of Watts. We were at Will Rogers Park, right at the epicenter of the terribly destructive riots that had taken place just a few years prior. Donn Thomas, an African American musician, had invited a number of us to go along and minister to those who would respond to his altar call. My linebacker friend, let's call him 'Bill' joined us as Donn began to play "Can't Nobody Do me like Jesus... He's my friend" and "Ain't no Rock Gonna Shout in my place... Long as I'm as I'm Alive to Glorify His Holy Name..."

Donn ministered powerfully and he gave an altar call. Bill and I and the others began to pray with those we hoped to lead to the Lord. Bill (I forgot to mention that he also spoke in a very loud voice) was ministering to a young boy about 13. I watched as Bill got closer and began to speak louder. The boy began to back up and Bill continued to advance.

Finally the boy ran away. Bill chased him to the edge of the park and with one last attempt he yelled at the top of his voice "Hey!! Jesus Loves You!"

Discernment type ministries are needed as never before. The very notion of objective, absolute truth is under continual assault, and the culture around us is careening down the "Great Down Grade" Charles Spurgeon warned us about. We need as never before to "contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude verse 3).

A friend did me a great favor a while back. She read one of my posts and reflected back to me that my tone was a little harsh. (She was kind.) In point of fact, as I reread what I had written, I would describe it as shrill and confrontational. How, I have been asking myself for months, can I communicate the passion I have about what I truly believe is necessary for the church to hear, yet not succumb to fleshly enthusiasm that is off-putting?

The King James version of the Bible uses the word contend in Jude 3 to describe the assignment we as believers have to hold true to the scriptures. The Bible also, however, uses the words contention and contentious to describe less than godly approaches that some well-meaning apologists are accustomed to exhibit.

"A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city and contentions are are like the bars of a castle." (Prov. 8:19)

In Romans, Paul concludes his letter with this directive:

"Now I urge you brethren note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned and avoid them."

The Greek word translated divisions comes from two root words meaning literally 'two stances' (hence the idea of division of something that was intended to be 'one'). The word offences describes a young sapling, bent for use of becoming a 'trap stick in a snare' (see Strong's Concordance Greek dictionary #4624 and 4625). I'm not stretching the meaning to say that this word suggests "tripping someone up" by means of a snare.

Remember Paul is saying 'Avoid them' (the ones coming and causing divisions and offences). What then is the meaning of Jude 3 in which Jude is pleading with his readers to "contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints"? Again, the original language yields a rich meaning that changes everything. The word Jude used is a derivative of a word from which we get our word "agonize" It can mean to "struggle for" to "earnestly contend for."

Elsewhere in the New Testament we are exhorted to 'not be that guy'. What guy? Maybe our linebacker friend Bill who thought he had to tackle someone... to win a battle... in order to represent the truth. Paul wrote to Titus, "Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work. to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men" (Titus 3:1-2). The word peaceable in the King James version means "don't be a brawler." The same word is used in Paul's first letter to Timothy, he lays out the qualifications for leaders: "A bishop must be... not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous..." (I Tim: 3:3)

Here is what I gleaned from this brief study. To contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints is arduous, and frankly agonizing at times. What I/we need to guard against, however, is the tendency to adopt an attitude of combativeness with others in order to arrive at the truth. I don't want to be a brawler. I don't want to be 'that guy.' I don't intend to ever back down, but I can pray, even agonize in prayer... that I contend for something rather than against someone.

Something to think about....

Dr. Jim Jenkins is the author of Fatal Drift: Is the Church Losing Its Anchor? (Deep River Books, 2014). See: http://herescope.blogspot.com/2016/02/fatal-drift.html and also read http://herescope.blogspot.com/2016/03/mind-numbing-narratives.html and http://herescope.blogspot.com/2016/04/he-still-hasnt-found-what-hes-looking.html

For a short book on this topic read Anton Bosch's Contentiously Contending.

Herescope

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Betraying the Reformers - Betraying the Gospel

Saturday, August 13, 2016

An Olympic Challenge

Sunday, August 07, 2016

Contending?

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