FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES - Way of Life Literature

VOLUME 13, ISSUE 42 WAY OF LIFE OCTOBER 19, 2012
FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES
TRINITY BAPTIST HOSTS EMERGENT/ROMAN
CATHOLIC CONTEMPORARY MUSICIANS
The Rend Co!ective Experiment: Rock and Worship Roadshow
(For a graphical look at the spiritual slide of Trinity Baptist
Church see the pdf at www.wayoflife.org/pdf/
trinity_baptist.pdf.) In 1996, Southwide Baptist
Fellowship, meeting at Trinity Baptist Church in
Jacksonville, Florida, issued a clear warning against the
ecumenical Promise Keepers and ITS “UNHOLY
MUSIC.” By 2005, the church was “adapting” the same
“unholy music” from the likes of Darlene Zschech, Paul
Balouche, Nicole Mullen, the Vineyard, and Philips, Craig
and Dean (the same well from which Paul Chappell’s
church is drawing today). Messing around with CCM
marked the beginning of the end for Trinity as far as any
conviction in regard to biblical separatism. On November
15, 2012--about a decade after they first began dabbling
with CCM and 16 years after they last plainly denounced
it--Trinity Baptist is hosting a Christian rock tour featuring
Tenth Avenue North, Rend Collective Experiment, and
Audrey Assad, all of whom have intimate ties to the
emerging church and all of whom are one-world church
builders. The REND COLLECTIVE EXPERIMENT, from
northern Ireland, is hooked into the emerging church via its
close association with emergent leaders such as Tony
Campolo, David Crowder, and Shane Claiborne (http://
rendcollective.com/bio). Claiborne has worked with the
Roman Catholic Missionaries of Charity and praises
Mother Teresa as a truly spiritual person, even though she
held a false sacramental gospel that falls under the curse of
Galatians 1 and worshipped the wafer of the Catholic mass
as Christ. Further, she was a universalist and her “sisters”
prepare Hindus to die by teaching them to pray to their
false gods. (See the free Way of Life eBook Was Mother
Teresa a True Christian? for extensive documentation,
www.wayoflife.org.) None of that bothers emergents. They
save their criticism for those who warn about such things.
AUDREY ASSAD converted to the Roman Catholic
Church in 2007. Like her fellow Roman Catholic
musicians Matt Maher, Kathy Troccoli, and John Michael
Talbot, Assad is an ecumenical bridge-builder. She says
that “the response to her music from Protestants is just as
positive as it is from Catholics,” and, “radio has influenced
and grown my Protestant fan base, which used to be more
Catholic, but now it’s about half-and-half” (“Audrey
Assad: A convert whose spiritual walk is a melody,”
Catholic Online, Nov. 10, 2010). In 2008 she developed a
relationship with fellow Roman Catholic Matt Maher after
they met during Gospel Music Week. She subsequently
moved to Phoenix and attends Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in
Tempe, where she sings with the worship team. When
asked how her Catholic faith inspires her music, she
replies: “I can’t emphasize enough how the Sacramental
union with God in the Eucharist has totally changed the
way I see the world” (“Audrey Assad: A convert whose
spiritual walk is a melody,” Catholic Online, Nov. 10,
2010). She loves C.S. Lewis and observes that Lewis was
“a great bridge between Protestants and Catholics.” Who
would have prophesied 20 years ago that Trinity Baptist
Church would have been swimming in these frightfully
apostate waters today? And yet the seeds of compromise
had already been sown. The next 20 years will see most
fundamental Baptist churches swimming in the same
waters for the reasons that we have documented in the free
eBook Why Most Independent Baptist Churches Will Be
Emerging, available from www.wayoflife.org. For a
graphical look at the spiritual slide of Trinity Baptist
Church see the pdf at www.wayoflife.org/pdf/
trinity_baptist.pdf.
We believe that the Antichrist will be revealed immediately following the Rapture of New
Testament saints. The rising world leader might broadcast something like the following:
“My dear friends. Bless you for listening to me. I know that many of you have lost loved
ones in this unusual disappearance of so many people. However, we believe it was God’s
judgment on them for their uncooperativeness and divisions on the majestic advances of
Society and the Church. Now that the separatists are removed, let us really unite in the great
goal of universal brotherhood, love, and peace on earth” (Paul Lee Tan, A Pictorial Guide to
Bible Prophecy, p, 74). Even many independent Baptist leaders are fretting about those who are “divisive”!
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VOLUME 13, ISSUE 42 WAY OF LIFE OCTOBER 19, 2012
A new television show entitled “Nashville” will glorify
country music and spread the country-music lifestyle
and philosophy. The late country superstar Conway
Twitty, who was called the “High Priest of Country
Music,” made the following bold admission in 1979:
“As a country artist, I’m not proud of a lot of the things
in my field. There is no doubt in my mind that we are
contributing to the moral decline in America” (Conway
Twitty, People magazine, Sept. 3, 1979, p 82). Twitty
was right then and country music is even more sordid
today. One reason it has contributed to the moral decline
of the nation is its party down philosophy coated by a
thin veneer of religiosity to quiet the conscience.
According to country music, I can have Jesus and the
world, too! Consider the song “No Hurry” by the Zac Brown Band. It
says the car needs washing, the yard needs cleaning, the boss needs me, and many other obligations are pressing
in, but “I ain’t in no hurry today. ... Heaven knows that I ain’t perfect/ I’ve raised a little cain/ And I plan to raise
a whole lot more/ Before I hear those angels sing/ (Gonna get right with the lord)/ But there’ll be hell to pay/
But I ain’t in no hurry...” This is the country music philosophy in a nutshell. “Laze around and party as much as
possible; kick up your feet; rebel a little; don’t worry; don’t be responsible when you can get out of it. Sure,
there’s a God, a heaven, and a hell, and you believe in all of that and you love ‘Jesus’ and go to church once in
awhile; but you also know that God is a big Party Pooper, and you can get things right after the partying is over.”
This is a lie from the pit of hell. The Bible says that today is the day of salvation and there is absolutely no
promise of tomorrow. Jesus warned that those who are not radically converted and born again will never see
God’s heaven, and those who continue to live the old life are not saved. Obedience to God is not the path of
bondage but of true liberty and joy. “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and
the truth is not in him. ... By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his
commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not
grievous” (1 John 2:4; 5:2-3).
The following is excerpted from “University Draws Fire,” Christian
Post, Oct. 12, 2012: “A federally chartered university’s decision to
place its chief diversity officer on paid leave over her support for a
referendum challenging Maryland’s same-sex marriage law is drawing
fire. Both conservatives, who are seeking to strike down the law that
was passed earlier this year legalizing same-sex marriage, and LGBT
groups have denounced Gallaudet University’s decision. ‘I join an evergrowing
number of Marylanders in expressing my complete dismay
over Gallaudet University’s decision to place Dr. Angela McCaskill on
administrative leave for signing the marriage referendum petition,’ said
Derek McCoy, chairman of The Maryland Marriage Alliance, in a
statement. ‘Quite simply, it was well within her rights to sign the
petition.’ Also defending McCaskill, Josh Levin of Marylanders for
Marriage Equality commented, ‘We strongly disagree with the decision
to put the chief diversity officer on leave and hope she is reinstated
immediately. Everyone is entitled to free speech and to their own
opinion about Question 6, which is about treating everyone fairly and
equally under the law.’ ... A Gallaudet faculty member, who remains anonymous, discovered McCaskill’s name
on the petition and filed a complaint with the university. ... McCaskill was the first deaf African-American
female to earn a Ph.D. from Gallaudet, according to her university profile. She has worked at Gallaudet for 23
years and in 2011 was name deputy to the president and associate provost of diversity and inclusion.”
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VOLUME 13, ISSUE 42 WAY OF LIFE OCTOBER 19, 2012
Several have asked for my
opinion in regard to hymnals. I
recently examined Living
Hymns (second edition) and
find a lot to like. It was first
published by Al Smith in 1972
and is still copyrighted by Al
Smith Ministries. The latest
edition is distributed by Striving
Together Ministries and Paul
Chappell and Cary Schmidt
were on the editorial team. It
has a large selection, with 887
songs and hymns, which I
appreciate. There is no author
index, but I have looked at the
author of every song. There are two
by the Gaithers but none by any of the contemporary worship
artists, as far as I can tell. It has hymns that are rarely seen,
such as Charles Weigle’s “No One Ever Cared for Me Like
Jesus.” There are some little-known hymns by old-time
fundamentalists such as R.A. Torrey, James Gray, and Lewis
Sperry Chafer. Thousands upon thousands of sound sacred
songs and hymns have been written just in the last couple of
centuries, so any hymnal is just a sampling, and no one
hymnal will meet every church’s needs, but Living Hymns
seems to be a good all-around English hymnal. It’s too bad
that Lancaster Baptist Church isn’t content with the nearly
900 psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs in their own hymnal
and feel the need to mess around with contemporary worship.
The following is excerpted from LifeNews, Oct. 12,
2012: “Deaths from ‘voluntary euthanasia’ in Belgium
are approximated at 2 percent – 2,000 annually. At a
recent conference in Brussels, a Belgian
doctor reported that organ transplants are
being done on euthanized patients and that
Belgium leads in this practice. ... Families
of hospitalized patients in Belgium
should take notice of this practice.
In 2010 a study revealed that
nurses in Belgium admitted to
terminating patients without
their consent. ‘The
researchers found that a fifth
of nurses admitted being
involved in the assisted
suicide of a patient. But
nearly half of these – 120 of
248 – also said there was no
consent.’”
E d m u n d M a z z a ,
o r g a n i z e r o f a n
ecumenical
c o n f e r e n c e h e l d
O c t o b e r 4 - 5 i n
Rome, says, “No
Mary, no Jesus; know
Mary, know Jesus.”
The event was a twoday
symposium entitled
Edmund Mazza
“Mary, Sign of Faith (and
Only Hope),” held at the Centro Russia
Ecumenica in Rome in response to Pope
Benedict XVI’s call for Marian conferences.
Mazza, who is history professor at Azusa
Pacific University in Los Angeles, California,
also said, “It's very important that we turn to
Mary because as Louis de Montfort, the great
doctor of the Church once said, it’s through
Mary that Jesus came into the world, and it’s
through Mary that Jesus will reign in the
world. ... Whenever God wants to renew the
world, He does it through Mary” (“International
Symposium on Mary,” Zenit, Oct. 4, 2012).
Mary is seen as central to Rome’s New
Evangelization program, which seeks to recover
lapsed Catholics and foster interfaith unity. The
late John Paul II was a great Mary venerator. He
had the words “Totus Tuus” (totally yours)
embroidered on his robes to signify his
complete devotion to Mary, and he credited
Mary with saving his life when he was shot in
St. Peter’s Square in 1981.
Centro Russia Ecumenica in Rome
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VOLUME 13, ISSUE 42 WAY OF LIFE OCTOBER 19, 2012
Hindu Temple
OBAMA’S SERPENT RING
It has been alleged by some media sources,
particularly WorldNetDaily, that Obama’s
wedding ring bears an Arabic inscription
meaning “there is no God but Allah.” Actually,
according to a high-quality image posted at
UrbanLegends.about.com, which was taken
by photographer Miguel Villagran on June 5,
2009, the ring bears the image of two
serpents. Obama wore this ring as a single
man from 1980 until October 3, 1992, at which time Michelle put the same
ring on his finger at their wedding. In the Bible, Satan tempted Eve as a
serpent and he is later spoken of as “that old serpent” (Revelation 12:9; 20:2).
Since the days of ancient Babel, the serpent has been an integral part of
idolatry. In hymns to Bel or Marduk, one of Babylon’s chief gods, the god
was addressed as the “great serpent dragon.” Bel is depicted as a snake on
ancient Babylonian pottery that I have seen at the Louvre in Paris. The
Egyptian goddess Wadjet was worshipped as a cobra and the double image
of a serpent was found in the tomb of King Tut. The Greek and Roman god
Asclepius was associated with the serpent. The Mayans worshipped
Quetzalcoatle as the “plumed serpent.” Serpent worship is prominent in
voodoo and in the Chinese zodiac. It is a feature of Hindu Shiva worship.
The accompanying photo of a serpent, which we took at a Hindu temple in
Kathmandu, is similar to the image on Obama’s ring. Buddha is sometimes
depicted sitting on a coiled naga or serpent. In light of Obama’s godless
policies, such as his enthusiastic support for moral perversion, the murder of
unborn children (and even of those who accidentally survive the process),
and the flagrant waste of people’s hard-earned money, his ring is telling.
marduk serpent:
Louvre
The following is from Creation Moments, August 14, 2012, www.creationmoments.com: “Many creatures have complex
and beautiful mating rituals. However, few are more wondrous or dramatic than the firefleas’ ritual. The fireflea is a
marine crustacean about the size of a sesame seed. They are found in the Caribbean. Firefleas, as the name implies, are
capable of generating light. The light is used to signal danger and for their mating ritual. When attacked, firefleas
generate a cloud of light in the water, helping some firefleas escape and drawing the attention of larger predators to the
firefleas’ attacker. There is enough light-generating chemicals in one fireflea to give ten minutes of light bright enough
to read by. During the mating ritual, only the males emit light. However, this is not simply random lighting. The males
produce differing dot and dash patterns in the water as they try to gain a female's approval. Some species produce
vertical lines of dots while others make horizontal lines. One species swims in packs,
producing large dotted patterns by coordinating their release of light with each other.
The fireflea is a tiny and seemingly unimportant creature. The meaning of its
complex light displays went unnoticed until just the last 20 years. Though unknown to
man for thousands of years, the fireflea has continued to praise its Creator by doing
what He created it to do. Are you doing what your Creator created you to do?”
Conclusion:
The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use in churches and is published by Way of Life Literature’s Fundamental Baptist
Information Service. Unless otherwise stated, the Notes are written by David Cloud. Of necessity we quote from a wide variety of
sources, but this obviously does not imply an endorsement. We trust that our readers will not be discouraged. It is God’s will that we
know the times (1 Ch. 12:32; Mat. 16:3) and that we be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves. The News Notes remind us that the
hour is very late, and we need to be ready for the Lord’s coming. Are you sure that you are born again? Are you living for Christ? “And
that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night
is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly,
as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Rom. 13:11-14). This material is sent only to those who personally
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