How does a good church become a cult? When does a pastor overstep his authority? How to recognize a toxic faith system that preys on emotionally dependent church members.

Want to know how interpret the Bible Correctly?

Our groupblog author, Jeff Kluttz is an an excellent teacher. And he has things set up at his church to where he weekly records different teachings series and makes them available on his blog. Right now he is doing a series on The Gospel (can you imagine that,, a whole series on the blessed good news) and this teaching series on Interpreting The Bible which is essentially a free bible study method class. In the early 90′s I took a bible study method course at a local bible college and Jeffs teaching series is essentially the same thing.

I have enjoyed watching the series as Jeff releases a new video every week. As of the posting of this post, Jeff is up to week and video 8 and it looks like he will be doing several more weeks into this study. I have been waiting patently for him to finish so I could post them here and then I discovered a way I can go ahead and post them now. Instead of embeding the videos on this page, I will just give a link to the series page on ReturningKing.com. So far the series includes these videos with more to come.

• Interpreting the Bible Vlog Course Begins Today
• Intrepreting The Bible Pt. 2 – Linguistic Principle
• Intrepreting The Bible Pt. 3 – Historical/Cultural Principle
• Interpreting the Bible Pt. 4 – the Contextual Principle
• Bible Interpretation Pt. 05 – Contextual/Theological Principles
• Interpreting the Bible Pt. 6 – Resources
• Interpreting the Bible – Part 7 – The Golden Rule of Interpretation
• Interpreting the Bible – Part 8 – Applying The Golden Rule of Interpretation

Here is the link to THE VIDEO SERIES PAGE

This video would not embed into this post. So you’ll have to GO HERE to see the video that I highly suggest. There is a link on the video page to the sermon notes below.

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TEXT: 1 Peter 3:17–22
PREACHER: Pastor Mark Driscoll
DATE: April 5, 2009

“For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil” –1 Peter 3:17

Introduction

1 Peter 3: 18–20 is, according to Martin Luther, “More obscure than any other passage in the New Testament.” It is one of the most debated passages in the Bible; there are around 180 different interpretations.

• All Scripture is equally inspired but not all Scripture is equally clear (2 Tim. 3:16 cf. 2 Pet. 3:16).
• The doctrine of perspicuity: Those verses in the Bible that are unclear should be interpreted in light of the passages that are clear.
• Lack of clarity in some passages requires us to be humble when approaching them.

Learn from Jesus’ Suffering (1 Peter 3:18a)

• This is a mysterious passage of Scripture describing Jesus’ suffering; your suffering may be mysterious as well.
• When you suffer, remember Jesus Christ.
• Our greatest need is not the absence of suffering but the presence of God.
• What are you learning about Jesus through suffering?

Learn from Jesus’ Death (1 Peter 3:18b–20)

• On the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished.” There was nothing else to be done in regard to his work of salvation, therefore it was not necessary for Christ to descend into hell, as some interpreters have said of this passage.
• On the cross, Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (emphasis added), which appears to be further evidence against the idea that Christ descended into hell after his death.
• “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). There is no second chance for repentance and faith after death.

Peter recalls Noah’s story in reference to Christian baptism (1 Peter 3:20).

• The story of Noah (Genesis 6:5–14) is often twisted to say that because Noah was righteous, he received favor from God. The Bible, however, presents the opposite order: God’s favor (“grace”) precedes and enables Noah’s righteousness.
• Along with his sons, Noah preached righteousness and built the Ark for 120 years. He was constantly mocked and nobody ever responded to his invitation for repentance. Christians suffer likewise in our day, awaiting the fulfillment of God’s promise.

Learn from Jesus’ Resurrection

• Baptism symbolizes the death, burial, and resurrection Jesus Christ.
• Baptism is an outward demonstration of inward transformation.
• Baptism shows a FACT (“the resurrection of Jesus Christ”) and FAITH (“a good conscience”).

Learn from Jesus’ Ascension

Remember who Jesus is, not just who he was. As a Christian…

• You will die, as Jesus did.
• Your body will go into the ground but your spirit will live, as Jesus’ did.
• You will rise from death as Jesus did.
• You will live in victory over the presence and power of sin with Jesus.

In the meantime…

• You will suffer as Jesus did.
• Your suffering will likely be as mysterious as Jesus’ suffering and as confusing as 1 Peter 3.
• Don’t try and figure it all out.
• Suffer well in faith like Noah did.

http://blog.marshillchurch.org/2009/04/07/notes-suffering-to-learn/

Gary says “Those who love to talk will experience the consequences,for the tongue can kill or nourish life – Proverbs18:21“

Well I like the song,,, it’s a nice little diddy – but horrendous theology?

May God bless you Gary, that you don’t succumb to a slip of your own lip, or worse yet -someone elses. Jas 3:8  But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. Acts 20:29-32

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 1 Timothy 4:1

Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, colossians 2:18

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-92) was England’s best-known preacher for most of the second half of the nineteenth century. In 1854, just four years after his conversion, Spurgeon, then only 20, became pastor of London’s famed New Park Street Church (formerly pastored by the famous Baptist theologian John Gill). The congregation quickly outgrew their building, moved to Exeter Hall, then to Surrey Music Hall. In these venues Spurgeon frequently preached to audiences numbering more than 10,000—all in the days before electronic amplification. In 1861 the congregation moved permanently to the newly constructed Metropolitan Tabernacle.

I cannot say enough about the quality of teaching that Jeff has shared with this blog and it’s visitors. You will be extremely blessed if you visit Jeffs RETURNINGKING.COM.

Jeff has turned two of his teaching series into books. The Returning King and Spirit World. And since the books are essentially his article series, both books are available for FREE READING. And he is now finishing up the book Wolves in Wool which comes from his article and video series that is on this blog. Jeff is currently doing two new video series called “The Gospel Truth” and “Interpreting the Bible“. He also has a couple of other completed video teaching series.

And you can watch these teaching series as they are streamed live at  

Which is essentially an online TV channel for services at the church Jeff pastors, First Baptist Church Needville TX, USA – www.fbcneedville.org

As you can see there are many reasons to visit and bookmark Jeff’s blog RETURNINGKING.COM.

I have really enjoyed brother Jeffs teachings. I hope you do also. Jeff really does a good job on the subject of Faith in the following video.

Wolves in Wool 3 – Faith, the Omnipotent Entity from Jeff Kluttz on Vimeo.

“They’.. label the ‘Word of faith’ as a ‘movement’…but the Gospel is the Word of Faith..according to the Apostle Paul”

This is part of a comment I received at YouTube. You can see the larger quote and my article and video response to this claim here.

We must be careful when we read. This statement is evidence of this. It would be totally correct to say “The Word of Faith is the Gospel”. But to say “the Gospel is the Word of Faith” is rank heresy and a total inversion and perversion of what Scripture teaches.

This video clearly portrays the Gospel. ALL OF THE GOSPEL. (ie. the “Full Gospel”).

Q&A with Alan Cairns are brief, straightforward, Bible-based, video answers presented in a conversational format that deal with a broad range of difficult questions that face Christians today

FROM THE VIDEO DESCRIPTION:

You MUST hear this song! A powerful song and teaching that gives you a serious warning concerning false teachers and their ungodly dangerous doctrines. You should listen to holy men of God who preach the truth from a sincere heart.THIS SONG IS FROM THE CD “CONSIDER THE COST” BY STEVE CAMP.I CONSIDER IT ONE OF HIS BEST.

The following book is a very good book to read on the subject it is called “The Agony of Deceit” by Michael Horton. The song is based on this book and 2 Peter 2. You can order this book on Amazon.com or ebay.

If you are a serious Christian and want to know the truth about this Movement consider buying these books.

You can find these books on amazon.com

1. “A Different Gospel” by D.R. McConnell
2. “The New Charismatics” by Michael Moriarty
3. “Christianity in Crisis” by Hank Hanegraaff
4. “The Seduction of Christianity” by Dave Hunt
5.” The Word-Faith Controversy” by Robert Bowman
6. “The Born Again Jesus of the Word-Faith Teaching” by Judith Matta
7. “The Strange World of Benny Hinn”
8. The Disease of the Wealth and Health Gospel” Gorden Fee (A renown godly Pentecostal Bible scholar).

If fact there is no church historian or Bible Scholar that would agree with these false teachings. I know this movement well. I graduated from Rhema Bible Training Center in 1979 and spent 12 long years as a part of this movement. I preached in many WOF Churches. I was a devout reader of E.W. Kenyon. I read one of his books over 40 times! I met and heard many of the key figures of this movement in the ’70s and 80s. So I’m not a novice on the subject. God by His grace set me free from these false doctrines in 1988. At the time I was a pastor of a growing church. I recanted before my congregation. The Bible became like a new book to me, so precious, pure and powerful. Since then I’ve been on the narrow road that leads to life. I now preach the Gospel as according to Jesus and the Apostles as inspired by the Holy Spirit. Finally, let it be said that not all pentecostals agree with the Word of Faith Movement. God bless you.

You’ll shake your head in dismay as you see men barking like dogs and being led around on leashes; women howling like wolves and braying like donkeys; and profanity shouted from the pulpit. You’ll recoil in astonishment to discover supposed Christian leaders scoffing at Bible doctrine; a televangelist and his associates sharing an opium smoking pipe; possessed people slithering like serpents at crusades; and thousands of worshippers blasphemously speaking in false tongues and breaking out in roaring, hysterical laughter…

Did you ever wish you could collect and compile all the major news media’s investigative exposés on the antics of Benny Hinn? Well, now you can. The televangelist watchdog group, The Trinity Foundation, has organized three solid hours of documented, hard-hitting reports on the escapades of the controversial faith healer. It’s all you ever wanted to know about Hinn and more.

The video begins with the 1993 Inside Edition investigation of the finances and healings of the evangelist. The Inside Edition footage, the first study of Hinn by the national news media, still ranks as one of the best — if not the best — of showing Hinn at his worst. It features Hinn and his entourage trying to bully their way past Inside Edition’s news crew at the Philadelphia airport and how the Hinn ministry’s irresponsible disregard for documented healings caused them to broadcast a “fake” healing. But the Inside Edition piece is just the tip of the iceberg.

From there the video moves on to Hinn’s 1993 700 Club appearance with Pat Robertson where he laments his former ways and teachings. As the video progresses into more recent reports, much of what Hinn bemoaned to Robertson and his audience is still evident in Hinn’s life and ministry.

The collection also contains reports that would otherwise be hard or impossible to find. These include Pam Zekman’s 1993 three-part report (WBBM-ABC Chicago), the 1998 60 Minutes (Australia) segment, and Richard Ray’s 1999 two-part report (KDFW-FOX Dallas-Fort Worth). Also included are local news items from various Orlando television stations that chronicle Hinn’s problems at home. They reveal Hinn’s misfortune when he hired a private investigator to look into his ministry’s finances (and apparently found more than what Hinn bargained for) and the deaths of two of his key staff by heroin overdoses.

In all the reports, Hinn consistently groans with ignorance of the facts as to the out-of-control world he has created around himself. The astute viewer of all this will ask, “How can someone who is so in tune with the Divine (i.e., receiving personal messages from Jesus), be so out of touch with his life and ministry?”

Interspersed throughout the reports is a selection of Hinn’s most outrageous theological bloopers, including Adam was an astronaut, the Red Sea icecapades, the Holy Ghost machine gun and TBN to raise the dead. And, yes, no Benny Hinn video collection would be complete without his wife, Suzanne’s “Holy Ghost enema” and “butt-kisser” statements. Those clips are there too.

The video not only will educate and entertain, but bring most viewers to heartbreak by the revelations of how this man’s false and reckless teachings have devastated the lives of some followers.

http://www.cephasministry.com/word_of_faith_many_faces_of_%20benny_hinn.html