THE MELTDOWN OF CHRISTIANITY
SEE: http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/newsletters/2016/newsletter20160831.htm; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:By Roger Oakland
Understand the Times, International
Since the turn of the millennium, the world has witnessed a virtual meltdown of biblical Christianity. While many are saying Christianity is experiencing a great revival and even a “new reformation,” this commentary will document the demise of Christianity by showing we are experiencing the greatest apostasy in modern-day history.
In one word, Christianity is being redefined. Scores of pastors have chosen to abandon the Bible in favor of postmodernism (that is, what they view as progressive and culturally relevant). There is no other way to describe what has happened. Those who love God and believe the Bible is His Word cannot believe what has happened. Light has turned into darkness. What was once believed to be true is now proclaimed to be a lie. Those who once claimed to be followers of Jesus and the Bible are now following men and their philosophies.
Rather than reaching out to the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, pastors and Bible teachers are abandoning the Bible in order to embrace the world. They look for ways to market what they call Christianity by incorporating sensual gimmicks that are supposed to attract the masses. Hymn books are tossed out of churches from the pews. Pews have been replaced by soft theater seats with credit card terminals. Being comfortable while attending church is the standard. Don’t mention sin or that Jesus shed His blood on the Cross because that would be offensive.
Then we could ask: What happened to the God of the Bible who created all things according to the book of Genesis. When did creation become a religious Babylonian myth and the theory of evolution become the science that proves that an explosion plus time and chance is the formula for the origin of all life?
Or what about the infiltration of the New Age movement into evangelical churches? Have we been Hinduized and now think that Yoga is a Christian exercise? Or what about getting closer to Jesus by humming mantras, “getting centered,” or practicing eastern mystical contemplative prayers that will send you off to Nirvana? Have Christians lost their minds and been seduced by demons?
How about the invasion of extra-biblical experiences? For example, what about getting drunk in the “Spirit” or barking like a dog because of the “transferrable anointing”? Where is that kind of behavior found in Scriptures? Are Christians being prepared for a great revival, or are they being seduced by another spirit?
Then there is the trend that embraces “ecumenical madness.” They say the term Protestant is a word that should be retired to the past and has no significance in the church today. Church leaders claim there is no difference between the Pentecostal Jesus and the Eucharistic Christ worshiped and adored in a Roman Catholic monstrance. Or for many today, Jesus is nothing more than the Cosmic Christ that sees all is one and one is all. This “Jesus” is the universal Jesus of the New Age. If you don’t believe in this “Cosmic Christ” created by your own imagination, you are often deemed a heretic or at least old-fashioned.
Then there is the charismatic bridge located on the road to ecumenical unity. It provides a connection for the gap that once existed between Roman Catholics and the separated brethren. Some are calling for the Second Pentecost claiming that the world will turn to Christ and establish the Kingdom of God here on earth without the presence of the King.
Further, Israel no longer has a significant place in Scripture. Jews are a problem to the new emerging church. Replacement theology has ignored the Israel of the Bible and replaced God’s chosen people with the church that is about to establish the kingdom of God here on earth. In other words, Christianity has been reformed and those who refuse to accept this are considered uneducated morons (and are standing in the way of world peace).
Bible prophecy and the warnings about apostasy are totally relegated to a museum. A one-world religion for peace is in the making, and the Pope and the environment is the man to do it. The postmodern mindset has hijacked true biblical Christianity and made God into a god of their own imagination. The Word of God has been degraded into a myth.
Or have you noticed the church-growth emphasis that has swept the world? Purpose-driven megachurches that market fun and entertainment are growing exponentially. The churches that stress the Bible and salvation by Jesus Christ alone are dying and on the way out. The big get bigger and the small are getting smaller. It appears that Bible-believing Christianity is on the verge of becoming next to extinct.(source)
