The Wartburg Watch

CONFERENCE$ out the Wazoo

deb — Fri, 18 May 2012 02:29:27 +0000

Categories: Calvinism/Calvinista, Conferences

"I am also very concerned about conferences. Or, more specifically, conference Christians." Mark Driscoll KFC Yum! Center Together for the Gospel 2012, which attracted between 7,500 and 8,000 "conference Christians" to the KFC Yum! Center, is now a memory. Not to worry, there are more conferences on the way for the Calvinista crowd. Take a look. . . Next Theme: The Church (ironically, this is the theme for Resolved 2012) May 26-29, 2012 Orlando, Florida Speakers: C.J. Mahaney, * Kevin DeYoung, Matt Chandler, Jeff Purwell, Jared Mellinger, Ian McConnell Cost: $175 (Individual) $250 (Couple) * Yes, that would be the same Kevin DeYoung who served on the preliminary panel to determine whether C.J. Mahaney was fit for ministry. This is the last Next Conference Here is our God Theme: God's Revelation of Himself in Scripture June 22-24, 2012 Orlando, Florida Speakers: Don Carson, Tim Keller, John Piper, Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Mary Kassian, Carolyn Mahaney, Mary Mohler, Kathy Keller, Noelle Piper, Jani Ortlund, Lauren Chandler, Kristie Anyabwile, among others Cost: $175 This is the first ever National Women's Conference sponsored by The Gospel Coalition Resolved 2012 Theme: The Church June 22-25, 2012 Palm Springs, California Speakers: John MacArthur, Continue reading →

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Pastor Chuck O’Neal, The Blogger, Phil Johnson and Overuse of “Slander”

dee — Wed, 16 May 2012 22:09:01 +0000

Categories: Blogging and the church, Calvinism/Calvinista, John MacArthur, Spiritual abuse

“Slander cannot destroy an honest man – when the flood recedes the rock is there” Chinese Proverb Man at Wailing Wall-WikiCommons I apologize for the disjointed nature of this post. There are several competing stories within this thread and I will do my best to integrate them. Press Release From Pastor Chuck O’Neal At 11AM EST, The Wartburg Watch received a press release from Pastor Chuck O’Neal. I asked permission to reprint it in part since it is quite lengthy. However, he asked that it be printed in full. So, we have created a separate page at TWW and will provide the link to it at the end of the following excerpt. To preface the release he wrote, “Things are not always what they first seem to be. Here is a small portion of the rest of the story.” "There is another side to the story. Beaverton Grace Bible Church wants to present its side of the story before anyone rushes to judgment. In Nov. of 2008 a man was removed from the staff of Beaverton Grace Bible Church (BGBC). Since that time, Pastor Charles O’Neal and the Beaverton Grace Bible Church have been the targets of a three and Continue reading →

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SGM Types: Julia Duin to Address Spiritual Abuse at Gaithersburg Book Fair 5/19

dee — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:21:04 +0000

Categories: Charismatic, SGM, Sovereign Grace Ministries, Spiritual abuse

(Regular post to follow) "Current and former SGM members may wonder if they are the only ones in Reform/charismatic circles to undergo the trials they've been experiencing in recent years. Not at all: Those of you living in the Washington, DC area have a chance to hear Julia Duin, the former religion editor of the Washington Times, now writing for the Washington Post Sunday magazine, talk about her book about what went on with Episcopal and Catholic charismatics, whose problems with community life and control make what happened with SGM seem…well, maybe not like child's play, but a continuation of the same narrative. Her book "Days of Fire and Glory: The Rise and Fall of a Charismatic Community" talks about how a famous Texas church underwent very similar experiences and the lessons learned from the debacle She will be talking about her book Saturday May 19 at the Gaithersburg Book Festival, specifically from 11:40 a.m-12:20 pm in the Rachel Carson tent. Her web site www.juliaduin.com has more information about the book. Or you can buy it from www.crosslandfoundation.org. For information on how to get to the festival, where to park, etc., please see here: http://gaithersburgbookfestival.org. Days of Fire and Continue reading →

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Phil Johnson Responds for John MacArthur and Grace Community Church

dee — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:28:34 +0000

Categories: John MacArthur

Phil Johnson I emailed Phil Johnson this morning. He promptly responded with the following statement. "In a story currently circulating on the Internet, a claim is being made that the elders of Grace Community Church (John MacArthur, Pastor) advised a church in another state to file a defamation lawsuit against a former member. For the record, we would not approve of such a lawsuit, for multiple reasons. 'First, Scripture expressly teaches that it is better to be defrauded than to take a fellow Christian to court: "Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? . . . It is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?" (1 Corinthians 6:7). Here is what John MacArthur says about that passage: Christians who take fellow Christians to court lose spiritually before the case is heard. The fact that they have lawsuits at all is a sign of moral and spiritual defeat (hettema, a word used of defeat in court). A believer who takes a fellow believer to court for any reason always Continue reading →

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Pastor Makes International News by Suing Blogging Critic-Is John MacArthur’s Church Involved?

dee — Mon, 14 May 2012 21:04:36 +0000

Categories: Blogging and the church, John MacArthur

I choose not to give energy to the emotions of revenge, hatred or the desire to subjugate. Roseanne Cash Saturn's Moon-NASA A few months ago, we received a call from Julie Ann Smith who explained that she was being sued by a former pastor, Chuck O’Neal, of Beaverton Grace Bible Church in Oregon here. Julie Anne relayed to me the pain that caused her to leave her former church. I attempted to reach the pastor at the time but he did not return my call. Today, at 3:00 PM EST, his inbox is completely filled up. Could it be calls from the national media? Poor Chuck. I would not want to be his attorney. The Story Heats Up The story broke with local news media. Let’s pick it up here with KATU news. “The family being sued left the church a few years ago and Julie Anne Smith says she and her family were shunned and couldn't understand why. So she went online and wrote Google and DEX reviews of the church and then started a blog.  When the family left the church, Smith says friends were told to end all contact with her.  "If I went to Costco or any Continue reading →

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EChurch@Wartburg – 5.13.12

deb — Sat, 12 May 2012 13:05:56 +0000

Categories: EChurch@Wartburg

Welcome to Our Gathering of EChurch@Wartburg Enhanced Rainbow by Barb Ver Sluis Here is our order of worship Once again, we bring you a praise song from The Odes Project. This is from the recently discovered first-century hymnal found called The Odes of Solomon. You can read more about this remarkable historical find here. Imagine yourself singing with your brothers and sisters from 2000 years ago. That is the great cloud of witnesses who have gone before us! A Prayer of Martin Luther Link Behold, Lord, an empty vessel that needs to be filled. My Lord, fill it. I am weak in the faith; strengthen me. I am cold in love; warm me and make me fervent, that my love may go out to my neighbor. I do not have a strong and firm faith; at times I doubt and am unable to trust you altogether. O Lord, help me. Strengthen my faith and trust in you. In you I have sealed the treasure of all I have. I am poor; you are rich and came to be merciful to the poor. I am a sinner; you are upright.With me, there is an abundance of sin; in you is the Continue reading →

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Al Mohler: Mother’s Day Is a Bad Idea

dee — Fri, 11 May 2012 18:48:43 +0000

Categories: Al Mohler, Complementarianism, Women and the church

The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.And by him we cry, “Abba,Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. Romans 8:15,16 NIV Bible Gateway Alice, the bluebird, taught the babies to fly and has laid 5 new eggs. I honor her diligence! We first published this post in May 2009, when no one was reading this blog except for our friends and family. We think it is important to understand some of the thinking behind those who hold to certain views on complementarianism. To those of you who are single, infertile, and estranged from abusive parents, our hearts reach out to you. Know this, you are part of an eternal family in which we all share the same Father. We are brothers and sisters to one another, although to some of the folks that we write about, we are probably the black sheep of Continue reading →

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Mary Kassian and Her Complementarian Spin

deb — Fri, 11 May 2012 03:59:28 +0000

Categories: Calvinism/Calvinista

"Recently, someone in the twitter world called me an “uber-complementarian.” They threw out the term “complementarian” derogatorily, like an ugly handful of mud – akin to calling someone a “racist,” “fascist,” “sexist,” or something scary like that. I had to smile, since I remember sitting around a table with John Piper and Wayne Grudem and others, wracking our brains to come up with an apt label to describe the historic Christian teaching on gender. Oh how quickly labels turn into stereotypes!" Mary A. Kassian Rosie the Riveter I love learning the history of recently established complementarianism. It was birthed through the Danvers Statement, which Mary Kassian probably had a hand in writing. What I'd really like to know is how she became so privileged as a woman to sit shoulder to shoulder with the likes of John Piper and Wayne Grudem as they "wracked" their brains to identify a term that would describe their narrow interpretation of gender, supposedly according to Scripture. The above quote is the introduction to Mary Kassian's post a year ago – "Dora the Doormat" and other Scary Straw Women of Complementarity. She provides a Historic Christian Position on Gender in which she explains the following: Continue reading →

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Calvinista Mary Kassian to Address SBC Pastors’ Wives in New Orleans

deb — Thu, 10 May 2012 03:55:50 +0000

Categories: Calvinism/Calvinista, New Reformed Theology

"THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE IS THE HAND THAT RULES THE WORLD." William Wallace Cradle That Deb Rocked Congratulations, Calvinistas! Your tribe is expanding its influence over the Southern Baptist Convention. How clever to arrange for one of the leading Neo-Calvinist dames to address SBC pastors' wives at the SBC Ministers' Wives Luncheon next month. By influencing the "first ladies" of Southern Baptist congregations, you can have a direct impact on those who rock the cradles of SBC babes. This isn't the first time Kassian has addressed women of the Southern Baptist Convention. Three years ago she spoke at a "Women of Truth" conference that preceded the SBC Annual Meeting when it was held in Louisville. That was the year of the Great Commission Resurgence. . . Peter Smith of the Courier-Journal wrote an article about this gathering entitled: Women urged to focus on caretaker role. He describes how an attendee "sat with her Bible open to the second chapter of the biblical book of Titus, listening to a speaker expound on the passage's teaching that women should be submissive to their husbands and the primary caretakers at home. She knew the passage well, having marked it thoroughly in Continue reading →

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John Piper: Women Are Free to Go to the Bathroom Without A Man’s Permission

dee — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:12:59 +0000

Categories: Calvinism/Calvinista, Complementarianism, John Piper

To be risen with Christ means not only that one has a choice and that one may live by a higher law – the law of grace and love – but that one must do so. The first obligation of the Christian is to maintain their freedom from all superstitions, all blind taboos and religious formalities, indeed from all empty forms of legalism. -Thomas Merton Folks, when a Christian leader, like John Piper, has to write a post like this, Christianity has gone wacko! The fact that he thinks this is a reasonable post to write is even scarier. I believe that much of the blame can be dumped in the laps of the Calvinistas who seem to have precious little to do with their time since they love to write treatises and go to conferences that pontificate on what women can and cannot do. I contend that complementarianism has been made a primary issue by the Calvinista crowd. Times have changed. Years ago, it did not overly concern me that there were people who believed in a young earth. I subscribed to the CS Lewis philosophy (paraphrased) that people who believe that God has a long white beard will Continue reading →

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