Articles

Psycho Feedback: The Delusional World of Psychobabble

Paula White Exposed [video]

THAT’s My King! Pastor Lockridge [video]

Powerful Prayers from Children-This Will Shake You [video]

The Fear of the LORD is to Hate Evil: Pride, and Arrogancy #shorts [video]

The Babble of the Psychos

“Beware lest any man spoil (ruin, deceive) you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:” Colossians 2:8-10

“If I were the Devil … I would substitute psychology for religion.” Paul Harvey, If I Were the Devil

You don’t need some stupid program. Psychobabble band aid. $cam. You need the Savior and you connect with Him when you truly repent, and put your whole life and faith in Christ.

Typical words of a counterfeit concerning drugging someone for a spiritual issue or adhering to psychobabble or psychiatry….

God-fearing people NEVER go to psychology, to a therapist, or a drug. No, they go to Jesus! They go to God’s Counsel – His written Word! (Psalms 119) Repent!

Forget all the ADHD psychobabble foolishness. People guilty of sins and/or crimes made choices (James 1:13-15). They are fully responsible, accountable, and guilty! Stop trying to psychologize sin! Repent now.

ANY time you hear terminology like “inner child,” you know you’re dealing with psychobabble! Colossians 2:8-10 Rebuke. Run!

Jesus never once prescribed a drug, and especially not for someone’s mental state or mood. The Son of God never sent anyone to a mere human counselor because He is the only “Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6-7) Some people are so doped up with their trust in this world, intoxicated with the damning sin of unbelief, that they trust human doctors over the Almighty who created the human spirit, soul, and body! SMH (Luke 4:18; 2 Timothy 1:7; Psalms 147:3) Not only will the false pastors who send people to counselors never preach repentance, neither will those vile human counselors – because Satan’s fake news “bibles” they use have removed the essential divine command to repent! (Luke 13:3). Repentance is the only way God will forgive and refresh anyone! (Acts 3:19)

Message Received:

“Oh brother but you just don’t understand… I have mental problems” or “my son/daughter has issues that require drugs for their mental state.”

Response:

Nonsense!

It’s YOU who doesn’t know nor understand the LORD – who is the Healer of all who come to Him! He demonstrated such then died to procure such blessing to those who will come to Him in true repentance and faith.

“He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” Psalms 107:20

Below is the feedback from others to articles we have published on the topic of psychology and the Bible – and our response. True disciples of Jesus never walk in the counsel of the ungodly – the psychobabble devils of this apostate age.

The WORD, the Holy Spirit, and the body of Christ is how GOD makes His people whole! The ungodly counterfeit runs to the world, seeking the bankruptcy of the fallen face! “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.” (Psalms 1:1) If you run to the world instead of the LORD, you are not blessed but rather are continuing to bring curses upon your life and family! Repent now!

“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
Psa 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
Psa 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
Psa 1:4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
Psa 1:5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
Psa 1:6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” Psalms 1

You claim to know Christ and yet take drugs for your mood? REPENT NOW! (2 Timothy 1:7)

God’s medicine is God’s Word! Truly repent and get into it.

If you have more confidence in human doctors of any kind and/or the drugs or methods they prescribe, you are a lost soul who does not have saving faith. The Bible says you have “an evil heart of unbelief.” (Hebrews 3:12-15)

“Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Exodus 20:3

Friend, are you ready to truly repent for your idolatry of looking to man instead of the LORD? Are you ready to put your trust in the only One who can heal and make you whole?

Prayer: Holy Father in Heaven, I come to You in the name of Jesus Christ, admitting to You my gross sin of spiritual adultery and soul damning idolatry. Through Jesus Christ alone, I ask You to here and now forgive my sins and to rescue me through the blood of the LAMB Jesus Christ whom I now name and confess as the truly LORD and Master of my life. LORD Jesus, I here and now lay my life in Your holy hands. I ask You now to cure and make me whole LORD Jesus as only You can do. From this moment forward I will follow and obey You via the counsel of Thy written Word. I love You Jesus. Please fill me with Your Holy Ghost and use me LORD. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Is there such a thing as “Christian” Psychology?

The Bible says “If ANY man lack wisdom, LET HIM ASK OF GOD (not a mere man – psychologist).” (James 1:5) I hope i never need a psychologist either friend, because if i do it is only because i have ceased to trust the ALL-Mighty. Psychology is for those who do not truly and in a real way walk with and trust in and have faith in the Almighty (Heb. 11). No, rather they hide their unbelief behind the thin veil of a pseudo Christianity which will not be asbestos proof on Judgment Day. The LORD says they have a “evil heart of unbelief.” (Heb. 3:12-15) Who are we ALL going to stand before in Judgment – the LORD Almighty or some mere man, a supposed “expert” who is subverting His clear truth with godless philosophy? Did He not tell us that those who add to His Word OR take away from it are doomed to the plagues (including the lake of fire) in Revelation? (Rev. 22:18-19) Those who go to Egypt (the world) for help instead of the LORD they claim to trust are under His judgment and “accursed.” (Isa, 30:1; Jer. 17:5, Gal. 1:6-10, etc.). They do not genuinely honor God and what He plainly stated. If they did they would live out a life of trust in HIM not mere men. They would get on their face and fast and seek Him diligently until He broke all the yokes as He promised (Isa. 58). Some simply do not want to repent. They want someone to tell them it is not their fault and because of something that happened in their childhood they are they way they are today. They reason away the very Word of God just like the hell-bound Pharisees did. The Son of God said “This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God… Full well ye REJECT the commandment (Word) of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.” (Mk. 7:6-9) Psychology has become the comfortable tradition many trust in (as can be seen by the reaction to this article). It has become the norm or crutch they lean on that never calls them to repentance from which is the root cause of all their problems. These people defy the Almighty by having other gods before them (Exodus 20:3-4). God says He is a Jealous God and His name is Jealous and that He will visit this iniquity with His Judgment (Exod. 20:3-5; 34:14). The LORD says that these people worship at the altar of a false god: “For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice.” (Exod. 34:14-15) Psychology is an industry which has to perpetuate itself through long drawn out sessions which never get at the root of man’s problems and yet create a financial income for those leading the circus (blind leading those who choose to reject truth and are willingly blind (Matt. 15:14). Ultimately, if there is not repentance, both will fall into the ditch of eternal damnation for not truly loving God and doing what He told us in His precious Word (2 Thess. 2:9-12). Psycho-Heresy is for those who have only a mere form or formula (outward show only) of godliness and yet DENY Christ and the power of true and total surrender to His Majesty (2 Tim. 3:1-7). They are ashamed of Jesus and His Word and He said He is going to be ashamed of and reject them on Judgment Day (Mk. 8:34-38). Jesus is coming – Are you ready? Do you truly know Him? Matt. 7:21-23 Friend you do not need a man to help you – you need Jesus beloved…He says “Come unto Me” and “Repent.” (Matt. 1:28-30; Lk. 13:3,5)

“EVERY WORD OF GOD IS PURE (not to be mixed): he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a LIAR.” Proverbs 30:5-6

Psycho Interaction / Feedback

“Many times antidepressants only worsen the problems and satan knows that. The mind is the devil’s playground. . . Don’t give him a ride! Call on Jesus, for” He who is in you is greater than he (satan) who is in the world.” Glory to God and Him only!” Ron H.

“I just finished reading an article on your website about psychology, and it’s so true! I tried to kill myself (guilt over sins) about 4 years ago, and was put in the pavilion. Afterwards, I loved the attention I got from everyone. I was ordered to go to counseling twice a week, and I looked forward to those meetings. Why? I got to talk about myself. I also used that as an excuse as to why I did stupid things in those few months. After being born again, I realized that I needed to take responsibility for my actions and not blame anyone or some “mental illness.” The doctor still tries to put me on antidepressants. I won’t take them. I don’t need them. I have Jesus.” Misty N.

“I have sent educational psychologists packing after listening to their absurd assessments of pupils – which were nothing more than fabricated conclusions formulated to fit their criteria !” Kristin S.

“I have seen psychologist not even to be able to handle their own lives and children. When my daughter was young, I walked out on the only one I went to and told him “don’t bother to send me a bill”! In ten minutes I could tell he was in a bigger mess than I was! God is our counselor!!!!” Darlene T.

Respondent:

“I find no mention (in the Bible) of Christian Psychologists either. Nor Christian doctors, dentists, stock brokers, loan officers, nurses, taxi drivers, pilots, or police officers, judges or jurors. I think we should abandon all of these posts too as being unbiblical and thus not acceptable. Come to think of it, the internet isn’t either. Perhaps you should get off of that too. (Pardon the sarcasm.)”

Todd’s Reply:

True, yet doctors of the body (like Luke), dentists, technology professionals, financial experts, etc., don’t pretentiously claim to be dealing with the things that only the LORD can deal with – sin and the very hearts of men. Sin is man’s core problem and only God Himself can solve that problem through the blood of the cross of Jesus Christ (Gen. 6:5; Jer. 17:9; Col. 1:20). Psychology and its proponents and ring leaders claim to be able to help men using various methods. It’s a deception – only the LORD Himself can heal the hearts of men and bring them to a state of wholeness. Sin is man’s problem and only the sacrificial blood of Jesus Christ can heal him through repentance and complete faith in Him (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 3:23-26). Man’s root dilemma is sin and he has NO hope outside of the LORD who made Him. Man’s spiritual state is his MOST important and eternal issue. Teeth, technology, physical bodies, and finances are temporal issues and the soul eternal. Hell awaits those not healed in their hearts through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Psychology pretends to be able to diagnose and bring solution to man’s problems apart from His Maker, yet can only bring a superficial semblance of help – Speaking of false leadership, the Holy Spirit through Jeremiah said “They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.” (Jer. 6:14) See: Sin: Man’s Core Problem

Respondent:

“I believe this is an excellent article of truth. If you ever try to get counseling at a time when you just need someone to talk to about the terrible mess your in, don’t go to a psychologist. If you want to take responsibility for your own sins and faults, don’t go to a psychologist. If you just want someone to lead you in the right direction, don’t go to a psychologist. They will “love” you into hell and tell you that all your problems are someone else’s fault. They will “self affirm” you to death, literally. And some will convince you that you need drugs to “get your mind straight”. Rather, when you need advice and direction, seek it in God’s Word only being very cautious whom you choose to guide you along the way. I speak from my own experience as well as those of people I know. Please, save yourself from confusion, go to the Lord.”

Todd’s Response:

Praise God for the true fear of God and the honor of His Precious Word in your heart brother! Ps 119 -todd

Responder:

“So you think there is no such thing as a Christian psychologist because it isn’t mentioned in the Bible? I guess that would mean that one couldn’t be a Christian auto mechanic, or a Christian airplane pilot either since they are not specifically mentioned. Since my degree is in marriage and family therapy, and I am a pastor, I may have a bias, but I see your reasoning as seriously flawed, and your perspective on the field of psychology simplistic and uniformed. Is psychology a replacement for faith in Jesus Christ and confidence in Scripture? No! But can God use a faithful servant who has an understanding of the mental intricacies of the mind’s workings? Yes – He can and does.”

Todd’s Response:

You stated that I “managed to insult the intelligence of your readers” then you turn around and do the same thing to me by stating “Your ignorance is pathetic.” By the way I am in no way moved or insulted by this your words – I just thought you might examine your own heart (Matt. 7:1-6). Sounds like a nerve was hit 😉 Also, have an ale on me brother! Toast to the wonders this “valuable and well established profession” of psychology – but only if you can personally produce the fruit of this industry and demonstrate clearly that it is higher authority than the very words of the God who made man in His holy image (Prov. 21:30). Got any real evidence that psychology has ever truly gotten to the root of man’s problem – which is sin? If so please show us all – and by even attempting to do so you will have shaken your fist in the face of the LORD Almighty and told Him that Christ’s sacrifice on the cross (precious blood) and resurrection (redemptive mission) were unnecessary and so is His eternal Word which spoke the worlds into existence and uphold them are irrelevant (Jn. 1:1-4; Col. 1:15-17; Heb. 1:1-3). It’s time to repent of defending this subversive antichrist industry that claims to have the answers to man’s spiritual and mental dilemmas outside of the divine prescription given in the Holy Word of the living God – given to us for doctrine, correction, reproof and instruction in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:15-17). This is defiance in its highest form. It’s of the world and originates from the “god of this world (satan).” (2 Cor. 4:4) “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” (1 Jn. 2:15) Isn’t it time for us to get a spiritual spine and begin to enact the mandate of the LORD by “earnestly contend(ing) for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints?” (Jude 3-4) – todd

Response:

“All, I can say is that if the foundation is faulty, a person’s subsequent thinking on a matter will be faulty. Our foundation is Christ. We are complete in Him. If we think we are complete in anything else, we will seek our completion somewhere else, but it will fall short. Everything that I need is in Him. He is the Word made flesh that dwelt among us. Psalms 1 tells us, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly…. but his delight is in the law of the Lord and in that Law he meditates day and night… and he will be like a tree planted beside rivers of water… and in all that he does he prospers.” Pro. 4:22, “My Son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. FOR THEY ARE LIFE UNTO THOSE THAT FIND THEM, AND HEALTH TO ALL THEIR FLESH.” It is the word of God that heals me and gives rest to my soul. If Jesus, the Word, is my foundation, my spirit, soul, and body will find rest and peace. Whoever can feed me the Word, is the one who can help me find healing and peace for my soul. Psychology and the reasonings of men can not heal me or give me life, but the Word of God can.” Karen, VA

Todd Response:

Amen Karen!!

Response:

“I posed this question in a somewhat longer form in the first post here, but I thought I’d make it a bit clearer. As I read through the Bible, I see COUNTLESS times where He has used other people to do His will. God does work through us. From Noah to Moses to Ruth to David to Jesus (although Jesus is God, He was doing His Father’s will), to the apostles, to all points in between, God uses His creation to help mankind, especially in the area of consolation, comfort, and mercy. Why is it so preposterous to think that God cannot use psychologists to help people? Obviously, there are wolves out there in sheep’s clothing, but there are also sheep out there trying to do His will. I would welcome any counter-arguments from anyone here, as well as Mr. Tomasella. I see nothing “non-Biblical worldview” about my statement, or non-Biblical at all. Thanks so much!”

Todd Response:

Thanks for responding, you seem honest and truly interested to know the truth. First off the LORD is not confused (1 Cor. 14:33). Jesus gave His Church apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers for the maturing of His saints (Eph. 4:11-13). His plan for New Testament believers has not changed. Psychology and psychologists of today appear no where in Scripture. Did the Almighty, all-knowing, infinite Creator somehow forget to tell us something we needed to know? Such a question should be comical to even pose. Psychology has no root in God. It is a godless philosophy which Paul warned us about – did you not read Colossians 2:8-10? The Word and Holy Spirit are how God moves. The simple fact that psychology is not found in God’s Word and contradicts the Word of God makes it false. Get in the Word friend – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God” so you can be “throughly furnished unto every good work” and won’t be “ashamed.” (2 Tim. 2:15; 3:16-17).

Response:

“It’s a shame Todd doesn’t give his readers more than a shadow of an idea of what he means by “psychology.” Much confusion could have been eliminated by simply defining his terms. The only clue we’re given about what “Psychology” is comes late in the article where he finally mentions Jung and Freud. Jung and Freud??? THAT is the “psychology” we’re supposed to be worried about? Well of course! But hardly any psychologist these days (secular or otherwise) takes either Jung or Freud to be remotely authoritative! It might be a bit like warning us that there cannot be such a thing as a “Christian Medical Doctor” because people like Dr. Kevorkian exist. Most (even secular) psychologists would agree that the theories of Jung and Freud are woefully inadequate theories of the human mind. So you attack a straw person. Todd, you would do well to inform yourself about your subject matter before making grand proclamations about it. Alternatively, you would do well to alert your readers to the fact that you’re singling out a TINY AND IRRELEVANT CORNER of the world of psychology for reproof. To attack (unqualified) “Psychology” reveals either profound ignorance or profound dishonesty. You have harmed your readership by inaccurately censuring a source of God’s healing. (Side note: CWN – how did this article make it past your notice? What’s next, “There is nothing Christian about medicine?”)

Todd’s Response:

If psychology is a “source of God’s healing” as you erroneously surmise (with no substance), please demonstrate such to this readership purely through Holy Scripture. To the contrary “ALL things that pertain unto life and godliness” are “given by inspiration of God” in the WORD (2 Pet. 1:2-4; 2:16-21; 2 Tim. 3:16-17, Ps 119, etc.). According to the Son of God, those who refuse the “Scriptures” and the “power of God” err (Matt. 22:29). Are you born again? The medical community does not erroneously claim to have the answer to man’s spiritual problems which is what psychology falsely claims. Therefore we should rightly divide such and realize that psychologists seek to usurp the place of the LORD and the Word He gave us to heal, teach and correct us – that’s why JESUS came (Ps. 107:20; Lk. 4:18; Jn. 8:31-32, 36). If spiritual freedom comes any other way then Jesus came in vain (Gal. 2:21). It was no one else other than the “Great Shepherd of the sheep” who had all gone astray (all of us), very Son of God, who came from Heaven to shed His perfect divine blood. He came to become sin for us even though He never knew sin (2 Cor. 5:21). who can make men free from sin and satan – “he (Jesus Christ) hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” (Isa. 53:12) If “any man” speaks contrary to the Scriptures while ignoring/demoting Christ and claiming to have the answer for man’s spiritual or emotional problems (rooted in sin which only Christ can forgive) – he has “no light in him” and is “accursed” (Isa. 8:20; Gal. 1:6-10; 1 Pet. 4:11; Rev. 22:18-19). Those who trust in such a “professional” are also cursed instead of being blessed – “Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD.” (Jer. 17:5) It is an utter shame that so many people are grossly biblically illiterate and hardened in heart that they actually defend this foolishness.

Response:

“Unfortunately this is another in the long list of articles about psychology from from the point of view of ignorance. It is more sad than anything else. Most branches of psychology have a piece of biblical truth but either overblow that particular approach as with BF Skinner and behaviorism. Are we complete blank slates as behaviorists believe? No. Do we learn, mimic and can we learn to fix what God tells us is wrong through His spirit and practicing what is good and acceptable? Yes. Many Christian psychologists are not very Christian in their approach and that can be seen by all. Many use Scripture as the basis for recognizing sinful patterns in the person’s life and help by using sound biblical principles and commands. That does not mean that Jay Adams has it all correct either. Many times we do not or cannot find the ‘specific sin’ that caused or causes the problem with a person’s thinking and that person needs God’s help and encouragement from someone to walk with them. Grace and Peace, Jim”

Todd’s Response:

Why is this biblical view “ignorant” as you surmise? Is it because you are wiser than the Almighty? Is it because your faith is not pure – from the Word only – and you still trust in mere sinful men who parade themselves as doctors or “experts”? Those who do not believe and embrace and do God’s Word are said to be unbelievers and willingly “ignorant.” (2 Pet. 3; Hebrews) Whose report will YOU believe? (Isa. 53:1) Who made man in His own image? Is the LORD’s hand now somehow shortened that He can no longer reach down and save, heal, bless and deliver and transform spirit, soul and body (which He alone made)? See Isa. 59:1-2.

WOW

“Hi Todd, When speaking about this issue, I often hear people quote the scriptures about loving thy neighbor as thyself, which appears in the bible at least eight times. This is the argument about self love that I’ve experienced. Obviously if one is to be honest, it doesn’t line up with the whole counsel of God and other scripture that speaks about picking up one’s cross and following the Lord and not living in the flesh. Then you have the argument that God’s word has conflicts. For years the one question that I had was what does it truly mean to be born again? I needed to have that question answered and I was not given real truth from my leaders – the whole understanding of conversion and the knowing the depravity of our sinful nature. One scripture that also helps me here when speaking to these people is what John the Baptist said about Jesus – He must increase and I must decrease. This simply does not add up with loving one’s self. I would welcome any further comments you may have on this subject when others bring up loving thy neighbor as thyself.” Laurie

Todd’s Response:

Thanks for opening up this topic more Laurie. It is vital for us to divide between truth and falsehood in this important subject (2 Tim. 2:15; 3:16; 1 Jn. 4:1-3). You are tracking correctly through the Word of God in my estimation. I love the verse you shared about the declaration of John the Baptist – “He (not me!) MUST increase but I MUST decrease (lay it all down).” (Jn. 3:30) I have yet to find one command or in all of Holy Scripture instructing us “learn to love ourselves.” In fact, this is man’s greatest sin problem. Adam chose to love self above God, therefore the curse of sin and separation followed (Rom. 5:12). When God apprehends one and brings him into His kingdom, what does He then instruct that believer to do? – to be conformed to Christ’s death, to be selfless, deny self, lay down the life, be crucified with Jesus, experience the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable to his death (Jn. 15:13; Rom. 8:29; Rom. 3:10; 1 Pet. 2:21; 4:1)

Any person teaching men to love themselves is teaching such without divine authority and even worse, against divine authority. This doctrine of self-love is contrary to God’s revealed Word and should be confronted and rebuked sharply – “rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.” (Tit. 1:13) Many in leadership today have forsaken God’s Word and turned aside to heretical fables and doctrines of devils, having no divine substantiation for what they are teaching. Check out what the apostle Paul told Timothy, his understudy:

“Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do. Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned: From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling; Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm.” 1 Timothy 1:4-7

Origin of Self-Love

This confusion is the result of our leaders not diligently seeking the LORD, studying, and “rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Tim. 2:15) Wasn’t Lucifer the first self-love proponent we have on record? Read Isaiah 14:12-15. What did self-love get him? Jesus told us: “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” (Lk. 10:18) Lucifer became Satan and was ejected from Heaven for self-love! In the same way, we will be ejected from God’s holy presence if we lift up ourselves out of pride and self-love. There are so many Scriptures that refute self-love that I don’t know where to begin. Here’s but one – “God resisteth (sets Himself against) the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” (James 4:6)

Pride is sinful rebellion and cannot remain in the presence of the one, true, holy God. So, go figure that so-called “Christian” leaders today are pyschologizing the faith of the Gospel by teaching men to love themselves. Beware saints! Like Paul the apostle of Jesus, set yourself for the “defence of the gospel” and “earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints.” (Phil. 1:17; Jude 3-4)

If you know any person who believes and/or teaches self-love, as them this in love: Would you mind showing me where we are instructed to love ourselves?

Most will answer with this as they have been taught: “Jesus said to love thy neighbor as thyself, so we have to learn to love ourselves so that we will be able to love our neighbor.” Is this what Jesus meant? Not quite. There are links to information below to help you further study this topic and be ready to give the divinely-revealed biblical answer in wisdom and love.

Is Self-Love What We Need More Of?

“For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it…” Ephesians 5:29

On a personal note: My biggest problem is the love of self – esteeming self! Is this your problem also? Paul told us it was his problem (Rom. 7:18, 24) So, learning to love myself would only worsen the dilemma. The saints of the Most High are instructed to “deny” not esteem self and to “esteem (build up)” others “ABOVE ourselves.”

“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:24-26

Jesus taught us to abandon the self-life, get on the cross, and live as He did (dead to the self agenda), lest we lose our souls eternally.

This begs the question: Why would the very Son of God instruct any person to build up what He commanded us repeatedly to tear down or crucify and deny?

“For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor…I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:18, 20

Do you know what order do the words “self” and “esteem” appear in the Bible?

“Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:2-5

True believers are to “esteem other(s) BETTER than themselves.” This clearly refutes the lie that we are to build up the self-life and learn to love ourselves better so we can love others. As we seek and fear God, His presence fills our hearts and lives and we are complete in Him and have “strong confidence.” (Ps. 16:11; Prov. 14:26; Eph. 3:16-20; Col. 2:6-10)

Being built up in the Word and Spirit are what we are to make sure we do as individuals (Job 22:22-30; Acts 20:32; Rom. 10:17; Eph. 3:16-20; Jude 20).

Jesus came and laid down His life and sent us to do the same (Jn. 13:15; Phil. 2:2-10).

We seem to be so ignorant of God’s Word that we have not seen this evil teaching for what it truly is – luciferic. It’s time to become “valiant for the truth,” to “buy the truth, and sell it not.” (Prov. 23:23; Jer. 9:3)

Jesus is coming and He has foretold us that the self-love message would gain great prominence in the final days leading up to His return for His Bride.

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power (authority; lordship) thereof: from such turn away… 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 13

The true Bride of Christ identifies herself by making herself ready by crucifying the self-life and choosing to love Him who is worthy of all praise more than self! (1 Jn. 2:28-3:3)

It’s not all about you! It’s all about the LORD! This whole self-love message goes diametrically against everything we see in Scripture. God so loved that world that He what? “GAVE!” It’s time to lay down our lives and stop taking and start GIVING ourselves first to God then to others (2 Cor. 8:5). This is what the Christian life is all about, not free-loading but giving! Jesus said:

“It is MORE BLESSED to GIVE than to receive.” Acts 20:35

This love-of-self-more-than-God message is actually a sign of the last days, where false prophets who have departed from the faith are spreading there “doctrines of devils,” bringing damnation to those who do not possess a deep love for the truth (Matt. 24:3-5, 11, 24; 2 Thess. 2:3, 10-12; 1 Tim. 4:1-6; 2 Tim. 3:1-7).

Enduring to the end in obedient faith, the true saint must never lose sight of the truth that this whole life is a test – to see whether or not we are going to love God more than self. The wise-virgin believer must cut off any voice that is teaching his heart to build up what Jesus Christ commanded us to crucify (Prov. 19:27; Gal. 2:18).

PRAYER: Father in Heaven, I beseech You to help me to truly know, love, obey, and worship You in Spirit and in truth and not to be misled. By Your enabling grace and my own free will I choose to praise, worship, and verbally give You thanks this day, that You alone might be enthroned upon my heart and myself dethroned! You must increase, but I must decrease. Let there be peace in Jerusalem. I ask You to bless the seed of Abraham this hour, that their eyes might be open to see their Messiah who has come and is coming again soon. In Jesus’ name, amen. Amen.

Psycho-Heresy

There are several articles here that explode this filthy psycho-babble heresy. All Christians need this truth to cleanse us from and inoculate us from this evil leaven (Gal. 5:9). Pass this on. Psycho-Heresy.

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H.O.T. BIBLE STUDY [podcast]

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15 So very many today are deceived due to not studying God’s Word for themselves. They live for years with erroneous notions men told them. Instead of repenting and getting into the Word for themselves, many of them go to their graves having embraced soul-damning lies. HOW do you know if someone is imposing something upon the Scripture text they are reading from IF you haven’t personally, organically, thoroughly studied the whole of God’s Word for […]

Jesus is Coming, just as He Promised [podcast]

The Coming of the Son of Man NOTHING, NO ONE can stop the Almighty who is coming back to crush all of HIS enemies! “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven WITH POWER […]

Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear [podcast]

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3 “Perfect peace” can only come as our hearts and mind are “stayed” upon our LORD, as we truly trust in Him. And, such does not come without fighting “the good fight of faith.” (1 Timothy 6:12) It’s a “GOOD fight” because as we “labour to … enter into that rest”, we win with Christ (Hebrews 4:11). “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. 10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from […]

Abiding

The LORD Desires to Completely CLEAR You!

The LORD Desires to Completely CLEAR You!

The reason God gave His only begotten Son was to clear you of all your sin in His regeneration, to bring you into His eternal family for fellowship with Him.

“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” John 17:21

“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.” 1 John 1:3

When God clears a man at the moment of salvation or thereafter, so should we! When any man truly repents there will be definite fruit to prove it. When one obeys sound biblical doctrine the result will always be that he will bring forth fruit to demonstrate he truly repented, and is cleared by the LORD and must be cleared by us. After the fornicator in the church of Corinth repented, he was cleared and the LORD, through Paul, instructed the believers in that assembly to forgive, clear, and love him.

“So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. 8 Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.” 2 Corinthians 2:7-8

Remember this from the prodigal son parable our LORD taught us?

“I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance … 10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Luke 15:7, 10

When someone returns to the LORD from sin, regardless of their past, with or without Christ, there is great celebration in Heaven and should be also among the saints of Christ on the earth.

A fresh reading of Luke 15 is highly recommended where Jesus gives us 3 parables to teach the restorative love of God!

WATCH THIS: When we repent we openly renounce and are clear…. God is good.

Godly Sorrow brings the blessings of God and a clearing of past sin.

“Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. 11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what CLEARING OF YOURSELVES, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be CLEAR in this matter.” 2 Corinthians 7:11

Example: Remember how the fornicator in 1 Corinthians 5 was turned over to Satan and then repented and God cleared Him? Read 2 Corinthians 2 for the “CLEARING.” In this verse above, Paul is addressing this very issue and the sorrow, diligent obedience, and consequent “CLEARING” the Corinthian saints experienced. First they allowed the fornicator to function in their midst whereas Paul had to come in and instruct them to turn the transgressor over to Satan (1 Corinthians 5). Then, as a result, the backslider repented.

“He says, what clearing of yourselves. This does not mean that they tried to justify or excuse themselves, but rather that by taking resolute action, they tried to clear themselves of any further guilt or blame in the matter. Their change in attitude led to this change in action. What indignation may refer to their attitude toward the sinner because of the reproach he brought on the name of Christ. But more probably it refers to their attitude toward themselves for ever having allowed such a thing to go on for so long without taking action on it. Paul then adds: In all things you ‘ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.’ Of course, we are not to understand by this that they were never to blame, but simply that they had done everything they could to take the proper action and to act as they should have acted in the first place.” William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary

“Clearing of yourselves – From either sharing in, or approving of, his sin. Indignation – That ye had not immediately corrected the offender. Fear – Of God’s displeasure, or lest I should come with a rod. Vehement desire – To see me again. Zeal – For the glory of God, and the soul of that sinner. Yea, revenge – Ye took a kind of holy revenge upon yourselves, being scarce able to forgive yourselves. In all things ye – As a church. Have approved yourselves to be pure – That is, free from blame, since ye received my letter.” John Wesley

“In all things, etc. – In the whole of your conduct in this affair since ye have received my letter, ye have approved yourselves to be clear, ἁγνους; not only to be clear of contumacy and obstinate persistence in your former conduct, but to have done all in the compass of your power to rectify the abuses which had crept in among you. The Corinthians were not clear, i.e. innocent or void of blame in the fact, but they were clear of all blame in their endeavors to remove the evil.” Adam Clarke

The Corinthian saints repented, obeyed God by turning the unrepentant sinner in their midst over to Satan, and were then forgiven and cleared of their sin of allowing the un-repentant fornicator to remain in their company (1 Corinthians 5; 2 Corinthians 2 and 7).

Today, is the LORD showing you something in your life that you must turn back over to Satan where it came from – to rid your heart, your life of a sin?

Interestingly, this 2 Corinthians 7 chapter begins with this:

“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1

When we simply agree with the LORD, His Word, and turn to Him afresh and away from what He calls sin, confessing it to Him for what it is, He will immediately forgive us and promises to grant us a clearing, a clear conscience.

“Now the end (chief purpose) of the commandment (written Word) is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:” 1 Timothy 1:5

The LORD made it clear that He intends for His children to be possessed with a clear conscience which is a gift He alone provided through the perfect sacrifice of His only begotten Son.

“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:14

“A disciplined conscience is a man’s best friend. It may not be his most amiable, but it is his most faithful monitor.” Austin Phelps

Have you ever had a past sin nag you for many years after you committed and even confessed and were forgiven for it?

WHEN we DO what is right, then and only then do we have the bless-ed confirmation of a clear conscience. AND, doing what’s right begins with re-turning, turning afresh to our LORD and confessing all sin.

“God is greater than our heart”

“My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. 19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. 20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.” 1 John 3:18-21

In fellowshipping with other men who serve our LORD, I’ve often heard them say how that sins they committed in the past still bother them in a hindering way. Yet, we know that God knows all these things and “is greater than our heart” and provided a complete salvation through the blood of His only begotten Son!

“WHEN HE HAD BY HIMSELF purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Hebrews 1:3

Even though 90% of today’s pastors prove themselves to be false by never mentioning this, we must never ever lose sight of the truth that God is “Holy, holy, holy” and He commands us to “Be ye holy; for I am holy” (Isaiah 6:3; 1 Peter 1:15-16; Revelation 4:8).

“But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16

Are we presently allowing sin in our own lives, including keeping company with someone who claims to be Christ’s and yet is living in sin? Are you in need of doing an inventory check on your current friends – namely those who name Jesus as their Savior? Read this unchanging divine truth and note the many specific sins listed here:

“I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: 10 Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. 11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. 12 For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? 13 But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” 1 Corinthians 5:9-13

When we truly repent and obey the counsel, the Word of God, only then will we be cleared in conscience and before God and His people. True repentance always, without exception, brings forth a changed life – a life set apart to the LORD (Matthew 3:7-10; Luke 19:1-10).

The fact that our LORD is correcting us today clearly proves how much He loves us. When the LORD points out our sin, it’s because He loves us, He wants us to repent, to return to Him, agree with Him, and depart from that sin. This is all so He can clear us!

“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” Revelation 3:19

Refreshing Always Follows Fresh Repentance

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” Acts 3:19

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” Hebrews 8:12

“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

Read 1 Corinthians 5, 2 Corinthians 2 and 7.

Yes, we’ve all been hurt by others and we have also hurt others, right? Let’s take accountability for our own evil and watch what God does. Blaming others without taking the blame due to us is a deep, endless ditch.

This morning I prayed “LORD, if I have angered or hurt someone, anyone, please let it be revealed so that amends can be made, in Jesus’ name, amen Father.”

In this passage below, our LORD is addressing being easily angered as well as making amends when we intentionally or unintentionally have harmed another.

“But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary quickly…” Matthew 5:22-25

PRAYER: My Father in Heaven, I come to You now on the sole basis of the holy name and blood of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Here and now I ask You LORD to convict, grant repentance, and complete clearing of any and all sin in my life. Please sanctify my life dear LORD. LORD Jesus thank You for dying on that cross, shedding Your precious blood for all my sins. Please bless me with a oneness with You and the Father and a clear conscience. Be glorified in my life dear LORD. I love You LORD Jesus. Amen.

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The God Who Is Ready To Forgive [podcast]

“A GREAT WAY OFF” Luke 15:20 Luke 15 – 3 parables of that which was lost (SSS): Lost Sheep Lost Silver Lost Son What is the overriding divine theme communicated in this beautiful Bible chapter? THE whole of Scripture testifies to the reality that the LORD delights to restore when we simply come to Him humbly, on His terms. “And he (the wayward son) arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.” Luke 15:20 From a […]

Sinlessly Perfect? I Doubt it [podcast]

Yes the LORD commands His people to “Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16) Yet we should ask whether or not His desire is for His people to tout to others that they are “sinlessly perfect” or does His Word rather reveal that His people are to be dependent upon Him through the humility of Christ and crucified life He ordained us to walk in? Did the apostles walk around telling people they were sinlessly perfect? No. Didn’t Paul confess his own utter poverty of spirit outside of the saving, present grace of Christ? Yes. (Romans 7:18, […]

Abiding

Risen with Christ [podcast]

Resurrection Grace (below)

“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.
2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
6 For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.” Colossians 3:1-7

Those who teach that unholy people will be in glory are false teachers:

“And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” Revelation 21:27

Charles Pray writes: “Father, please help us Lord to turn from our wicked ways and let You come into our hearts so we may have eternal life with You in Your kingdom. Time is running out for the hour is late when soon no one will be able to be saved or able to call upon the name of the Lord. Burden our hearts Lord for all those who still do not know you as Lord and Savior in their lives. Let us become the light we are called to be in this darkened world so others will come to know and receive your Son Jesus as Savior in their life. Amen!”

Colossians | Seeking God!

A Living Sacrifice unto God [podcast]

The burnt offering means a complete consumption. What did God illustrate to us when He required His people under the Old Covenant to offer burnt offering sacrifices? His coming Messiah’s perfect sacrifice for the sins of mankind. The ordained way He requires that His people serve Him. Jesus was the ultimate burnt offering. He gave all of Himself freely in obedience to His Father and to redeem mankind. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1 In His […]

Walking with Jesus [podcast]

There are two parts of the cross—the atoning death Jesus alone accomplished on the cross— “It is finished,” and the cross He commanded us to take up daily as we are “crucified WITH” Him. In this second part of the cross, we have died to our old nature and buried it so that we can partake of Christ’s divine nature, as He raises us upward in His grace and power into full victory and fruitfulness in pleasing Him. His divine power which works in us keeps us from the things that displease Him, which He calls sin (John 19:30; Romans 6-8; Galatians […]

Apostasy

Richard Foster Exposed

Wait, WHAT, WHO are Christ’s disciples to celebrate?

“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14

A Biblically based commentary on current issues that impact you

Richard Foster—Celebration of Deception

by Bob DeWaay

Christianity Today ran a glowing cover story about Evangelicalism’s recent embrace of medieval Roman Catholic mysticism entitled The Future lies in the Past.¹ The article traced the beginning of the movement as follows: “The movement seems to have exploded in a 24-month period in 1977-1978, which saw the publication of Richard Foster’s bestselling Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth and Robert Webber’s Common Roots: A Call to Evangelical Maturity.”²

The article views Foster as one who continues to guide the movement: “From Dallas Willard, Richard Foster, and living practicing monks and nuns, they [those going back to Roman Catholic mysticism] must learn both the strengths and the limits of the historical ascetic disciplines.”³ So Foster was instrumental in starting a movement that is still growing 30-plus years later.

The irony about this particular CIC regarding Foster’s 1978 book is that in 1978 I myself was living in a Christian community committed to practicing much of what he promotes in Celebration of Discipline (even though we had not learned it from him directly). So I am not criticizing a practice about which I know nothing (or one in which I have no experience). I am criticizing a practice I foolishly allowed to deceive me for a significant portion of my early Christian life. When it comes to being deceived by mysticism, I have had abundant involvement. The only way I escaped it was through discovering and adopting the Reformation principle of sola scriptura.

In this article I will show that Foster’s “journey inward” is unbiblical and dangerous. I will show that most of the spiritual disciplines that he calls “means of grace” are no means of grace at all—but a means of putting oneself under spiritual deception.

The Journey Inward

The Bible nowhere describes an inward journey to explore the realm of the spirit. God chose to reveal the truth about spiritual reality through His ordained, Spirit-inspired, biblical writers. What is spiritual and not revealed by God is of the occult and, therefore, forbidden. We have discussed this in many articles and have produced DVD seminars on the topic. But the concept of sola scriptura is totally lost on mystics such as Richard Foster. They, like the enthusiasts that Calvin and Luther warned against, believe they can gain valid and useful knowledge of spiritual things through direct, personal inspiration.

Foster describes the idea of the disciplines that are the topic of his book: “The classical Disciplines of the spiritual life call us to move beyond surface living into the depths. They invite us to explore the inner caverns of the spiritual realm.”⁴ So Foster has conceptually repudiated sola scriptura on page one to replace it with a journey inward to explore the realm of spirits. Something must have been seriously amiss in evangelicalism already in 1978 to render this book a bestseller! It ought to have been repudiated on the spot. In a footnote to that statement Foster writes, “In one form or another all of the devotional masters have affirmed the necessity of the Disciplines” (Foster: 1). The devotional “masters,” by the way, are mostly Roman Catholics who never were committed to the principle of sola scriptura. It is not surprising that they looked for spirituality through experimentation. But as an “inner light” Quaker, Foster never was committed to sola scriptura either.

Forgetting that the Bible forbids divination, Foster explains what he is after:

[W]e must be willing to go down into the recreating silences, into the inner world of contemplation. In their writings, all of the masters of meditation strive to awaken us to the fact that the universe is much larger than we know, that there are vast unexplored inner regions that are just as real as the physical world we know so well. . . . They call us to the adventure, to be pioneers in this frontier of the Spirit. (Foster: 13)

Realizing that his readers would likely take this as an endorsement of Eastern religions, he makes a disclaimer that it is not Transcendental Meditation (TM) or something of that ilk: “Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind; Christian meditation is an attempt to empty the mind in order to fill it” (Foster: 15). But what Foster wishes us to fill our minds with are personal revelations from the spirit realm that we naively are to think are the voice of God. This sort of meditation is not meditating on what God has said, but uses a technique to explore the spirit world. In other words, it is divination.

What we learn about the spirit realm either is revealed by God (once for all in Scripture) or gleaned by man-made techniques. That distinction is the difference between Christianity and paganism. Only Bible believers know what God has said about Himself and what He wishes to reveal about the unseen spirit world. Foster’s material continues to be popular because we live in an age where being spiritual pioneers on a journey into the unseen realm of the spirits is the essence of popular piety. It is the spirituality of secular talk shows.

To fully understand the degree of Foster’s deception, he even calls these techniques to the inner journey “means of grace”: “They [the Disciplines] are God’s means of grace” (Foster: 6). As with all who teach spiritual disciplines, there are no boundaries to these false “means.” For example, consider this recommended practice: “After you have gained some proficiency in centering down, add a five- to ten-minute meditation on some aspect of the creation. Choose something in the created order: tree, plant, bird, leaf, cloud, and each day ponder it carefully and prayerfully” (Foster 25). This after he had just taught breathing exercises (a means of “centering down”). Then he makes a startling claim: “We should not bypass this means of God’s grace” (Foster: 25). And there we have it: meditating of a leaf can be a means of grace!

Foster’s journey inward is to discover a spirit world that is available for any who search for it: “How then do we come to believe in a world of the spirit? Is it by blind faith? Not at all. The inner reality of the spiritual world is available to all who are willing to search for it” (Foster: 18). He claims that this spiritual search is analogous to scientific experimentation. Never mind that every pagan culture that has existed has believed in the “spiritual world.”

Spirituality of the Imagination

The Bible does not have anything good so say about the imagination. For example: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you. They are leading you into futility; They speak a vision of their own imagination, Not from the mouth of the Lord'” (Jeremiah 23:16). A search of the KJV for “imagination” yields 14 verses, and in each case it is a bad thing. According to the Bible, the imagination is where people go when they do not want to listen to God.

However, for Foster the imagination is central: “The inner world of meditation is most easily entered through the door of the imagination. We fail today to appreciate its tremendous power. The imagination is stronger than conceptual thought and stronger than the will” (Foster: 22). Some of the authorities he cites on this point are C. G. Jung, Ignatius of Loyola, and Morton Kelsey. Jung is famous for his concept of the collective unconscious, and Kelsey was an Episcopal priest committed to Jungian principles. Kelsey wrote many books promoting mysticism. The advice Foster gleans from these teachers is that we must learn to think in images and take our dreams to be a possible doorway into the spirit world. Foster claims that dreams are something we already have and can help us develop the use of the imagination. He says, “Keeping a journal of our dreams is a way of taking them seriously” (Foster: 23).

There is, Foster warns, a danger to this process: “At the same time [that we ask for dreams to be God speaking to us], it is wise to pray a prayer of protection, since to open ourselves to spiritual influence can be dangerous as well as profitable” (Foster: 23). I would say that is asking God to protect us as we use various techniques to go where He does not want us to go (into the world of the spirits to gain information). The danger he warns of is far greater than Foster imagines. Those who take the journey inward will be deceived—every time! We are not equipped to gain spiritual information from that realm. That is why God speaks to us through His ordained mediators (the inspired Biblical writers); otherwise we would be fishing in the dark in a medium we are not suited for.

Foster teaches his readers to use their imaginations to experience Biblical stories with the five physical senses. Here is what he claims will happen:

As you enter the story, not as a passive observer but as an active participant, remember that since Jesus lives in the Eternal Now and is not bound by time, this event in the past is a living present-tense experience for Him. Hence, you can actually encounter the living Christ in the event, be addressed by His voice and be touched by His healing power. It can be more than an exercise of the imagination; it can be a genuine confrontation. Jesus Christ will actually come to you. (Foster: 26)

Showing that Foster’s ideas are still influential in our day, Greg Boyd cites some of Foster’s words here to support what he calls “cataphatic prayer” which uses the imagination and images as a means to contact God and gain spiritual information.⁵ Those who endorse this practice assume they are not being deceived by spirits, but I cannot see on what grounds.

Foster prescribes a practice using one’s imagination that mimics astral projection to the degree that he actually includes a footnote disclaimer stating that it is not astral projection (Foster 28). It begins by telling his readers to imagine themselves going out into nature into a beautiful place (Boyd describes how he practices this, as well as its results⁶). After enjoying the sights and smells (in your imagination) these are the next steps:

In your imagination allow your spiritual body, shining with light, to rise out of your physical body. Look back so that you can see yourself lying in the grass and reassure your body that you will return momentarily. Imagine your spiritual self, alive and vibrant, rising up through the clouds and into the stratosphere. . . Go deeper and deeper into outer space until there is nothing except the warm presence of the eternal Creator. Rest in His presence. Listen quietly, anticipating the unanticipated. Note carefully any instruction given. With time and experience you will be able to distinguish readily between mere human thought that may bubble up to the conscious mind and the True Spirit which inwardly moves upon the heart. (Foster: 27, 28)

I must ask how one knows whether “True Spirit” is not a deceiving one? Mysticism’s fatal flaw is that it naively assumes that Christians having subjective religious experiences must therefore be having Christian experiences that are truly from God—even if the experiences were provoked through unbiblical practices similar to those used by pagans.

Mental Alchemy

Foster’s approach to prayer is laced with mysticism as well. He claims that prayer needs to be learned from people who have the right experiences and are “masters” who know what they are doing. Foster does not teach ordinary prayer, whereby we bring our needs and requests to the Lord and know that He hears us (because He promised that He does). Here is why he thinks such prayer fails:

Often people will pray and pray with all the faith in the world, but nothing happens. Naturally, they were not contacting the channel. We begin praying for others by first centering down and listening to the quiet thunder of the Lord of hosts. Attuning ourselves to divine breathings is spiritual work, but without it our praying is vain repetition (Mt. 6:7). Listening to the Lord is the first thing, the second thing, and the third thing necessary for successful intercession. (Foster: 34)

Of course this means we have to become mystics if we want to pray.

He teaches that we first must hear personal revelations from God, using meditation techniques such as he teaches, before we pray. He says: “The beginning point, then, in learning to pray for others is to listen for guidance . . . This inner “yes” is the divine authorization for you to pray for the person or situation” (Foster: 35). No! Foster is wrong! The only authorization we need to pray is the Biblical command to pray—not personal revelations.

For Foster, meditation (mystical style) is necessary but not sufficient. He also brings the imagination into the process: “As with meditation, the imagination is a powerful tool in the work of prayer” (Foster: 36). He credits Agnes Sanford⁷ for helping him see the value of using the imagination in praying. Foster writes, “Imagination opens the door to faith. If we can ‘see’ in our mind’s eye a shattered marriage whole or a sick person well, it is only a short step to believing it will be so” (Foster: 36). Sanford got her ideas from Theosophy, New Thought, Jung, and Emmet Fox. These ideas, echoed by Foster, come from the unbiblical “mind over matter” thinking of that era. That kind of thinking uses creative visualization to change reality or channel spiritual power. Foster suggests, “Imagine the light of Christ flowing through your hands and healing every emotional trauma and hurt feeling your child experienced that day” (Foster: 39).

In his 1985 book, The Seduction of Christianity, Dave Hunt labeled creative visualization such as what Foster promotes, “mental alchemy.”⁸ Hunt warned the church that Foster promoted such mental alchemy in Celebration of Discipline, and as we have shown, he, in fact, does. So how is it that 24 years after Hunt’s warning Foster is more popular than ever with Evangelicals? The answer is end times deception. Now, a huge movement that claims to be a reformation promoting Foster, Willard and their versions of mysticism does exist (i.e., The Emergent Church). Things have gotten so very much worse.

Spiritual Directors

Once mysticism and the supposed need to gain personal revelations from God are embraced, there arises a need for new “masters” who are better at navigating the spirit world. Pagan societies have always had such persons. They are called “shamans.” Eastern religion calls them “gurus.” Deceived Christians call them “spiritual directors.” Foster explains, “In the Middle Ages not even the greatest saints attempted the depths of the inward journey without the help of a spiritual director” (Foster: 159). The problem, according to Foster, is that the churches (in 1978) lacked “living masters”:

No doubt part of the surge of interest in Eastern meditation is because the churches have abrogated the field. How depressing for a university student, seeking to know the Christian teaching on meditation, to discover that there are so few living masters of contemplative prayer and that nearly all of the serious writings on the subject are seven or more centuries old. No wonder he or she turns to Zen, Yoga, or TM. (Foster: 14)

Foster’s dream has come true. Today people can even practice Yoga in a Christian church. We have Christian TM; it is called contemplative prayer. Yes, Eastern religion has come right into the church, and Foster has helped usher it in.

But what about “living masters” or spiritual directors? In 1972 Morton Kelsey lamented their lack: “Indeed I would suggest that everyone who is serious about relating to the spiritual realm find himself a spiritual director, if there were more men trained and experienced in this way.”⁹ That “problem” has been solved in a huge way. Evangelical theology schools are now offering masters degrees in “spiritual formation” in order to equip people to be “spiritual directors.” Here is what Biola University says about its program: “This degree is designed to equip men and women for the ministry of spiritual direction, discipleship, formation and soul care in the local church and for further academic training in spiritual formation.”¹⁰ Spiritual Directors International will help you find a spiritual director regardless of your religion.¹¹ Richard Foster’s own Renovare, which purports to “encourage renewal in the Christian church,” has a list of spiritual direction programs.¹²

Foster explains the purpose of the spiritual director: “He is the means of God to open the path to the inward teaching of the Holy Spirit” (Foster: 160). Apparently, in a full-blown rejection of sola scriptura where the Holy Spirit’s teaching is mediated to the church through the Biblical writers only, we need mediators for personal revelations beyond scripture.

Foster explains how spiritual directors lead: “He leads only by the force of his own personal holiness” (Foster: 160). In Roman Catholicism the Pope is called “his holiness” and in Tibetan Buddhism the Dalai Lama is called “his holiness” but now evangelicals are developing a class of people who evidently deserve the title. How exactly are we to judge when someone has gained “personal holiness” sufficient to be a spiritual director and mediate spirituality to others? Foster says, “Though the director has obviously advanced further into the inner depths, the two [master and disciple] are together learning and growing in the realm of the Spirit” (Foster: 160). Foster cites Roman Catholic mystic Thomas Merton about how this works: “The spiritual director was something of a ‘spiritual father who begot the perfect life in the soul of his disciple by his instructions first of all, but also by his prayer, his sanctity and his example. He was . . . a kind of ‘sacrament’ of the Lord’s presence in the ecclesiastical community” (Foster: 161).

End Times Delusion

When it comes to end times deception, Foster is on the cutting edge of embracing it. Consider what he wrote: “In our day heaven and earth are on tiptoe waiting for the emerging of a Spirit-led, Spirit-intoxicated, Spirit-empowered people. . . . Individuals can be found here and there whose hearts burn with divine fire” (Foster: 150). Such inclinations have led to massive deception. They smack of the Latter Rain deception, now embodied in such false teachers as Rick Joyner and Mike Bickle. They are elitist. They are in line with the beliefs of the Emergent Church as well. He also says: “Our century has yet to see the breaking forth of the apostolic church of the Spirit” (Foster: 150). Now we have the New Apostolic Reformation claiming to be just that. Foster’s ideas now embody the massive apostasy and end times deception that characterize our age.

Foster’s teachings have taken the church as far away from the Reformation principle of sola scriptura as the Roman Catholic Church ever was. The only thing left is for them to bring us all the way back to Rome. Christianity Today praises Foster for pointing us in that direction.

In early 2008 I wrote a CIC article about how abandoning the principle of sola scriptura would lead evangelicals back to Rome.¹³ It was partly a response to the CT article praising mysticism. The response I received was rather unexpected. I was contacted by former evangelicals who had rejected sola scriptura and had gone back to Rome! They wanted to debate me about sola scriptura. Sadly, my point was proven. As a response to their misguided challenge our church hosted a seminar on sola scriptura, called Faith at Risk 4.¹⁴ In the seminar Gary Gilley and I defended the scriptures as the sole authority for the church.

The aforementioned CT article discusses a new monasticism, former evangelical leaders converting to Roman Catholicism, and mystical practices like lectio divina—and they call all of it a good and hopeful thing. Chris Armstrong, the author of the article, concluded, “That they [evangelicals] are receiving good guidance on this road from wise teachers [Foster and Willard] is reason to believe that Christ is guiding the process. And that they are meeting and learning from fellow Christians in the other two great confessions, Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox, is reason to rejoice in the power of love.”¹⁵

Who is left to defend the principles of the Reformation? One would think Reformed theologians are, but they aren’t doing their job. In the last CIC article we mentioned Reformed theologian Donald Whitney who wrote: “Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline has been the most popular book on the subject of the Spiritual Disciplines in the last half of the twentieth century. The great contribution of this work is the reminder that the Spiritual Disciplines, which many see as restrictive and binding, are actually means to spiritual freedom.”¹⁶ That from a teacher in a Reformed seminary?

If a book that teaches Christian TM, Christian astral projection and mental alchemy by means of the imagination is a “great contribution,” then something is seriously wrong here. The delusion is so widespread that I see no other explanation for it than the end time deception predicted by Paul: “But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,” (1Timothy 4:1). Another passage warns: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (2Timothy 4:3, 4).

That time now is here. We are accountable to God for what we believe and practice. Those who wish to persevere in the faith in this age of delusion must base their beliefs and practices only on the truths found in Scripture. Foster’s journey into the world of the spirits will deceive all who enter it.

Issue 112 – May / June 2009

End Notes

1. Chris Armstrong, “The Future lies in the Past” in Christianity Today, February 2008.
2. Ibid. 24.
3. Ibid. 29.
4. Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth (New York: Harper & Row, 1978) 1. All subsequent citations from this book will be bracketed within the text in this fashion: (Foster: 1).
5. Greg Boyd, Seeing is Believing, (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2004). Boyd cites Foster to prove that the Lord will actually come to us through our use of “imaginative meditation.” I deal with this issue more fully in CIC issue 83 July/August, 2003: HTTP://CICMINISTRY.ORG/COMMENTARY/ISSUE83.HTM
6. Ibid. 111-125.
7. I write about Sanford’s inner healing theories in CIC Issue 96: HTTP://CICMINISTRY.ORG/COMMENTARY/ISSUE96.HTM
8. Dave Hunt and T. A. McMahon, The Seduction of Christianity (Eugene: Harvest House, 1985) 138.
9. Morton Kelsey, Encounter With God, (Bethany Fellowship: Minneapolis, 1972) 179.
10. http://www.biola.edu/spiritualformation/programs/ SEE PDF
11. HTTP://WWW.SDIWORLD.ORG
12. HTTP://WWW.RENOVARE.ORG/JOURNEY_TRAINING_DIRECTION.HTM
13. CIC Issue 105; March/April 2008: HTTP://CICMINISTRY.ORG/COMMENTARY/ISSUE105.HTM
14. Watch this seminar HERE
15. Armstrong, Future
16. DONALD S. WHITNEY, SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES FOR THE CHRISTIAN LIFE (COLORADO SPRINGS: NAVPRESS, 1991) 23.

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