The Temple of the Living God

by Mike Ratliff

You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. (1 Corinthians 10:21 ESV)

With the utter lack of discernment being exhibited within the visible church in our time, it is as if the condition of the Israelites at the time of the Prophet Amos is upon us. These Covenant people had turned their backs on God and His commands. They were sin-sick and idolatrous, which means they were spiritually blind. When Amos traveled from Judah to the Northern Kingdom of Israel to deliver God’s message to them, he simply gave what God told him to say. What a concept! In Amos 3:3-8 the Lord posed a series of rhetorical question to the people to show them that no matter what they thought or did, He was still sovereign. Certain actions have predictable results. God spoke, therefore, Amos was to speak as the people listened and trembled. That is how it should have been. However, as in our time, when God’s Word is exposited and given to those in error, the response is exactly the opposite. Instead of heeding God’s Word, the people attempt to silence the prophet (Amos 2:12; 7:12, 13) and, therefore, silence God. 

Our Propitiation

by Mike Ratliff

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience– among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (Ephesians 2:1-3 ESV)

I had a good friend stop by my office today to offer his condolences and comfort me with the loss of my dad. It was much appreciated. However, he walked in just as I was reading a comment I had just received on last night’s post The Atonement of Christ. WordPress had automatically flagged the comment as spam and it was by chance that I saw that there was a comment in that queue. He asked why the inscrutable look on my face when he had first came in. I let him read the comment. He shuddered and looked puzzled for about 30 seconds or so. I asked, “Does your brain hurt yet?” His response nailed it. He said, “Well, that is certainly a different spirit…” He then asked how often I get “comments” or “emails” like that (I will deal with it below). I told him that I usually get at least one like that a day when I teach things about the Atonement or the Gospel, but there are times when they just flood it. I find it interesting that they often are especially virulent when I am dealing with things in the midst of the fiery trials God has me in at that time. I will never forget Steve Lawson’s statement during his sermon at the Shepherd’s Conference this year that the closer we get to the front lines in our obedience in ministry the more we will find ourselves in the crosshairs of our enemy in the battle for the truth. God will allow him to attack us in order to humble us so that we can be usable clay vessels in the hands of our Lord (paraphrase). 

The Apostate Church

by Mike Ratliff

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.” (Revelation 3:1-2 ESV)

We had my dad’s funeral on Thursday the 25^th. He died on Saturday the 20^th. The funeral was more of a celebration of my dad’s life than anything else. My dad had 13 siblings all older than him. All but one of them preceded him in death. Some of them were adults with children of their own when my dad was born in 1924. My grandfather was a remarkable man. He was born in 1877 and became a preacher of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ in the 1890’s in Indian Territory, which is now Oklahoma. My mother allowed me to take some of the things stored in her house that had belonged to my dad. One prized possession I have with me now is my grandfather’s bible from which he preached well into the 1950’s. It is full of notes and his own cross-references. However, there is one thing in the bible that no one, apparently, knew was there. It is a letter written to him from one of his sisters, Lucy. It had to have been written to him either in the late 1940’s or early 1950’s since she died around that time. Below is a quote from it that I found especially fitting in light of the present condition of the visible church. 

The Death of my Dad

I got a phone call early this morning from my sister. She told me that my Dad had died in his sleep last night. He was 86 years old and as the Scottish say, “A well saved man!” I will be offline for a few days at least while my brother and sister and our families take care what has to be done. Your prayers will be much appreciated. – Mike Ratliff

The Parousia of the Lord

by Mike Ratliff

For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy. (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 ESV)

I have been dealing with some Universalist “teachings” over the last few days hence the article on The Doctrine of Hell. In my biblical research in order to answer the claims of Universalists, I have found that much of their “doctrine” comes from a mishandling of Sacred Scripture, especially those passages dealing with the state of the dead in Christ and who makes up those who meet the Lord in the air at his παρουσια or parousia or arrival or coming or presence. In this post we will look at 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and attempt to unpack Paul’s statement about our Lord’s παρουσια. 

The Doctrine of Hell

by Mike Ratliff

One component of the Spiritual Labyrinth of lies intended to deceive is a persistent attack on the doctrine of Hell. Of course, this means that those servants of our enemy who participate in or believe these lies take on some form of Universalism as they reject true Christian Orthodoxy. Motives for doing this vary, but in every case, the focus of those who both teach and embrace these lies is that they are man-centered in their theology rather than God-centered. 

The Dangers of Spiritual Formation and Spiritual Disciplines

by Mike Ratliff

If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations– “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)–according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. (Colossians 2:20-23 ESV)

As we have been seeing, in the attacks on the Church by what is now called “Progressive Christianity,” what the enemies of God’s Truth are actually constructing is a Spiritual Labyrinth whose complexity is designed to confuse and deceive. At the core of these attacks and replacement of genuine Christianity with “Progressive Christianity” or “A New Type of Christianity” is an emphasis on Spiritual Formation. What is this? I contacted Bob DeWaay at Twin Cities Fellowship for any help he could provide in direction and information so I could get a better handle on this and so present this to you that we may all know better what is really happening in our churches and what God would have us do in response. 

The Spiritual Labyrinth

by Mike Ratliff

For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. (Jude 1:4 ESV)

Back in 2005-2006 as I attempted to understand the Purpose Driven paradigm as my old church became devoured by it, I did so that I could clearly show the leadership there that they were being deceived. What I ran up against, however, was a leadership of mostly very new believers who had their minds completely made up and would not listen. I struggled for many years since that time with coming to terms with this many-headed monster. Over the last year or so the picture has become much more clear as the corrupt roots of Purpose Driven/Seeker Sensitivity are the very same ones from which Emergence Christianity has sprung, which is the Leadership Network. The visible church in our time has a “timid tolerance” for everything that calls itself “Christian.” Once solid looking “leaders” are still accepted and protected by their sycophants even as they reveal the corrupt roots of apostasy in how they handle the the Word of God. In all of this, many others and I have been trying to filter through the maze of paradoxes and relationships in all of this so we could address it as one or even just a few basic errors. However, this deception is actually one very complex spiritual labyrinth as Ken Silva shows us here.

The Certainty of Answered Prayer

by Mike Ratliff

And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him. (1 John 2:28-29 ESV)

I do not receive Tweets from Mark Driscoll, but I have friends who do. I received the following from one of those friends today: “Done preaching in Africa & managed to not punch the guy who was sleeping w/5 women & claiming to be a XN as a competition for him but bewildered why I was in his face with my finger in his chest. Unreal.” Was what is “unreal” the fact that Mark was able to restrain himself or that this fellow was sleeping with 5 women and claiming to be an XN (tweet shorthand for Christian) as a competition for him or that the fellow was bewildered why Mark, “was in his face with my finger in his chest”? I meditated and prayed about how or even if I should respond to this. My initial response was to view both Mark and “the guy” from a pastoral perspective. However, this post-modern world is clueless about morality and personal holiness. In fact, its mindset is against all who attempt to point out sin or error in anyone. Their first response seems to be something along the lines of, “nobody is perfect!” I have even been condemned for doing this and the reason “I was being straightened out” was that everyone could be wrong so how can any of us judge anyone else? 

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Gospel

click here to read the original post from which this amazing video was “borrowed.” 🙂

O, Church Arise

Prior to Steve Lawson’s message at this year’s Shepherd’s Conference, Keith and Kristyn Getty led the worship. Steve was clearly moved in the Spirit when he took the stage. His message was titled: The Invisible War and was based on the book of Job as applied to the sanctifying work done by our Sovereign Lord in our lives to prepare us for eternity and, of course, for His glory. I have downloaded that message and have watched it again and again.

Saving Faith vs. False Faith

by Mike Ratliff

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge– even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you– so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:4-9 ESV)

Being a refugee from the SBC, I began this ministry with a great deal of spiritual baggage that stubbornly clung to me until God subjected me to the cleansing fires of His truth through dealing with tribulation, crises of dealing with bad doctrine within supposed brethren, and outright persecution from people I thought were friends. It was through these fires of tribulation that, even though very painful, I got my focus off of self and onto the Lord. His will became paramount in my heart. His glory became my focus. I am nothing; He is everything. He is my κύριος (Lord); I am His δοῦλος (slave, bondservant). I had a test today and I was not only surprised by my reaction to it, but I also rejoiced when it was over as I looked back on the journey God has thus far taken me as He has peeled away the heretical, self-focused, bad theology, and me-ism that was standard fare in the SBC churches from which I came.

Do Not Believe Every Spirit

by Mike Ratliff

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 ESV)

Several of us are taking a closer look at John Ortberg’s The Me I Want to Be book and his “church program” Monvee. In our discussions, there inevitably comes a point where we must stop and ask, “How could these people believe and teach this stuff if they know their Bibles at all?” This stuff is chocked full of Pelagianism and mysticism. Ken Silva made the following comment today and I want to pass it on to you for it, I think, succinctly points us to the right way to address this stuff while shining God’s brilliant light of truth into the murkiness.

What’s going on is for years now these people read and quote from their own books. Add in the deception of a false unity received in the practice of CSM and what we see is people trying to please people.

They think they’ve come up with a Christianity that the world will want to embrace. People like us who insist upon Scripture are embarrassing to them. Bottom line: They think one can intellectually choose to be a Christian if we make it sound good enough to the unchurched. – Ken Silva 

What Does the Lord Require of His People?

by Mike Ratliff

But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:34-40 ESV)

With the takeover of the visible church by the “Innovation Cult” pragmatism is the rule. This pragmatic approach to ministry is lead by some men who have become blinded to the truth of what God requires of all those who are called by His name. They are blind because they, being in spiritual darkness with hardened hearts, are bent on their man-centered, man-made methodologies; i.e. doctrines of men. The fruit of this is well represented by Rick Warren’s “deeds not creeds” slogan for all this really consists of is works righteousness.