Introduction

band n. 1. A company of people having a common purpose; group: a band of outlaws.

band-wagon n. 1. U.S. a wagon, usually high and brightly coloured, for carrying the band in a parade. 2. Climb, jump, or get on the band-wagon. Informal. to join or give support to a party or movement that seems to be assured of success. (Collins English Dictionary)

After reading the above definition in the Collins Dictionary, I think my title "Jumping on the Bandwagon" is an appropriate description for the subject I am about to discuss, that of the February 2000 launching of Australian Christian Churches (hereafter, ACC), the result of an initiative of the National Executive of the Assemblies of God in Australia (hereafter, AOG). The initiative called for an alliance between various Pentecostal and Charismatic denominations in Australia with Brian Houston, General Superintendent of the Australian AOG, installed as the inaugural President.

The launching of the ACC has been hailed in both secular and Christian press as an enormous success in bringing together a number of independent Christian bodies for the purpose of "making a real difference in the community" and "offering a dynamic spiritual dimension missing from many people's lives." [1]

But is the ACC alliance really anything more than just a numbers and money game using secular and new-age business principles in conjunction with questionable, but popular, and very successful church growth programs? Are the key players behind this alliance perhaps just a group of people who have observed some of their overseas colleagues tapping into a lucrative market and then deciding to employ identical principles and methods in an attempt to achieve the same results in Australia? To me, it seems that there are striking similarities between what the leadership of ACC are trying to achieve and what has already been tested and proven in other countries, particularly the U.S.A. These observant Aussies have watched while their overseas friends have applied dubious, though highly successful methods to draw huge crowds into their folds and, having heard the bandwagon lumbering toward them, have decided to climb aboard for a slice of the action.

The "Corporation" Church

Surely it is obvious, to those who wish to see and have had their eyes enlightened by the Lord, that the professing church, Christendom, has become nothing more than a very successful business, reaping huge profits into the coffers of those who, wandering off the right path, have been enticed by a desire for fame, fortune and universal acceptance. They have turned the Father's house into nothing more than a house of merchandise and are utilizing the world's resources and the world's methods to achieve what they believe to be spiritual success.

The Pentecostal churches, as well as an ever escalating number of Evangelical churches, are currently being conducted as business corporations, organized along the same lines as any other secular business enterprise. Senior pastors have taken on the role of business managers, or executives, whose main function is increasingly leaning toward running the business side of the empire and making a profit, rather than equipping the saints for the work of the ministry that Christ called us to, that of preaching the Gospel, calling men and women everywhere to repent, and making disciples out of sinners.

The corporation churches, in the same manner as the corporations of the secular world, have definite characteristics that are clearly observable. They are human-initiated and governed, management-based, profit-oriented, success-driven, client-friendly, product-focused (programs and services), and image conscious. [2]

I believe that, as we progress through this article, it will become evident that the charges I have leveled at the Pentecostal church, are well founded. They are conducting a business and they are using secular business principles and methods to achieve recognition and financial success. They have jumped upon the brightly decorated bandwagon that already carries a great company of musicians, both secular and those who profess to follow Christ. However, the joyful music emanating from the wagon has a distinctly worldly beat to it. I perceive that they are playing to the beat of the wrong drummer! He who has ears to hear, let him listen. What do you think?

"They have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness." (2 Peter 2:15)

Perilous Times

In my Bible, in 2 Timothy 3:1-5, I read the following important, prophetic information:

"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 thereof: from such turn away."

Because I believe that the Word of God is true and prophetically correct in all of its predictions, I know that I can be absolutely confident that what we have read above will already be taking place in the world. Because we know these are the last days, then it stands to reason that all we should have to do, to actually see these above mentioned attributes, is simply, look. Open our eyes and have a look around.

It needs to be pointed out that this portion of Scripture I have presented for consideration is not describing the crude, rude and unrefined individuals on the outside of Christendom, as is presumed by a vast number of believers, but it is describing people who profess to be Christians, those within the hallowed walls of the churches. The support for my disturbing claim is presented in verse 5, which clearly states that the people who display these ungodly characteristics have a "form" of godliness but deny the power thereof. It would have to be agreed that the unbelieving man or woman out in the street does not have any form of godliness, however strongly one may desire to disagree. We are clearly discussing professing Christians here.

Paul was writing to Timothy, with God's intention that what he wrote would be recorded for succeeding generations of Christians, and he expressly pointed out that in the "last days" a perilous situation would arise which was of great concern to him. A dangerous time would come, it was prophesied, in which a great number of people who professed to love the Lord would, in fact, be lovers of their own selves. A dangerous time would come because professing Christians would be lovers of self. All of their thoughts and actions would be influenced by a high regard for their own selves, displaying a form of godliness on the outside, for all to see, while concealing self-serving motives and aspirations on the inside. Echoes of Isaiah 29:13,

"...this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me..."

So there's nothing new under the Sun, just worse examples, apparently.

The Fruit Of Self-Love Is...

It is an enlightening experience, indeed, to look into the meanings of some of the original Greek words that Paul used in describing the temperament of these individuals. Practically all of them describe character traits that could only be produced by a person who is completely obsessed with self.

For example, Paul says that they will be "covetous". The Greek word used is philarguros, which literally means to be fond of silver or money. It portrays a person who is grasping for money. One who is greedy. A greedy person who is a lover of money is a person who is concerned with self.

God's Word tells us in 1 Timothy 6:9-10 that,

"such that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."

Paul also wrote that these people will be boasters. The Greek word used here is alazon, which, along with "boaster" also means braggart. The person will be a big talker, an exhibitionist and show-off, desiring the recognition of man to puff up his ego and draw people's attention to himself.

Jude 16-19 speaks of these people as

"... walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage. But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; how that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit."

Paul also wrote to Timothy and said that these people would be proud. The Greek word here is huperephanos, which has a meaning of wanting to appear above others. To promote yourself so that you are conspicuous. Haughty. Proverbs 16:18-19 reminds us that,

"... pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud."

Paul also said that these people will be traitors. The Greek word used here is prodotes, which carries the sense of giving forward into the enemy's hands, to surrender and betray the cause. A traitor.

Matthew 24:10-12 warns that,

"many [shall] be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."

They will be highminded. The original Greek word for this is tuphoo, which means to be inflated with self-conceit and lifted up with pride. They will see themselves as absolutely essential to the fulfillment of God's purposes in history. They will be puffed up with their own importance.

They will also be lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God. The original Greek word translated here as pleasures is philedonos, which means to be fond of pleasure, voluptuous or addicted to sensual indulgence. The root word of philedonos is hedone which mean sensual delight, desire and lust for pleasure.

They may profess with their mouths that they love God with all their hearts, but their hearts will have deceived them and it is really only the pleasurable experience that they love. They are chasing after feelings. Again we quote Jude who said in Jude 18-19,

"... there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit."

Could any Scripture more fittingly describe the Pentecostal church, particularly after what we have seen take place since the early 1990's with the inception of such movements as the Toronto Blessing and Pensacola Revival? God's Word is prophetically accurate and clearly has predicted that the professing church of the last days would be filled with people who would be more interested in, and attracted to, sensual experiences and pleasures of the flesh rather than a sober, watchful and orderly walk with God.

We could continue on, elaborating upon each word Paul used in describing the group of people who, he was moved by the Spirit to prophesy, would be members of the last days church, but from what we have already seen we can be assured that an unhealthy, even dangerous preoccupation with self will play a predominant part in the makeup of the congregations of the last days.

The Message of the Gospel

In Mark 8:34-37 (as well as in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke) we read the very clear and restrictive words of Jesus concerning the qualifications of becoming one of His disciples.

"Whosoever 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; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?"

Obviously, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for a person who is obsessed with his own life to deny himself. Yet it is the first requirement stipulated by Christ Himself if a person desires to become one of His disciples. One might say that I am promoting works as a way for Salvation but that is not really the case. You see, unless a man or a woman is able to deny themselves they will never be able to see themselves as a sinner who needs a Saviour. What self loving, greedy, bragging, egotistic, self aggrandising, inflated, conceited, person is there in this world who believes he needs to be saved?

But Paul's letter to Timothy warns us that this type of person will not only profess to be a disciple of Christ but will also fill the pulpits and the pews in great number in the last days. How is this possible? If Christ said we must deny ourselves to become His followers how is it that Paul could prophetically accuse the church of the last days of being crowded with people who obviously refuse to do so?

Church Growth Strategies

After my conversion in 1982 I became keenly aware that one of the priorities of the brand of Christianity I was involved in was Church Growth. There seemed to me to be a lot of energy focused towards learning from pastors with big churches how they actually got to be so big. Church Growth was the buzz phrase of the Pentecostal/Charismatic community and a number of pastors with large and prosperous congregations traveled the length and breadth of the globe promoting their growth and prosperity strategies. Their principles and methods for growing large and prosperous congregations were eagerly sought after by ambitious men and women who aspired to greater things.

Because I was zealous to serve the Lord and discover as much as I could about Him, I was encouraged by other mature Christians to enroll myself in an external study course with a Christian College in Sydney. I ploughed into my course of study with great enthusiasm and soon received a Certificate and a Diploma that I was supposed to hang on the wall of my future office - but never did. Thinking that Christian Colleges held the answers to my quest of acquiring as much knowledge about the things of the Lord as possible, I further enrolled in an Associate in Ministry course with Garden City AOG College in Brisbane. With a bit of effort and the credit points from my previous studies with the Sydney college I could envisage myself qualifying as an associate pastor in a couple of years. The prospects were exciting for a young Christian who believed that God had called him to preach the Gospel and who had an enthusiasm and a determination to see the call obeyed and fulfilled.

I soon had my subjects chosen and my study material arrived in the mail. My first two subjects of choice were Leadership and Church Growth. I completed the Leadership module first, without too much trouble but when I started on the "Church Growth" module I immediately ran into difficulties. I discovered that some of the things that I was reading in the textbooks for the Church Growth course were contradictory to what I was reading in my Bible, and I mentioned these things to my examiners.

The text books for the subject were written by Robert Schuller of Crystal Cathedral fame (who teaches New-Age possibility thinking, positive mental attitude and self esteem) and Paul Yonggi Cho, pastor of the world's largest Pentecostal congregation and General Superintendent of the Korean AOG (who teaches New-Age positivity thinking and occultic visualisation techniques).

I had many problems with the teachings of these two men and warning bells were ringing, but being a young Christian, I was not able to fully appreciate just how far from orthodoxy they had departed with their beliefs and theories for church growth. It seemed to me that there was more of a focus upon helping people out of their problems and making them feel good about themselves rather than telling them that they were sinners on their way to Hell if they didn't recognize the reason for their separation from God and accept His plan for redemption, justification and restoration. In fact, Robert Schuller recommended that you don't even mention the word Jesus until you have established a solid relationship with the person. This takes place over a number of months by catering to their social and material needs and building up their self esteem. By which time they have come to believe that you are someone worthy of unquestionable trust and that they are rightfully entitled to receive such lavished attention. Only then do you reveal to them that you are a Christian and tell them about Jesus who loved them so much that he died on a cross for them and that He is patiently waiting until they decide to invite Him into their life so that He can abundantly bless them further. At no point, according to Schuller, do you make people aware of their lost and sinful condition. In other words, I was being schooled up in a social gospel of the most extreme variety.

I thought there was something dishonest about this approach to reaching people for Christ and told my examiners so. I even spoke to the pastor of the church I attended about my perceptions and the problems I was having accepting the teachings of Schuller and Cho. My quiet protests were brushed off as insignificant, old fashioned and out of touch with contemporary society.

Not long after this I came in possession of the book "Seduction of Christianity" by Dave Hunt and Terry McMahon and despite being warned by my pastor not to read it, I did, and I eventually saw the reason I was having so much trouble accepting the teaching of Garden City College. Along with the money I had paid into it, I threw the course away and relinquished the goal of becoming a pastor in the AOG denomination. There was no other solution. If I were to continue pursuing the goal of becoming a pastor in the AOG, then I would have to accept teachings that I knew to be un-Biblical and outright heresy. It wasn't an option.

Lovers of Self

Looking back, it is easy to see that the likes of Robert Schuller, Yonggi Cho and a host of other leaders of "successful" growing churches have tapped into a lucrative market. Whether by design or by chance (I believe the former) they have come up with a product that the non-Christian public have been eagerly awaiting.

These leaders, especially those who have been led off the "old paths, where is the good way" by Church Growth teachings and strategies, have heard the alluring sound of the approaching band wagon, playing the new tune of self-love, and have climbed aboard as it passed by, taking with them a few contemporary songs of their own.

Someone Changed The Signpost

As a member of the Pentecostal/Charismatic stream of Christendom for seventeen years, the "gospel" that I heard in the numerous "sermons" and messages during that time falls somewhat short of what I see presented in the Word of God. Every now and again you will hear someone preach something that comes close, but they are few and far between and still, mostly, fall far short of the mark. For the main part, the messages come across to inform the "seeker" that God loves him unconditionally and that He has a wonderful plan for his life and that God is just longing for him to come to the place of making the decision of allowing Christ into his life. Jesus is humbly and patiently knocking at the door of his heart waiting to come in and abundantly bless him.

The message has somehow been flipped around to say that Jesus died because He loved us so much, rather than Jesus died for our sins. Someone has changed the signpost. Of course God did so love the world that He sent His only Son, but our sin was the reason He was sent. The way I understand what I read in the Scriptures is that it was my sin and your sin that caused Jesus the punishment of the Cross of Calvary, not His great love for us. Because of His love and His obedience to God, He did it, but it was our sin that caused it. If there hadn't been a problem with sin Jesus could have stayed at home in Heaven where it was safe.

People are led away from seeing their worthlessness and their wretchedness and are, instead, led to believe that they have great value in the scheme of things. The majority are told by the evangelist that all their problems in life are caused by a faulty perception of themselves. Sin and the necessity of repentance are only mentioned as a consequence of that faulty view.

Robert Schuller, the mentor of a great number of these "New Believers" who are now riding on the crest of the wave of his church growth strategies and principles, actually stated that,

"I don't think anything has been done in the name of Christ and under the banner of Christianity that has proven more destructive to human personality and, hence, counterproductive to the evangelism enterprise than the often crude, uncouth, and unchristian strategy of attempting to make people aware of their lost and sinful condition." [3]

Hence, if contrary to Schuller's advice, sin is mentioned at all, the prospective Christians are led to believe that their great sin is the way they have messed up their lives, the result of the lack of love they have for themselves. Nowhere are they informed that without God they are subject to His wrath. According to Schuller, and a legion of Christian leaders who have followed his teachings, to inform them of this is counterproductive, crude, uncouth and unchristian. Nowhere are they told that they have offended God and come short of His glory and the standard He has set in His Holy Law and that, in His sight, they deserve the condemnation and punishment that Jesus took in their place. They are not told that God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11), nor that the wrath of God abides upon the unbeliever (John 3:36), nor that because of the manner of their living they are destined for God's wrath unless they make some drastic changes in their thinking and behaviour (Ephesians 2:3). These truths are smothered by a message that emphasizes the love of God and the blessings He desires to shower upon all who would agree to come to Him.

It doesn't take much to convince someone in this day and age that they are of such immense value that, even if they were the only person alive on the planet, Christ would still have died just for them. It doesn't take much to convince people that they lack self-love, especially after being bombarded for decades from the TV and the media that the most important person in the world is "me" and "I" deserve better things from this life.

Easy Believism

The second aspect of this "other gospel" that I have heard predominately preached during my two decades as a Christian is what God will do for us if we will just submit to the coaxing of the preacher and come down to the altar at the front and pray the "sinners prayer". It soon becomes obvious to the struggling seeker sitting in the pew that, according to the preacher, who, being the expert in things pertaining to the subject of God, should know about these matters, not only is God about to forgive him of any past misdemeanors, but there are also immense benefits just waiting to be claimed if he will gather up courage, swallow his pride and embarrassment, get up out of his seat and obediently proceed down to the front. Outstanding health, immense wealth and eternal happiness are assured once you get on God's side, he is told. Financial difficulties will be a thing of the past, he is assured. As well as that, any emotional or social problems will be sorted out once the step is made.

This is the kind of message the people of our society want to hear. It's called, in the Word of God, "tickling itching ears". Let's face it, who wants to hear that they are directly to blame for broken relationships and that it is they themselves who are responsible to do something about it? Who wants to hear a message that puts the blame for all their problems squarely at their own feet? Isn't it more pleasing to blame everyone else for life's difficulties and failures?

Perilous Times

We are now living slap bang in the middle of the days prophesied in the Scriptures where "... men shall be lovers of their own selves ..." It should be noted with due soberness that the word used in the original Greek and translated in our English Bibles as "men" or "people" (NIV) is anthropos. This word does not restrict the interpretation to mean the male version of the human race, but also includes the females as well. A valid, and perhaps more appropriate rendering would be, "perilous times shall come because the human race, both men and women shall be lovers of their own selves..." The girls are going to be just as self centered as the boys in the last days and equally contribute to the "perilous times" prophesied by the apostle Paul.

Do we see this situation of selfishness in society today, both secular and Christian? I dare say that the condition is clearly obvious. I would also dare to say that it is not plainly obvious to a large number in the community simply because they have been progressively conditioned to think that their regard for self is normal and right. How many perceive the peril that confronts our society as a result of the unhealthy focus upon self that now prevails?

There are a host of illustrations that I could give to substantiate the claim that we have arrived at the age, or period, which Paul prophetically described as "perilous times". For example, who is thinking about whom, or whose welfare is being considered during the countless millions of abortions that take place, each year, in our modern society? Some might attempt to argue that abortions have always happened and it is no proof of anything. They fail to see, however, that this ungodly activity has never before happened so openly, in such great numbers, legally sanctioned by governments, and neither has it previously been so widely accepted and considered as justifiable by the world community.

As another illustration, who ever would have thought that the day would come when it would be necessary for a young couple, who seek to be married, to protect their individual interests and rights by making legal arrangements for the distribution of their earthly goods, thus protecting themselves from each other in the (most likely) event that their marriage should fail? And this, before they are even married!!!

This type of self-focused and self-protecting behaviour is also prevalent in the professing church. The extreme selfishness and the number of separations and divorces among the unbelievers is quickly being eclipsed by professing Christians. How can this be possible when the Lord has said "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself"?

It is a very brave pastor indeed, in these perilous days of self-love, who will point the finger during the counseling session and declare "You are at fault and you need to repent!" This is not good strategy if you have a dream to be popular and influential and grow a large church because nine times out of ten the person will be so highly offended that he, or she, will never be seen again. At least, not by that pastor. That offended person will flit from church to church until finally finding one where he will be "understood" and "accepted" and have his "rights" recognized. The church in which this kind of person will ultimately find acceptance and comfort will be a successful, growing church that caters to his needs, something of the type that we will see described further along in this article.

The World In The Church

"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. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever." (1 John 2:15-17)

One of the spin-offs of the church growth strategies of the last twenty or so years and the resulting emphasis upon attracting numbers at any cost is a toleration and endorsement of activities that are bringing the world into the church. Youth, in particular, are allowed to bring the behaviour of their contemporary culture into the church. In fact, the church uses ideas and activities which conform to contemporary secular society to draw the unsaved, younger generation into the church. They are actually encouraged to bring their culture with them! No longer is it "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel" but rather "Go ye into all the world and tickle their itching ears." Or perhaps, "Come ye into the church, just as you are, and bring your culture with you."

Worldly Entertainment = Praise And Worship

In the twenty years that I have been a Christian I have recognized a progressive build up (or perhaps I should say degeneration) in the style of music used in the churches.

The music departments in the churches have been surrendered mostly to young musicians, a great number of whom have previously been involved in the perverted and diabolical secular music scene, prior to becoming members of the church. As soon as it becomes known by the leadership that a "new convert" is musically gifted he is immediately invited to "serve the Lord" with his unique talents by joining the church band. The band is one of the most promoted "ministries" in the contemporary church. It is generally believed, in the Pentecostal and Charismatic churches, that the musicians, along with providing entertainment, are uniquely responsible to lead the people of the congregation into worship and progressively bring them to a place (condition) where the glory of the Holy Spirit can finally descend upon them.

Praise has been equated to singing loud and long to the accompaniment of a Christian Rock band pumping out the music of the latest Christian hit, usually about jumping into some river, getting drunk on the new wine, or joining some army and taking the cities for Jesus. Worship, on the other hand, comes after receiving a good, long dose of the beat and the rhythm of the praise music. It is the function of a "good" worship leader to discern when the music has had time to affect the souls of those in the congregation, when they are beginning to "feel" something, at which time the tempo and the sound level are reduced and worship begins. Most Pentecostals believe that praise and worship consists of what I have just described. A lot of noise and a lot of activity. It involves loudly singing choruses accompanied by even louder music, otherwise it isn't praise and it isn't worship. Hence, the focus upon music.

Perhaps, without the deafening heavy rock music, few would reach such a place of ecstasy where they can tangibly feel the "presence of the spirit" which they believe is confirmed by an accompanying bout of goose bumps, warm feelings or light headedness.

Usually, the only thing that the new musician is told about his previous involvement with the music of the world is that it was perhaps a bit loud and that he might have to tone the volume down a fraction during church services, particularly during the morning services which tend to be frequented by the older, more reserved members. During meetings catering to the youth however, he can turn the volume up, along with the tempo, and reminisce about the way things used to be. No restrictions are imposed at youth meetings.

We now have a condition in the Pentecostal/Charismatic churches where one is no longer able to distinguish between the music that is played in the church and the music that is played in the world. They are identical! The services have become entertainment extravaganzas catering to the soul. Visual effects, such as lighting and stage smoke, have also been introduced into many of the larger churches to assist the congregation to "get into the spirit". When the goose bumps and giddy feelings come and the hair stands up on the back of your neck, you know you have arrived. The Holy Spirit is touching you and blessing you.

However, anyone with half an ounce of discernment, and even a rudimentary understanding of the Scriptures, would instantly recognize that these activities have nothing at all to do with the Lord Jesus Christ and that they are nothing more than fleshly exhibitions of worldly entertainment that cater, not to the spirit, but to the soul. The pulsating rhythm and incessant beat have zilch to do with the Lord Jesus Christ and his disciples. But the music draws the crowd, especially the younger age group, which is precisely the generation that the disciples of "Church Growth" are targeting.

Perhaps I Am Wrong?

Is it such an unkind accusation to claim that church leaders, who have been indoctrinated with Church Growth principles, over a number of years, and who have aspirations of being pastors over large congregations, are using the things of contemporary secular society, the things of worldly culture to entice people to join their fellowship? Am I wrong in claiming that there is an ungodly focus upon entertainment, particularly of the musical kind, to attract crowds of younger members? Am I being unfair to suggest that church leaders have found that if they cater to a person's love of self they can get them to join their particular congregation? Have they really jumped on the bandwagon or am I just imagining things? Let's find out if I am perhaps just a bit overly critical or whether I really do have something of great concern worth complaining about.

The Changing Of The Guard

Except for a brief time toward the end, during the entire period of my attending the AOG church, the man at the helm was Andrew Evans. During the 1997 AOG National Conference, however, the job as General Superintendent of the AOG in Australia was passed over to the much younger, and more dynamic, Brian Houston, son of well known and very popular Sydney AOG pastor, Frank Houston.

However, Brian Houston, like his father, Frank, is a Word of Faith proponent who parrots the Kenneth Hagin/Kenneth Copeland health, wealth and prosperity doctrine. Additionally, he is well schooled in Church Growth strategies, having sat under the tutoring of the likes of "Christian Buddhist" Yonggi Cho, who is welcomed with opened arms in his father's church, Christian Life Centre in Sydney. He is also indoctrinated with the heretical Kingdom Now/Latter Rain/Dominionist beliefs having come under the influences of teachers who have political and social ambitions for the whole of Christendom.

Submission To Spiritual Leaders

Brian is ambitious, vigorous, old enough to have respect from the "old guard" that the AOG desires to keep on-side and yet, still young enough to identify with the younger generation that the AOG is currently courting with outstanding success. Having grown up in his father's church, he also fits very snugly into the ideals and standards held by the leadership of the AOG and other Pentecostal denominations, such as the spiritual authority of leaders and unquestioning submission from the members of the congregations to the men and women in positions of authority. For example, in the October '97 issue of the Australian Evangel, the official monthly magazine of the AOG in Australia, writing as General Superintendent of the movement he wrote,

"There is a need in the Church today for gifted followers. It involves taking risks and trusting leadership. Followers have to follow the lead. Further you have to be able to change direction, often quickly. As the leader turns a corner, you have to have the capacity to go with the flow, wherever it may take you. People are far too quick to turn away from those who have been their spiritual leaders. Followers shouldn't! We should honour and respect them. People who don't are insecure. Never think that it was a coincidence that God gave you the leader you have."

No! I don't think that the leader that my previous church gained was a coincidence. I do believe, however, that because of their desire to follow after false gods and false revivals, God gave the members of my former fellowship the leader they wanted, and most likely deserved - a leader who is leading them blissfully, further and further down the ever widening and accommodating path of apostasy.

This dangerous and self-serving version of "spiritual leadership" is rampant throughout Christendom, and has been since time immemorial, and Brian Houston has simply become one of its victims, a modern-day promoter who now believes himself to be "some great one" in the affairs of God's Kingdom and what God is supposedly doing in the earth today. It's called Heavy Shepherding, and a number of key men who were involved in, and had their fingers badly burned by just such an un-Scriptural leadership debacle just prior to my conversion in 1982 have been, over the years, welcomed and promoted by Brian's father, Frank.

"... Whose Faith Follow"

While I do read in my Bible in Hebrews 13:17 that we are to "...obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief", I also read in verse 7 of the same chapter that we are to "...remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation."

Judging from what we read above, we are only to follow those who speak the Word of God and not some self-serving version that they have made up for their own benefit. Consequently we are not commanded by God to submit to, to trust and obey, and follow at every sudden change of direction, a leader in the church beyond the degree to which he is in submission to the Word of God himself. If they call themselves pastors and church leaders but are not in submission to the Word then we are instructed by God to expose their error (Ephesians 5:11), and if they continue in promoting their error, we are to depart from their presence (Romans 16:17; 1 Corinthians 5:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:6; 1 Timothy 6:5; 2 Timothy 3:5; 2 John 1:10).

Brian Houston might kid some into believing that we are "insecure" by our refusal to submit to leaders who are obviously in conflict with Scripture, but it is that same Word of God, which in Proverbs 14:15-16, encourages us to resist the psychological pressure of our companions by stating,

"The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going. A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident."

Judging by the size of Brian Houston's congregation, there are a lot of "simple" people around who blindly believe everything he says. Perhaps he should try and convince Jim Jones' followers that they did the wise thing by taking a few risks in trusting the leadership of Jim, who I might add, was a fellow pastor (Disciples of Christ) who held to the same beliefs about authority, submission and following the leader as Houston professes to.

"As the leader turns a corner, you have to have the capacity to go with the flow, wherever it may take you."

So says Brian Houston. As we look at the state of Christendom today and what has resulted from the last ten or so years of unreservedly jumping into the various rivers of revival, it becomes apparent, to those with eyes to see, that a multitude of "gifted followers" are prepared to obey the teaching that is being promoted here by Houston. They are quite prepared to follow their leader and go with the flow to wherever it may take them. Any expression of concern coming from a "gifted follower" with regard to his destination is pronounced as insecurity.

But God's Word is clear that we are not to blindly put our faith in someone just because he is proclaimed a spiritual leader. Always, we are commanded in 1 John 4:1,

"... believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world."

Also, we have the testimony of Acts 17:11 which demonstrates that the Jews in the Synagogue at Berea didn't simply believe and follow Paul's teaching based upon his recognized position as a spiritual leader. They checked thoroughly to see that what he was promoting aligned faithfully with the Scriptures. The devoted bestowing of honour and respect upon leaders who are promoting unbiblical beliefs and practices will not help on the day we have to stand before the Lord and give account of ourselves - on our own. There will be no spiritual leader holding our hand on that day.

"Can the blind lead the blind? Shall they not both fall into the ditch?" (Luke 6:39)

The Sound Of Music

One explanation for the unanimous choice of Brian Houston, as the man to lead the AOG into the new millennium, would be his involvement in the contemporary "christian" music scene. His church, Hills Christian Life Centre, is the home of the world renowned and extremely popular Hillsong Music. Along with all his other charisma, he is a "christian" entertainer, which only serves to enhance his appeal among the younger generations as well as increase his endorsement by the "Old Guard" AOG executives.

For some diabolical reason, the current band of leaders in the Pentecostal and Charismatic streams of Christendom believe that God has instructed them to reach the lost of the world through music. Not just any music though. Hymns, which are typically based upon sound biblical doctrine, are definitely not acceptable. The thrust for reaching the lost is by using the same type of music you would hear on any radio station, anywhere in the western world, anytime during the day or night. By a twisting and misrepresentation of 1 Corinthians 9:22, where Paul says,

"To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some",

these new leaders have justified the use of worldly, if not demonic music to entice the unbelievers into their fold. According to their logic and their interpretation of this portion of Scripture, there should be nothing wrong with becoming a prostitute for a while, providing you are evangelizing prostitutes. Perhaps becoming a thief to reach the thieves in the community would be considered acceptable. Perhaps it would also be acceptable to the endorsers of this theology if one became a murderer, or even an adulterer to reach those types of people in the community?

The suggestions are ludicrous, of course, but for some profound reason, that is clear only to them, they see no problem with using Rock-&-Roll, Heavy Metal, or any other kind of modern music, as a tool for evangelism - supposedly to bring the ungodly and the rebellious to the feet of Christ as their Lord and Saviour.

But it is not called Rock-&-Roll or Heavy Metal or Pop or any such worldly thing by its promoters. It has been sanitized with the label, "Contemporary Christian Music", and some big names within the current "revival" movements have been pushing this new method of evangelism for a number of years.

For example, the very popular Rick Joyner in his book, "The Harvest - Volume 2", which promotes mysticism and outright heresy, says,

"Anointed music will be one of the church's biggest guns in the battle of the last days ... The Lord is about to anoint prophetic minstrels who will capture the world's attention ..."

In 1990, in an article that has become famous, and accepted as God-inspired among the "River Revival" people, James Ryle wrote about a couple of dreams he experienced regarding the new music that God is supposedly going to unleash upon the church, during these last days, as a tool for evangelism. The article was entitled, "The Sons of Thunder - A Prophetic Dream". At the time he experienced the dreams, James Ryle was the Senior Pastor of the Boulder, Colorado, Vineyard Church. He counts such illustrious people as Bill McCartney, of Promise Keepers fame, as part of his congregation.

Speaking about the dreams, in his article, "Sons of Thunder", James Ryle said,

"After I had written the dream down, the Lord spoke to me and said, 'I'm about to release a new kind of song in the streets. It will bring a revelation of the truth and it will usher men into my presence.' I filed that away until about a month later when I had another dream."

"In the second dream, I was taken to a large church which had a stage ... When I awoke, the Lord said that there was going to be a new and distinctive anointing and sound restored to music that will turn the heads and capture the hearts of men for Jesus Christ. He said that we would see this happen when the church gets beyond the limits that she set for herself, into his grace, and takes the praise that is in the sanctuary and makes it music in the streets ... We must overcome our insecurities to sing the Lord's song if our light is going to shine in this world; Simply singing the truth in the name of Jesus Christ 'we say unto you be saved' will release the power of His Spirit in such an awesome display that men and women will collapse in their seats converted to Christ. But the Lord said that a key will be this new anointing he is about to give to his music."

Quite amazingly, it seems that the Bible must have gotten the message of Salvation mixed up somewhere. For the last two thousand years, ever since Paul wrote the letter to the Romans, it has been the Gospel of Christ that is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes, and now, suddenly, at the end of the church age, we find that God is using the words "we say unto you be saved" in accompaniment to Contemporary Gospel Music, based upon the rhythm and beat of Rock-&-Roll, to cause people to collapse in their seats and be converted to Christ.

If people like Joyner and Ryle were some nondescript hillbillies living out the back of beyond where nobody ever heard of them, the issue wouldn't be so serious. Unfortunately, these two individuals are only a sample of a great number of like minded men and women who are having a profound influence upon the professing church and have greatly been involved in guiding Christendom in the direction we currently see it travelling.

Of course, it's not only the unconverted who are being subjected to, and sucked in by the promotion of Contemporary Christian Music. The people in the congregations, who already profess to be Christians, have also been targeted and are now well and truly seduced by the rhythm and beat. After years of subtle conditioning and progressing from one level of Rock to the next, it is now being taught that the manifestation of the Holy Spirit comes about through extended times of praise and worship accompanied by loud, up-tempo, Rock music. Hence, the success of men such as Brian Houston who direct a great part of their creative energy and talent into building a lucrative business/ministry based upon the world's lust for music and entertainment, slapping upon it the label "Christian" to pass it off as sanctioned by God.

Hijacked!!!

The word "Christian" has been hijacked!!! Acts 11:26 tells us that followers of the teachings of Christ "...were called Christians first in Antioch." Some two thousand years later, the word "Christian" is the flavour of the masses - whether they be disciples of Christ or otherwise.

The word has been seized by corrupt men and women, enemies of the Cross of Christ, and has been twisted and reinterpreted to mean any number of ungodly things. Unfortunately, the unsaved, as well as a great number of professing Christians, no longer understand what the word "Christian" really means. No longer, in this dark and evil age in which we find ourselves, does the word describe a person who has come under the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, who has heard and believed the message of the Gospel, who has repented of his evil, sinful condition, who has been born-again by the Word of God that lives and abides forever, and who follows, and walks in obedience to the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ, but rather, it has been watered down to become an all inclusive and all embracing term that represents any person that seems to have good intentions, or any action that is deemed, by the wider community, to be of worthy cause.

However, there is another aspect of this hijacking that should be of utmost concern to anyone who truly qualifies to wear the title "Christian", and that is with regard to the multitude of false religious organizations who, with a loud voice for all to hear, persistently and adamantly profess to love the Lord their God with all their heart, with all their soul, with all their strength, and with all their mind, who profess to love Jesus in exactly the same way, who also claim to be led by the Holy Spirit and wholeheartedly love the Truth of the Scriptures, and yet, when examining their claims in the light of God's Word, we find frightful discrepancies.

Discerning Between The Holy And Profane

One of the primary functions of those who have been called of God as Shepherds of His flock, is to teach the people the difference between what is right and what is wrong. Ezekiel 44:23 tells us that the Priests

"... shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean."

Malachi 2:7 also tells us,

"... the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts."

In the New Testament, in 1 Timothy 1:3, we find Paul instructing Timothy to remain in Ephesus, while he journeyed to Macedonia, for the express purpose of correcting people who were leading God's people astray with wrong doctrine. Further, in 1 Timothy and in the Book of Titus, we find that the criteria that qualifies one to shepherd God's flock includes being able to teach and expound upon the Word of God and

"... hold fast the faithful Word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers." (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:9).

Isaiah 5:20 solemnly warns these people, who profess to be the leaders of God's household,

"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"

Utter Confusion

One of the greatest difficulties that I have encountered when witnessing to my unsaved work colleagues is to bring them to an understanding of the difference between a real Christian and a religious person who also calls himself a Christian. After a lifetime of being conditioned to the lies about Christianity, it takes a fair bit of time and explanation to get them to understand that just because something is called Christian, doesn't mean it really is. When asked the question, "What is a Christian?" the usual response is that a Christian is a person who believes in God. I have to point out that the Devil believes in God, but that certainly doesn't make him a Christian.

The confusion caused by this falsification is only complicated further by highly publicised events such as the recent act of repentance by Pope John Paul II, supposedly on behalf of the Christians around the world, for the deeds of violence perpetrated upon people in foreign lands when attempting to convert them to Christianity. My friends are quick to point out that here is infallible proof that Christians are responsible for most of the wars that have taken place, and still are, in the name of God and religion.

Our cause of putting the record straight and attempting to get at the truth of the matter is not helped by people who, professing to be Christians, come out in the public arena and give praise to the Pope, and compliment him, for his wonderful achievement in the area of reconciliation. These well meaning, though uninformed and gullible Christians, do this, all the while being utterly uninformed of history as well as ignoring the vast difference between Roman Catholicism and Christianity. The two systems can not be reconciled. It is one thing for the unbeliever to be deceived about such issues as to who has been killing whom down through the ages, but it is another matter entirely when so called Protestant Christians fall for the same deception.

As if to add salt to an already open wound, on page 21 of the June 2000 issue of Alive, the monthly Australian Christian Magazine, a young lady by the name of Angela Eynaud, while agreeing that the Catholic Church was guilty of "past failings", made the following, misleading comment about the Pope's apology. Her contribution only fueled the prevailing deception that the Catholic Church is "THE" Christian Church, further compounding the confusion of what the word Christian really means. She said,

"... when the Pope apologised, a cynical world responded in surprise that a church leader would humble himself and risk the dignity of his office. This authentically Christian act, empowering the weak and the isolated, would, I imagine, have marked for some, the beginning of a return to the Church."

Angela spelt the final word Church, here in this sentence, with a capital "C" suggesting that some will be caused to return to that particular Church that Jesus Christ said the gates of Hell would never prevail against.

Obviously, this young lady has not been taught by her Shepherd to discern the difference between the holy and the profane, to differentiate between bitter and sweet, and to recognize a wolf when it is wearing a sheep-skin rug. The ulterior motives behind the Pope's hypocritical act of repentance aside (true repentance is not initiated by any self-serving motives), the word Christian has again been hijacked by just one more misguided person who has used it to give a flavour of integrity and virtue to something that clearly, to those who have eyes to see, is not.

Further adding fuel to the raging flames of deception, we also have "Christian Bookshops" that not only sell Bibles of every version and persuasion but also sell the multitude of books being produced by all the popular heretics of our day. The owners and staff of these bookshops will have to give account on the day we stand before the Lord, as they are probably most to blame for propagating much of the error that is currently being accepted in Christendom. If there's a market, they'll sell it. They refuse to discern the difference between the holy and the profane, and, as Ezekiel has said in chapter 22, verse 27, they are

"... like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain."

Perhaps these bookshops started off with good intentions. Who knows? But the truth of the matter is at they are now only Christian by name. They have hijacked the name for profit.

Along with so-called "Christian" churches that deny the deity and atoning sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, we also have our Contemporary "Christian" Music, which, as we have previously mentioned, is indistinguishable from the music of the world. Adding the word "Christian" to some product or endeavour immediately gives it respectability, whether it promotes the truth of the Gospel or otherwise, and professing Christians, lacking discernment, rush out and embrace it.

And so now, we progress to The Australian "Christian" Churches, the main focus of my concerns, to try and discover if perhaps they will somehow bring some honour and integrity back into the word "Christian", that wonderful word that had its beginnings two thousand years ago at Antioch, but, as we have briefly seen, has been seized, trodden under foot and made to be something common by a multitude of ungodly people for a multitude of ungodly reasons.

The Australian Christian Churches

The national launch of ACC was held in Sydney on February 18, 2000, attended by 400 guests including Federal parliamentarians, state and local politicians, a number of famous sports stars, such as jockey, Darren Beadman and footballer, Jason Stevens, "christian" musicians and song writers such as Steve Grace, who kept the crowd entertained, and Hills Christian Life Centre's very own Darlene Zschech, of Hillsong Music fame, who led the gathering - including the unbelievers I presume - in "worship".

According to the article in Alive Magazine of April, 2000, ACC is an umbrella organization consisting of AOG, Apostolic and Bethesda denominations and independent churches such as Waverley Christian Fellowship, Melbourne, and Riverview Church, Perth. Elsewhere in the article it is claimed that Abundant Life Fellowship on the Gold Coast as well as about twenty other related churches had joined the alliance that already boasted more than 1000 local congregations with around 170,000 members.

ACC was first proposed by the AOG National Executive in 1998, with Brian Houston fresh in the General Superintendent's chair, vacated by Andrew Evans the previous year. As I said, this boy is ambitious and thinks himself to be "some great one" in the affairs of God's Kingdom. Initially, the idea was offered that the AOG would change its name to Australian Christian Churches and invite other denominations to join. However, leaders of some of the denominations that they approached were suspicious - and most likely protective of their little bit of diminishing turf - and interpreted the offer to join as a "take over" rather than a partnership. As Diana Bagnall, the writer of a separate article, published in the April 11, 2000, edition of the Australian Bulletin magazine, correctly discerned, "...there is territorial jealousy in this arm of the church too." [4]

Brian and his senior AOG executives seem not to have considered that they are not the only ones who have sat under the Church Growth gurus of the last twenty years and they are not the only ones who have aspirations of leading "successful" churches and having nice lives. They are not the only ones who perceived that there is something to be gained by jumping upon the bandwagon.

Although Christian Outreach Centres, Christian Revival Crusade and Christian City Churches had not joined by the time of the launch, "negotiations continue with various movements and an increased ACC membership is likely." [5a]

The article also quoted that "The Australian Pentecostal Ministers Fellowship, which represents all Pentecostal churches, was due to meet in early March and the development of ACC is expected to be high on the agenda." [5b] The writing is on the wall, so to speak.

Interestingly, the president of Australian Pentecostal Ministers Fellowship is Phil Pringle, founder of Christian City Churches, who, no doubt, would prefer to keep himself autonomous, but the pressure from the already participating members of ACC to recognize the alliance as an integral part of what God is doing in the Earth today will surely "help" him to comply with their agenda in some form or another. If he resists their invitation to join, remaining independent, Phil Pringle will be made to seem like he is actually opposing God and hindering His progress. We know from first hand experience what happens to those who should so recklessly resist "going with the flow" of God's mighty river of revival that is supposedly streaming through Christendom in these days.

I hope you have noticed in the last couple of paragraphs, just how many times the word "Christian" has been used. Who could possibly think anything would be wrong with all these organizations, who claim the name of Christ, and who infer, by their use of the word "Christian", that they are loyal followers of Christ and staunchly obedient to His Word?

The Agenda Of ACC

What is the agenda of ACC? In The Bulletin, April 11, 2000, entitled "The New Believers" the question was asked,

"So what is the Australian Christian Churchs' agenda? Making disciples, of course. There is no other for Christians. "I love this country and I really believe the church has answers for Australia. I genuinely would like to see the church helping people and give them the answers that they want," says Houston."

This all sounds very noble and righteous but it is a different agenda from the one that was stated in Alive Magazine by reporter, Peter Hallett, who wrote that the specific aim of ACC is to produce greater networking and unity between Pentecostal and Charismatic churches. [5c] In other words, it's ecumenical.

I have a question. Who are the other Pentecostal and Charismatic churches with whom ACC desires to produce greater networking and unity? Does ACC mean, for example, that particular Charismatic church, the members of whom are strongly petitioning their leader to recognize Mary, the mother of Jesus, as co-redeemer along with her Son? Obviously, they do, as we will see later in this article. They are going to have unsuspecting and blindly trusting AOG members rubbing shoulders and fellowshipping in religious, social and political endeavours with people that God clearly commands in Scripture that they should depart from and to whom they should not even bid the time of day. (2 John 1:10-11)

Brian Houston enthusiastically claims in the same Alive article,

"Where the church is exalting Jesus and moving in the power of the gospel in relatable ways, it will grow. ACC is set to challenge all preconceptions of what constitutes a church in our modern society."

In other words, what we currently understand as the Church (notice the capital "C" please), gained from a systematic study of Gods Word and a careful look at history, is about to be changed. What has constituted the Church (notice the capital "C" again, thank-you) for the last two thousand years is about to be cast aside, remodeled and replaced with a new, improved, contemporary version that more suits the needs and desires of modern society in "relatable ways".

Do you remember a certain person back around 300AD who challenged all preconceptions of what constituted a church in his modern society and took it upon himself to restructure the Church so that it would fit with society in "relatable ways"? The only trouble was, he failed to consult God and His Word and created Mystery Babylon, the great harlot religious system, and Houston and his ACC crowd are following in his footsteps doing exactly the same thing. As though to help these modern church leaders to achieve their goal of a "New Apostolic Reformation" (note this term please) we discover, by consulting God's Word, that our modern society, both secular and religious, has been accused, by an explicit prophecy coming from the lips of the apostle Paul, of introducing the perilous condition of loving self and pleasure more than loving God. Remember the Scripture reference at the start of this article? Let me remind you by repeating it.

"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." (2 Timothy 3:1-4)

Upon examining the articles that I have read, which promote ACC, it seems that their agendas have been tailor made expressly for people who correspond to the above-mentioned characteristics. Rather than having a church that confronts the world with its sin and corruption and preaches a message of repentance, we have a church that is conformed to, and comfortably accommodates the world in "relatable ways". And we have Brian Houston saying,

"I genuinely would like to see the church helping people and give them the answers that they want."

It seems to me, from reading my Bible, that Jesus more often gave people answers that they "needed" but didn't want, rather than what Houston is proposing. But then, he is singing the words of "Lovers of Self" in accompaniment to the tune of "Church Growth", a song Jesus and the apostles had never learned.

I have news for these leaders who would come in their pride and haughtiness to do a make-over on the Church that Jesus instituted two thousand years ago, so that it becomes acceptable to society in "relatable ways" and gives the lost and unregenerate "the answers that they want". They are using Band-Aids as a cure for cancerous tumors.

Don't they know that the Church of Jesus Christ is alive and well in the Earth today, and has been since the time that Christ Himself proclaimed that He would build His Church and that the gates of Hell would never prevail against it? The problem is, only those who are part of it have eyes to see it. Not all that professes to be "Christian" is. Not all who name the Name of Christ are Christ's. Read Matthew 7:21-22 to see what I mean. The "True Church" doesn't need remodeling. The "True Church" doesn't require a reformation and it is presumption of the most extreme variety to suggest that it does.

Now, if Brian Houston and the ACC were referring to Christendom, then that would be another matter all together. If we take a look at Christendom as opposed to the Church then we definitely see problems on every side and can probably be forgiven for imagining that we are capable of performing some kind of miracle make-over upon it. Their problem, however, is that they are unable to differentiate between what is real and what is false, they are unable to discern the difference between the holy and the profane, what is wheat and what is tares, who is the church and who are merely religious imposters.

But the leaven is in the lump, my friends. The tares are among the wheat. The Mustard seed has grown out of all proportion to its intended size into a great rambling tree with many branches and birds of the air in residence (read Matthew 13 and the article on my Web Site entitled "Parables of The Kingdom" [6]), and if you are reading this article and have been taken in by the foolishness of what ACC is proposing, I would urge you with all seriousness to obey God's Word that tells you to come out from among them and be separate from it, or suffer the consequences as described in the Book of Revelation, chapters 16 to 18. As I have already mentioned, this that you are embracing, endorsing, or are a part of in any way, is Mystery Babylon, the false, harlot, religious system described in those chapters.

"Issues That Really Matter"

Another of the benefits of ACC, according to Brian Houston in Alive Magazine, is that it allows

"a common platform to speak out with a united voice on issues that really matter, like social justice and community care...ACC will provide leadership, opportunities for sharing resources and a united voice to help affiliated churches in fulfilling their mission."

What mission would that be? In all of the articles that I have read concerning ACC, including their very own promotion brochure, the only mission I can perceive is that of gaining vast numbers of people through social welfare programs and political action. The Great Commission of the Church, however, is to go into the world in the Name of Christ and preach the gospel, calling sinners to repentance and converting them to Christ (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16). You would never know this from reading any of the promotional literature that was released during the launch of ACC though.

The Great Omission

The Cross, the Blood, Salvation, The Gospel and Redemption are not mentioned in any of the articles that I have read on the launching of ACC. In fact, in their own promotional brochure you will not find these words; God, Jesus or Holy Spirit!!!

In the article in Alive Magazine, which has three pages devoted to the launch of ACC, you will not find any of the above words either, except one mention each of Jesus and the Gospel where Brian Houston stated

"...where the church is exalting Jesus and moving in the power of the gospel in relatable ways, it will grow."

In articles that I have read of the launch that were reported in regional newspapers, the trend is the same. For example, a full page article and advertisement in a Queensland daily, The Gladstone Observer, dated Saturday, February 19, 2000, had none of the above-mentioned words either, except for a single mention of the word "Christ" uttered by a pastor Howard James, who said that ACC

"...was to present a united and strong voice to the community that Christ cares for all people."

Like I said at the beginning, the message presented by these people is that Jesus loves all mankind with an unconditional love and patiently awaits their response to His knocking on the door of their hearts so He can finally come into their wretched lives and bless them. No mention that God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11), nor that the wrath of God abides upon the unbeliever (John 3:36), nor that because of the manner of their living they are destined for God's wrath unless they make some drastic changes in their thinking and behaviour (Ephesians 2:3).

Now I don't want to seem to be going on and on and on, but...

In The Bulletin, dated April 11, 2000, the cover story for the week was entirely about Brian Houston, the growing success of the Pentecostal churches in Australia and the launch of ACC. I am disappointed to say that I have read the article through numerous times to try and prove myself wrong, but again, the trend is the same as with all other literature I have read on the launch of ACC. Six pages are devoted to the article (which we will discuss in detail later) and, as I have justifiably complained above, you will have to search long and hard to find any of the words, such as "God", "Jesus" or "Holy Spirit". The words "the Cross", "the Blood", "Salvation", "the Gospel" and "Redemption", and other foundational words or terms for anything that regards itself as Christian, are just not even mentioned.

I have to confess though, that after searching through the quite lengthy article, I did find Jesus mentioned once, the Holy Spirit mentioned once and God referred to a whopping four times. The references to God, however, were not made to acknowledge Him in reverence and awe, but, rather, to assure the reader that those people quoted in the article, who were mentioning His Name, belonged to Him. They are the people of God, His chosen ones. In secular society it's called name dropping, the practice of referring to some important individual as though he were an intimate friend, when he really isn't, with the express purpose of impressing others or gaining credibility for a cause.

Another reference was to do with assuring the reader that if you joined one of these groups and got your thinking sorted out then the prosperity of God was yours and you would "never have a problem with money again." In fact, to compensate for the scanty references to the members of the Trinity, there are abundant references to prosperity, success and happiness which perfectly cater to our hedonistic and materialistic society. Doesn't this sound appropriate for the claim that "people will be lovers of their own selves and lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God."? If you listen to people long enough it soon becomes obvious who and what they love. People who show such fascination toward prosperity, success and happiness are usually people who also show a fair amount of fascination toward self. Unfortunately, we are talking about people who profess to be leaders in the Church of the living God, who also profess to have taken up their cross, on a daily basis, to follow Christ. But their words and their actions reveal they are lovers, more of pleasure and self, than they are of God. I find the Scriptures that foretell this currently prevailing condition absolutely amazing, and disturbingly, for the sake of these people, prophetically accurate.

Perhaps there is something wrong with me, but doesn't it seem extraordinary to you that an organization that so freely splashes around the word "Christian" would not even mention, in its advertising literature, the Almighty God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit or the Bible? [7] Quite amazingly, for Pentecostals, who almost claim exclusive ownership of Him, not even the Holy Spirit is mentioned! Further adding amazement to amazement, the Holy Word of God, the Bible, is not even given a moment's promotion. And they're professing to represent the Bible believing, Bible preaching, Christian Church, the Bride of Christ?

In Matthew 10:32-33, Jesus said,

"Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."

Mark 8:18 records also,

"Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

Does what I have described above, about these leaders of the "New Time Religion", suggest, to you who are reading this document, that perhaps they might be ashamed of Jesus and His Words? Give careful thought to my question and its serious implications for these people. In their promotional literature they have not confessed Jesus Christ nor the blessed Holy Spirit. They have not acknowledged God even. Why have they denied Him? Are they ashamed to mention their wonderful Saviour? If they are not, then I would like to challenge them that, before that day arrives when we all have to stand before the Lord and give account for ourselves, they had better come up with some very convincing reason why they have failed to mention all these things to the people who mostly need them.

What about the word "sin"? Not even mentioned! From what I read in my Bible, Jesus died because of sin, and the first time that people were called Christians was because they recognized this fact and accepted that they were lost and condemned and headed for eternal suffering and sorrow, if they didn't take some drastic action. What about "repent"? Not mentioned! Three of the Gospels emphatically declare that Jesus came to call sinners to repentance and acknowledge the truth about themselves. We, in turn, are commissioned, as were the disciples in Mark 6:12, to go out and preach that men should repent. According to Luke 13:3 & 5,

"...except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."

Can you imagine, for one moment, Jesus commissioning His disciples to go into all the world but telling them not to mention His Name, nor anything about the Bible or the Gospel? Could you imagine Jesus telling His disciples not to ever challenge the people with their sin or their need for repentance? Could you imagine Him telling them not to mention His redeeming sacrifice, His resurrection, His ascension and His promised return to judge the wicked? Somehow, these people propose to get the lost into the Kingdom by this strange, new method which fails to make mention of any of these things.

In stark contrast to the commands of Jesus recorded in Matthew 28:19-20 and Mark 16:15, which teach us His preferred evangelization method,

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." and "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."

we find that the modern day leaders of the church have found another way. Like the words of the song I once heard, "When the Lord said, 'This way to Heaven!', man found a better way to go."

As we will see below, there is a very real reason why words like "God", "Jesus", "Holy Spirit", "sin" "repent" and "the Cross" have been excluded from the vocabulary of ACC promotional literature. These words, in the context of Scripture, are an offense to the unbeliever and it would be folly to mention them if you are attempting to gather a following from among those who have rejected the truth about themselves. People who are only interested in getting what they can from life, to cater to their own self-love and their belief that everybody owes them something, have no pleasure in these offensive and threatening words.

It is a "Social Gospel" that this ACC alliance is promoting, friends. Their social band-aids may provide some temporal comfort for a time but what will it do for a person's eternal standing with God?

"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:36-37)

Australian Christian Care

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it." (Amos 8:11-12).

According to the article in Alive Magazine, "Australian Christian Churches also encompasses Australian Christian Care (ACCare), an alliance of welfare groups and services provided by ACC churches. ACCare will be one of the largest non-government community welfare groups in Australia, incorporating a number of high profile organizations including Teen Challenge, one of Australia's most successful drug rehabilitation programs."

Whose money are they going to use? Where is the finance for this scheme going to come from? Are we finally going to see the tithe brought into the storehouse so there will be meat for God's people rather than having it squandered upon extensions and renovations to the numerous grandiose "storehouses" that already exist throughout the land? Or will they perhaps depart from Scripture in this area as well by being unequally yoked together with unbelievers and qualify for government assistance?

However they intend to finance all these social welfare "ministries" is probably not as important as the question, "Has God called them to this exercise?" Are they really called to a social welfare program at the expense of the Gospel? The quick and simple answer to that question is "No! They have not." Paul wrote in Romans 1:16-17,

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."

The Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth, not welfare programs that are designed only to bring people into a Christian, or moralistic style of living rather than to real repentance and conversion to Christ. As faith without works is dead, so works without faith is but wood, hay and stubble.

Let The Good Times Roll

The article, "The New Believers", which appeared in The Bulletin Magazine would most likely be seen as a positive and glowing report by a great number of people from the Pentecostal stream of Christendom. It would be victoriously held up as a wonderful testimony to the secular portion of Australian society of the wonderful benefits of belonging to such a group. It would even be seen as an evangelistic tool that could encourage those lost souls who are remotely wondering about eternal things to at least make some form of inquiry about the reality of God. After all, despite my charges of certain "embarrassing" words not being mentioned, the writer does say that the article is about born-again Christians and religion. Support for my claim that the article would be received with great enthusiasm by many Christians could be substantiated by the fact that the edition of The Bulletin, which carried the article, was practically sold out at the news stands immediately upon its release. It was virtually impossible to obtain a copy on the entire eastern seaboard once it came off the press. No doubt, the Christians all ran out and bought a souvenir copy.

In my opinion, the article is a damning indictment against the AOG, the ACC and Pentecostalism in general. If what is portrayed in the article is supposed to be a valid representation of Christianity, then we might as well throw the Bible on the rubbish heap, as Scripture bears no resemblance to what is written up in the article. However, if we profess the Bible to be our authority on all things to do with faith and practice then the article is incriminating evidence that clearly reveals that the Pentecostal branch of Christendom has wandered far from the narrow path that has been trodden by true Christians down through the last 2000 years. As well, if the Word of God is to us everything we need to guide us in the matters of life and godliness then it is clearly obvious that the Pentecostal movement has somewhere failed to hearken to the voice of the Lord and have staggered away from the narrow "old path where is the good way" and are now well and truly upon the broad way that leads to destruction.

The article, "The New Believers", is mainly about the spectacular growth of the Australian Pentecostal churches, the amazing popularity and success of certain individuals within the movement, the potential political power of the movement, the availability of acceptance and friendship within the group and promises of financial prosperity, health, happiness, entertainment, social welfare and all things that cater to the true lover of self.

Reaching The Young

Diana Bagnall, the author of the article in The Bulletin, has rightly perceived that the "predominant style" of the AOG churches "is contemporary and prosperous. Hip even." The focus is upon catering to the younger age groups. "Pentecostal churchgoers are predominately young people ... 70% of attendees are aged 15-39" she claims.

What's wrong with targeting the younger groups? Nothing, providing it is to preach the Gospel to them, convict them of their sinful lifestyle and help them to show forth fruit of repentance. There wouldn't be anything wrong if the church was showing these people, from the Scriptures, how far short they come from the standard that God has set for us. Nothing at all would be wrong if the church was informing these young people that they are in a dangerous position, as far as their eternal destiny is concerned, if they don't make some serious changes to their belief system, conduct and general outlook on life. But this is not the case. They are invited to come into the Church and are told that God loves them just as they are. Of course, that He loves them is true, but He hates the things that they are involved in. God does not expect that they should remain just as they are once they have recognized the bankruptcy of their unregenerate condition and have come to the place of repentance, accepting His offer of Salvation and making Him Lord.

It is also seen as gross arrogance, pride, judgmentalism and legalism on the part of anyone who would suggest that perhaps these new members should change their lifestyle, their manner of dress or appearance, or that perhaps their vocabulary could be modified. We are not to instruct these new "converts" in any way for fear they will take offense and will never be seen crossing the threshold of the church door again. We are told that it's the Holy Spirit who will bring conviction in these areas of the young person's life, not other Christians.

As already mentioned previously it was Robert Schuller who made the statement that

"I don't think anything has been done in the name of Christ and under the banner of Christianity that has proven more destructive to human personality and, hence, counterproductive to the evangelism enterprise than the often crude, uncouth, and unchristian strategy of attempting to make people aware of their lost and sinful condition." (Christianity Today, October 5, 1984).

However, my Bible shows me that it was Christ Himself who said "...for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance..." (Matthew 9:13), and that we should go into all the world making disciples and teaching them to observe all the things that He has commanded us. (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16). Doesn't that count for anything?

But even worse than failing to heed Scripture by denying our responsibility to "make people aware of their lost and sinful condition", to give instruction and to make disciples of these young people, they are deliberately being charmed into the church by the very things that mature Christians should be warning them about and helping them to get out of. The church is actually using the abominations of their worldly culture to get them in. It is excused by being given a label entitled "Contemporary Christianity". We've got to reach them where they're at, is the current rationale. We've got to use the same things that they are already conditioned to by their culture, otherwise they just won't come.

Also previously mentioned, one of the most successful drawcards to attract the youth is music. Loud, beating, throbbing rock music. Our culture is now so much driven along by music that it seems you can't have any function or meeting without some form of music playing in the background - or the foreground in many cases. For some reason music is seen as a necessity of life. Even in the workplace, radios blaring forth the latest hits, with all their filthy and ungodly lyrics, must be played. In the shopping malls, rock music, with bass and percussion emphasised, constantly assault your ears. More and more motorcars, belonging to young owners, are being fitted with the latest and most powerful amplifiers and they literally pulsate along the road to the thumping vibrations of the bass guitar and drums. You can hear them coming for miles - even with their windows tightly wound up! It seems that there is nowhere we can go to escape the confusion of sound that invades our peace from all sides.

Fifty or sixty years of modern technology have conditioned society to accept these things as normal. But they aren't normal, friends. Neither is it normal to have such an attitude about your neighbours or work mates or the general public at large that you play your music at such a level that it annoys everyone within a two mile radius. Lovers of self! "Who cares about everyone else" is the prevailing opinion. " Whether they like my music or not, I'm going to play it anyway and to Hell with everyone else. And they better not complain or I will exercise my privilege to defend my rights."

Churches now compete with the world and each other to attract membership and they use the same methods as the world. Loud, contemporary music. Entertainment. Crazy as it may seem, I have recently read articles that report that, due to falling attendance rates, Anglican clergy are resorting to rock concerts in the great Gothic cathedrals in England in their attempts to attract young members. Not that I hold anything special for Gothic cathedrals that cost huge amounts of money that could have been better used for other purposes, but somehow the two just don't seem compatible. Trying to visualise what would be going on conjures up some rather humorous mental images, does it not?

Everyone has come to the same conclusion and have come up with the same ideas as to how to grow their churches and overcome falling attendance rates. Perhaps they have been attending the same Church Growth seminars. Everyone is on the same bandwagon playing the same tune, so it seems.

Going Where It's Happening

According to The Bulletin,

"The National Church Life Survey found that the overall growth in Pentecostal denominations was predominately due to "switchers", that is people who are joining from other denominations. The survey found nearly three times as many switchers joining the Pentecostal churches as there were newcomers without a church background."

According to the article, Phil Pringle of Christian City Churches is quoted as saying,

"People will go where it's happening for them."

What is it that is happening for them? Is the attraction the message that demands that we deny ourselves, our worldly passions, desires and aspirations and take up our cross to follow in the footsteps of Christ? Has our love for our neighbour magically taken on more importance than our love for ourselves? Have great numbers of people all of a sudden decided that a life lived in obedience to the Word of God is more attractive than having a "good time" flirting with the world? Of course, none of these things is true and the article explains for us what the attraction is. Quoting The Bulletin again, we read:

"Hills Christian Life Centre pushes through 7000 churchgoers on any one weekend. Like those who attend any of the big, new regional churches, they are likely to drive past 100 other churches on their way. The question is, why? We can talk, as Pringle does, about an "ache" for God, we can talk about seeking refuge from the confusion of modern life and about the eternal longing for meaning. And all these things go some way to explaining the filling up of the churches. But there are more temporal reasons, to do with charisma, seductive packaging, the power of positive thinking, professional standards and, possibly most importantly, the effective harnessing of youthful idealism and passion."

I am amazed at the perceptiveness of Diana Bagnall, the journalist from The Bulletin. Perhaps the Lord Jesus was thinking of someone just like her when He said,

"...the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light." (Luke 16:8).

Why don't we have a look at these five "temporal reasons" that Diana has proposed as an explanation for the great numbers of young people who are flooding into the Pentecostal churches.

1. Charisma

The leaders of "The New Time Religion" attend seminars and take courses that specifically teach them how to manipulate an assembly by presenting their messages in an appealing and entertaining way. The courses are usually conducted by so called "Christian" psychologists and communications experts. It's part of the Church Growth curriculum and a fundamental requirement if you want to join those already aboard the bandwagon on their way to fame and fortune. And if you don't have what it takes to present a message in an entertaining, "compelling" and "seductive" way, you just won't make the grade. I have actually seen pastors who, although they were gifted for teaching, were removed from the church preaching roster simply because they were considered as not flamboyant or entertaining enough. They didn't have the style. People don't want to be taught, they want to be entertained. This generation of "New Believers" is hooked on having its emotions constantly stimulated by professional showmen and actors.

However, Paul in chapters one and two of First Corinthians, defending his seeming deficiency in this area of charismatic distinction, said,

"I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power." (1 Corinthians 2:1-4)

In verses 17 and 18 of the previous chapter, Paul said,

"For Christ sent me ... to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God."

How long would Paul have lasted in the contemporary Pentecostal or Charismatic church practicing such a drab preaching style as these verses suggest he did?

In contrast to Paul, however, The Bulletin tells us that the core role of church leaders, such as Brian Houston and Phil Pringle,

"...is to spearhead the growth of their churches by presenting their deeply conservative religious message week after week in a compelling, high-energy, contemporary format."

Elsewhere in the article we are told that

"in the new churches, the power of the message is in its communication."

In other words, the power of the message is not in the content of the message, but rather, in the style of its presentation. The amount of truth or error contained in the message is irrelevant. It's the "compelling, high-energy, contemporary format", that is all important. That's what draws the crowd! They have paddled their canoe away from the safe and stable shore of objectivism out into the dangerous and stormy waters of subjectivism. That's one of the reasons why they can preach gross error and get away with it the way they do. That's why they can make such unbiblical comments the way they do and no one seems to bat an eyelid or blush. To these "New Believers" of the "New Time Religion", both leaders and "laity", right doctrine is not as critical as the style of communication.

However, my Bible tells me in Romans 1:16-17 that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes, despite the way in which it is presented, providing it is clearly heard and understood. Eloquence of speech and displays of charisma are not what convicts the sinner and brings him to the place of repentance. The Gospel is the power unto salvation "for therein is the righteousness of God revealed", we are told. The righteousness of God is not revealed by "compelling, high-energy, contemporary format" stage performances that cater to lovers of self who seek more after pleasure than they do after God. Nor is the righteousness of God revealed in entertaining messages that do more to tickle the itching ears of a self indulgent, contemporary society than leading them to a true relationship with Christ. The power and the righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel, which is the doctrine of Salvation in Christ, free from any adulteration in content and also free from any theatrical showmanship in presentation.

2. Seductive Packaging

The Bible tells us that in the last days men will be lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God. And the Church Growth gurus know how to exploit this condition to their utmost advantage. They know how to package the 'gospel' message to capitalize on the universal condition of fallen mankind.

One of the things that continually amazes me is how professing Christians will try all the tricks in the book in their attempts to make God more acceptable to the people they are desperately trying to convert. God has to be made acceptable to the unbeliever so that they will gladly welcome Him into their lives. Perhaps they will emphasise that God is in the healing business or the prospering business or, if they have been caught doing something exceptionally wicked, in the unconditional forgiving business or some other such thing that will effectively seduce their victim to make that momentous decision to accompany them to their church on the next Sunday and make the trip to the altar.

If, however, in their efforts to entice or seduce the unbeliever into the church, they move over into the area of promoting God in such a way as to make Him more acceptable to man, then they have moved away from the real message of the Bible. Nowhere in Scripture will you find that God has to be made acceptable to man. God doesn't need to be gift wrapped in attractive paper, in fact it is detrimental to the message of Salvation if He is. As with the over-emphasis upon God's love that we discussed earlier, the signpost has been changed here as well. It is man who must be made acceptable to God, and that can only be achieved by man believing what God has to say about his fallen, depraved condition, and coming under His merciful plan for redemption which is only available through the shed blood of Christ. The Gospel is not about what God might, or might not do for anyone who takes Him up on what the evangelist says He has to offer, but, rather, about what God has already done for us in Christ Jesus upon the Cross of Calvary. And the terms and conditions are His, not ours!

Seeker Sensitive Services

These "new believers" are being enticed by a message that presents God as a good old buddy who doesn't mind joining in with a bit of drunken tomfoolery at Joel's Bar, or perhaps a bit of "moshing" or "head banging" up front at the altar in accompaniment to the rock band, complete with the stage smoke, lighting effects and all the glitter and razzmatazz you would normally find at a worldly night club. That's what the "new believers" like and that's what the leaders of the "New Time Religion" give them.

This is one of the principles of growing a big, successful church. Find out what the community wants and then serve it up to them. Let the unsaved determine the benchmark and then set the standards to their requirements.

That is exactly what Bill Hybels of Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago believed God had called him to do. (Should I mention that Hybels was a distinguished guest at the launch of ACC in Sydney? What a coincidence.) He took survey teams out into the highways and byways of Chicago and asked the non-believers why they didn't attend a church. According to Hybels, the survey revealed that people didn't like being bugged for money, they thought church services were boring, predictable, and routine, they didn't think the church was relevant to their lives, and they complained that they always left church feeling guilty due to negative messages about sin, etc. Hybels found a solution to these problems by tailoring his church services to suit what the unbelievers said they wanted a church to be like.

Hybels and his leadership team put a lot of time and effort into finding what the unbelieving, non-churched people thought they would like if they did attend a Sunday church service. When they finally collated all of the information that the survey teams had collected the results showed that the people would prefer to have anonymity, they would want the truth of the Bible presented at an introductory level, they would like time to 'make a decision' and they would expect excellence in programming (i.e. creativity, humor, contemporary music, etc.).

Because Hybels has tapped into providing what the people said they wanted, his church, Willow Creek Community Church, has enjoyed phenomenal growth and vast crowds now attend his Saturday evening and Sunday morning "seeker services" to be entertained by the contemporary music, multimedia displays, dramatic sketches, and messages that are specifically geared not to offend the non-believers who are simply "investigating Christianity."

Now, because of his astounding success at making the non-believers feel welcome, unthreatened, and entertained in church, a great company of church leaders from around the world are seeking to learn and implement Bill Hybels' church growth strategies which he promotes via conferences and the multitude of resources that he now markets.

Can you see what Bill Hybels did? He heard the bandwagon approaching, quickly learned the words and the tune and jumped aboard. And now, large groups of church leaders are scrambling to learn the tune and climb aboard and join him.

Unfortunately for Christendom, and for those who are being lured into it, by way of what is nothing more than another gospel, there are other big wheels and cogs within the system who are also using the same strategy as Bill Hybels. His strategy is simply to find out what the people want and give it to them. If you can supply what they want, that is, meet their felt needs, while at the same time appealing to their sense of religiosity, they will pay for it. They will willingly allow you to exploit them.

This quote from the promotional material of Dr. Tony Evans of "Urban Alternative Network" (a national network and coalition for Christian leaders who are committed to bringing about change in their community through a biblical moral standard) illustrates the point. He says,

"Community Assessments help you to appraise the unique need of your community so that the church can be more effective in addressing them. The assessment examines such areas as demographics, environment, history, strengths and weaknesses, and problems in the community. It also looks at the existing systems and efforts in the community which may already be at work. This could provide opportunities for partnership and prevent the duplication of efforts and resources."

It seems to me that the leadership of Willow Creek Community Church, Urban Alternative Network and the leadership of ACC have been attending the same choir practices. They are all singing the same new song. At least Bill Hybels and C. Peter Wagner turned up for practice at the launch of ACC. No doubt, as experts in the field, they were specially invited to give a few tips about luring people to church.

"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them." (Acts 20:29-30)

3. The Power of Positive Thinking

An integral component of the Church Growth agenda has been the promotion of positive thinking. A positive mental attitude about all things is the "be all and end all" of a successful and victorious "christian" walk.

The great sin of our age, so we are told, is to entertain negative thoughts about ourselves and others. To grow a successful and flourishing assembly and to live a successful Christian life, negativity must be banished in all its forms.

Attempting to point out that the Word of God contains much that would be considered negative to both the evangelist and the evangelized, falls upon deaf ears and earns the promoter of such truths nothing less than scornful derision.

Negativity is seen as a poison, which, unfortunately for many genuine seekers after truth, attracts much more attention and effort at eradication than the very real poison that is permeating throughout Christendom in these last and perilous days, which is that of false teaching, the promotion of a gospel that has lost its offense, that has been watered down and made so attractive that the sinner is captivated by it rather than convicted by it. The message of the Gospel has become anemic and effeminate to the point that it practically neglects to expose the dilemma of the human condition in any convincing way and virtually ignores the judgement to follow. There is no awareness of impending peril or a need to "flee from the wrath to come." These are perceived as negatives and need to be avoided in any message aimed at gaining converts and growing a successful church.

Is it any wonder that the AOG and other Pentecostal and Charismatic denominations, not only in Australia, but throughout the world, are experiencing phenomenal growth? Their message of Salvation ruffles no feathers.

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables" (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

The Biblical answer to this predicament is to do as God has commanded us in His Word. In 2 Timothy 4:2 we are shown the way.

"Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine."

However, an all out assault has been conducted by church leaders and teachers against a doctrine which reproves (which means to expose or point out someone's fault) or rebukes those who would have ears to hear it. Such a hard message would severely jeopardize membership. This is not the tune being played on the bandwagon. Negativity must be purged from the thinking and vocabulary of the "new believers" and be replaced by motivational preaching and teaching on positivity, personal success and self esteem.

There is perhaps nothing that could be more pleasing and soothing to the soul of an unconverted "lover of self" than the thought that he really is worth something and that he really is highly important in the scheme of things. Just tell the person something good about himself, whether it be true or otherwise, and you will soon have him lapping out of your hands. Unscrupulous church leaders are well aware of this condition of pride, particularly in immature Christians and they exploit it to the fullest.

There is nothing more alluring to the "lover of self" than a message that promotes that if you have enough faith in something, if you think positively enough about something God will be pleased, or even obliged to bring it to pass. This has been the message of the "church growth" gurus for as long as I have been a Christian.

A Corrupt Tree Bringeth Forth Evil Fruit

I guess there would have been a certain amount of this type of thing in the early church, because, as we know, there is nothing new under the Sun, but probably the greatest promoters of the "Power of Positive Thinking" in our generation has come from two distinct but closely related groups which are those lead by (1) Norman Vincent Peale whose life and ministry were enormously impacted by such cults as Science of Mind, the Unity School of Christianity, Christian Science, and New Thought metaphysics, and Robert Schuller, promoter of "Positive/Possibility Thinking" and "Positive Mental Attitude", and (2) Kenneth Hagin and Kenneth Copeland, promoters of "Positive Confession" and the "Word of Faith" teachings, which have their roots in E.W. Kenyon, William Branham, and the Manifest Sons of God/Latter Rain teachings.

It has been normal, in my experience, when visiting pastor's offices, to see row upon row of books upon their bookshelves which major on possibility thinking, positive mental attitude, self esteem, prosperity, visualisation techniques or other such self promoting subjects. Obvious, and in full view upon their bookshelves for anyone interested in who or what influence the teachings of these pastors, are books by Robert Schuller, Norman Vincent Peale, E.W. Kenyon and more recently people like Rick Joiner, John Arnott, John Killpatrick, Rodney Howard-Browne, and a host of "Word of Faith" teachers and writers.

It was quite distressing for me, during my early enthusiasm and zeal to become a preacher of the Word of God, to discover the roots of some of the teachings that I was expected to learn and apply in my life if I was anticipating fulfilling my aspirations. It was also distressing to know who was influencing the preaching that came from the lips of the pastor during a Sunday church service. As previously mentioned, I experienced difficulty reconciling the teachings and principles promoted by Robert Schuller and Yonggi Cho during my course on Church Growth, and I was disappointed, to say the least, when I fully understood where these men were coming from theologically.

I discovered that Robert Schuller gained his understanding from Norman Vincent Peale who, besides being profoundly influenced by the occult, was a 33rd degree Mason. Possibly unbeknown to Diana Bagnall, the reporter from the Australian Bulletin Magazine, when she used the term "the power of positive thinking", she was actually quoting the title of Norman Vincent Peale's most popular book, "The Power of Positive Thinking", which was written in 1952 and which has sold more than 20 million copies in 41 languages. It was the model for a flood of self-help books that followed.

On Robert Schuller's 1000th Anniversary television show (The Hour of Power, aired on 4/2/89), Schuller's son said of Peale that he was "responsible for dad's possibility thinking." Robert Schuller teaches that there is no need for one to recognize his own personal sin, no need for repentance, and no need for the crucifixion of self. Concerning the crucified life, Schuller teaches just the opposite to Scripture - that self is to be exalted. This is nothing less than an outright denial of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Schuller once wrote,

"Jesus knew His worth; His success fed His self-esteem. He suffered the cross to sanctify His self-esteem and He bore the cross to sanctify your self-esteem. The cross will sanctify the ego trip." (Self-Esteem: The New Reformation).

However, in Matthew 16:24-25 Jesus tells us in His own words,

"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."

The Word of Faith teachers, such as Kenneth Copeland and Kenneth Hagin promote a message that says that faith is a force that can be harnessed providing you put into practice the right formulas. God is not sovereign and He can be manipulated and is obliged by His own laws to perform for anyone who gets the recipe right.

After twenty or thirty years of being conditioned by positivity and self esteem as well as "faith in faith" theology and a host of other erroneous teachings, the church ends up preaching the same New Age, self-serving message as secular society. The power of positive thinking appeals to the "New Believers". But it is ripe fruit upon a tree that has its roots embedded in the fertile soil of gross error, evil fruit that is being plucked and devoured by the leaders of the "New Time Religion" who, in turn, have served it up on a platter to the unsuspecting "New Believers". But as Matthew 7:19 warns,

"Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire."

4. Professional Standards.

Quoting again from The Bulletin article (April 11, 2000) by Diana Bagnall, we read,

"The purpose-built auditoriums are cathedrals of modern entertainment with all the technological wizardry. Christian City Church at Oxford Falls is in the process of redesigning its web site to give live online access to church services. But even in more modest locations, church services are conceived of as multimedia events - display windows for marketing Christianity - rather than as liturgical set pieces to mark a religious calendar. There's none of that intimidating business of knowing when to stand and when to kneel, and which page of the order of service or which number hymn to turn to. "Culturally relevant" is the buzz phrase used to describe the approach. Instead of priests and altar boys, the focus of attention is a rock band, usually several musicians and singers who pump out music with the catchy rhythms and romantic tug of good pop. The words are simple, and projected on big screens."

"In fact, the services are not unlike Saturday night variety TV - seemingly effortless, but planned down to the last minute. At Edwards' Assembly of God church in Ipswich, each service (and, typically, there are several each Sunday, designed for different congregations) is planned six months in advance by a salaried creative arts director who leads a team of about nine people and draws on a bigger pool of about 70 musicians, singers, sound, lighting and drama people. Edwards explains: "You go to a Barbra Streisand concert and you expect a certain standard of that concert. Why should people who come to our church expect any less?""

Speaking of Brian Houston and Phil Pringle, Diana Bagnall added,

"Masters of communications technologies, they draw around them sophisticated teams to produce web sites and videos, music recordings and television programs for broadcast on both free-to-air and pay TV."

Professional standards! No expense is spared in the struggle to compete against the world in attracting new clientele. Worldly standards are being employed by these pastors of the "New Time Religion" in their efforts to outdo the worldly entertainment industry in enticing worldly, self-loving young people into the churches. All, supposedly, in the name of Jesus!

Diana Bagnall claims that

"...'Culturally relevant' is the buzz phrase used to describe the approach"

for attracting new members and keeping those already in the fold. She correctly perce