I posted this at Mike Bratton's Report:
Mike, There are godless and silly man made traditions to be refused. I Tim 4:7-10
The Bible is absolutely faithful and cannot be scrutinized, though men have tried but without success.Our acceptation, hermeneutics, is not faithful, and so is always open to scrutiny. Even under the Holy Spirit's inspiration those who prophecy are especially open to scrutiny. When the preacher exegetes the Word from the pulpit he is particularly in need of ruthless scrutiny by the hearers.
When Adrian Rogers led the SBC in a Conservative Resurgence it was a futile attempt to shore up the infallible Word of God. IMO It was a red herring for SBC emergent evangelism that has not produced large movements of new converts but mega-Churches for Church hoppers to migrate to without any significant growth to Christianity in America. This has resulted in small struggling Churches competing with "successful" big Churches.
This in the long run is a money-making scheme for a hierarchal few and a big boost for Christian marketing firms. It has produced an even bigger growth of Para-Church organization that drain the small Churches of revenue.
We have posted a sign to the Holy Spirit "We don't need you" I fault much of this mess in America to Adrian Rogers, though he is not alone in it.
This is not an attack of his character but his theology. Yet our theology does affect our behavior and if anything can be said of AR's behavior is that he had to know that his personality was in the way of whatever the Holy Spirit wanted to do in individual hearts in ways he had no control over.
I personally witnessed one small event 5 or 6 years ago when he silenced an exuberant woman's applause because he had to make his point in his message about how a mega-Church like Bellevue can be even bigger. Ordinarily this would be an insignificant event that could be excused so easily in AR's favor. But as Tim has said this a feeling that God has ordained me to continually harp about until someone takes me serious.
I believe with all my heart that the theological issue of Adrian Rogers' attacks of Reformed Theology is at the root of this mess. The final analysis is that anything that falls short of Reformed Theology opens the door to self-determination and closes the door to the same degree to the Holy Spirit. As a result the door as demonstrated by both sides of the Bellevue mess is nearly shut completely.
Mike let others, though your mind is made up, listen to James White's scrutiny of AR's theology.If they want to hear it bad enough it will cost them $3.00 to download but worth hearing. Dr White does not attack AR's character rather his
theology. http://www.aomin.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=25_29
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Q. Did God, then, create man so wicked and perverse?
A. No, on the contrary, God created man good[1] and in His image,[2] that is, in true righteousness and holiness,[3] so that he might rightly know God His Creator,[4] heartily love Him, and live with Him in eternal blessedness to praise and glorify Him.[5]
[1] Gen. 1:31. [2] Gen. 1:26, 27. [3] Eph. 4:24. [4] Col. 3:10. [5] Ps. 8.
Q. From where, then, did man's depraved nature come?
A. From the fall and disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve, in Paradise,[1] for there our nature became so corrupt[2] that we are all conceived and born in sin.[3]
[1] Gen. 3. [2] Rom. 5:12, 18, 19. [3] Ps. 51:5.
Q. But are we so corrupt that we are totally unable to do any good and inclined to all evil?
A. Yes,[1] unless we are regenerated by the Spirit of God.[2]
[1] Gen. 6:5; 8:21; Job 14:4; Is. 53:6. [2] John 3:3-5.
Q. Is God, then, not unjust by requiring in His law what man cannot do?
A. No, for God so created man that he was able to do it.[1] But man, at the instigation of the devil,[2] in deliberate disobedience[3] robbed himself and all his descendants of these gifts.[4]
[1] Gen. 1:31. [2] Gen. 3:13; John 8:44; I Tim. 2:13, 14. [3] Gen. 3:6. [4] Rom. 5:12, 18, 19.
Q. Will God allow such disobedience and apostasy to go unpunished?
A. Certainly not. He is terribly displeased with our original sin as well as our actual sins. Therefore He will punish them by a just judgment both now and eternally,[1] as He has declared:[2] Cursed be every one who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, and do them (Galatians 3:10).
[1] Ex. 34:7; Ps. 5:4-6; 7:10; Nah. 1:2; Rom. 1:18; 5:12; Eph. 5:6; Heb. 9:27. [2] Deut. 27:26
Mike, did AR ever diligently study Reformed Theology? Did he ever read the Heidleberg confession? If he did why didn't he understand it?
In Predestined for Hell! Absolutely Not! (P.16) He mistakenly says about Reformed views that God takes a little baby and says, "I'm going to harden your heart and then I am going to cast you into hell."
Now Mike listen to me, "do you think that is true?" Does anyone out there think that?
Since I enjoy seeing how far I can walk on thin ice let me postulate an opinion. Ray Saba is a small fish in a big pond.
AR ran a large Church by laissez-faire leadership, absenting himself from daily burdens. He was free to devote himself to outside interest all the while appearing to the average attender as being personally involved at every level.
Deep pocket CEO types maintained committee leadership and as posted by a lady on this forum, these men are "mean businessmen" bent on control. They influenced the associates who ran daily tasks in AR's absence.
Unbeknownst to AR these men either on the pulpit search committee or influencial to the search laid down a law that after AR there must be a change in the college and career and music fields if Bellevue was to continue on a "buisness" success track.
Steve Gaines could never assume to singlehandedly take Bellevue and change the college, youth and music ministries drastically. He had to be told that the people on the search committee loved AR but things had to change as soon as possible. JW and RM would have to go and SG was told that this would have to happen. IN my opinion JP is the real draw here and not SG. SG's health is a factor.
Whereas these businessmen did not have any control over AR, they didn't have to. They have control over SG and that is what they want. They have an autocratic leader (in appearance) and his sickness keeps him alienated from the people's inquisitions.
DC, a CEO type, is their front man.
He is an ordained Executive officer!
The big hang-up is the unknown factor of a pedophile who served as an associate and a loose bolt fell into the operational gears.
This hang-up is the hand of God's judgement.
Ray Saba is just a small fish in a big pond as are the rest of us but God is sovereign and not to be trifled with!
Charles
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