The Ringing Call of New Evangelicalism Repeated in the New Calvinism

Converge Worldwide plants two churches a week in America. Over 80% of these church become healthy conservative evangelical churches.

I’m not trying to interrupt or derail your dialog with the author of the article, but I am wondering how you arrived at that percentage.

Brenda,

I have had several meetings with some of their church planting directors.

Your response and the discussion you’ve had with the author of the article linked to in the OP prompted me to go to the Converge website in hopes of finding the data behind what you are saying. The first thing I noticed on their website was their latest news item stating that a church growth secret is free cheese curds. Sounds yummy. Anyway, I couldn’t find how they arrived at the 80% figure or how they define a “healthy” church. Obviously it doesn’t mean physically healthy or else the cheese curds would be a big no-no : )

But I digress. Maybe I just missed what I was looking for. At any rate, I did find their page of past resolutions. I see that in June 2000, they passed the following resolution:

Be it resolved that we, the delegates of the Baptist General Conference (who are also the delegates of Bethel College and Seminary)* affirm that God’s knowledge of all past, present and future events is exhaustive; and, we also believe that the “openness” view of God’s foreknowledge is contrary to our fellowship’s historic understanding of God’s omniscience.

And at that same meeting they also passed a resolution affirming a position statement made by Bethel regarding open theism and Greg Boyd. It stated in part:

We affirm the unanimous vote of the Committee for Theological Clarification and Assessment occurring on May 13, 1998, that Dr. Boyd’s views did not warrant his termination as a member of the Bethel College faculty and by inference that his views fall within the accepted bounds of the evangelical spectrum; … .
We insist that any faculty member who may hold the Open View of God must in good faith refer to this view as marginal to the mainstream thought of the BGC whenever this view is presented in formal or informal teaching contexts. Further, when we examine this view in the classrooms of our school, it must be done alongside presentation of the classical Calvinistic, Arminian, and other evangelical viewpoints, inviting fairness in teaching even if it requires guest presenters for credible representations of all views… Further, we reaffirm Dr. Greg Boyd as a valued colleague within the Bethel Christian liberal arts community who enthusiastically embraces the BGC Affirmation of Faith, serves as a pastor in good standing in a BGC church and reflects an uncompromising commitment to bibliocentric and christocentric theology

[Joel Shaffer]

You said that there is a logical fallacy of guilt by association. Well, many times one is guilty by association. Accomplices to a crime are often convicted by their associations.

Or guilt by association can become an occasion for the sin of slander. Again, you offer no proof that Doug Pagitt and Leith Anderson have a relationship between their churches right now.

Come now, Joel, in my article I only stated a fact that Anderson was Pagitt’s pastor. I drew no conclusion from that. I just stated it. I never said or tried to prove that Anderson or Pagitt have a relationship now. I don’t know what their relationship is and never said I did.

According to this article, it sounds like a real loving send off for Greg Boyd from Bethel U. Boyd states:

“Once I entertained the possibility that I was supposed to leave Bethel, it became clear to me that God had been moving in this direction for about a year, and I had been trying to ignore it.”

Further, the article says: Things were much quieter… “due, no doubt, to the absence of much-loved professor of biblical and theological studies Greg Boyd. After 16 years in the classroom, he is devoting himself to ministry through the 5,000-member Woodland Hills Church he helped found in the early ’90s. In recent years his preaching and evangelistic ministry has burgeoned, becoming international in scope.”

Much loved was Boyd when he left. And he left by his own decision because of his INTERNATIONAL ministry of a LEADING church in the region that was and has remained IN Converge Worldwide. Sounds to me that when he left they were most happy to claim him as one of theirs and they were proud of his large ministry. Unless someone is lying, and I would not accuse anyone of that.

http://www.bethel.edu/publications-archive/focus/past-issues/fall-2002/boyd

The bottom line as well is Boyd is still listed as a member of Converge. Brenda, I missed the Scripture where cheese curds was a secret for church growth. A secret of much of the church growth today, whether in churches like Hillsong or some of the New Calvinism, of which Mark Driscoll was a model for many years, is worldly rock music. I have not found a Scripture for that either.

And Joel, I am not prepared to get into a full blown discussion of the present condition of the Emergent church. It has been a very difficult movement to pinpoint, and that from the start. That it is emergent meant it was ever changing, so what it was is not what it is as it changed.

World Magazine did pronounce the death of the Emergent church: http://www.worldmag.com/2010/04/farewell_emerging_church_1989_2010

Lighthouse Trails quotes John MacArthur when he well said the Emergent church is in “disarray and decline” but this article goes on to speak about the key principles of the emerging are alive and well in many evangelical and New Calvinistic churches, primarily, complemplative mysticism. You probably will not like or agree with this, but this article states:

“But perhaps he (MacArthur) does not realize that there is a huge portion of Calvinism that is now beginning to embrace contemplative mysticism. Some call it the New Calvinism, but we call it just another form of the emerging church. It isn’t a name that makes the emerging church emerging – it’s the ‘ingredients.’”

http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/?p=7167. I recommend you read FAITH UNDONE by Roger Oakland.

In NYC these ingredients and fruit of the emergent church and in the acceptance of Roman Catholic mysticism, is in many ministries. The worldliness, liberalism and compromise of the emergent church is not dead. It is abounding. I believe that a church like Journey Church although it is SBC, for instance, has elements of the emerging church in it. Worldly and watered down it gladly embraces Hollywood culture for instance. They don’t give out cheese curds. They give out movie tickets. Or what about Hillsong? I believe it is officially Assembly of God from Australia, but it is very much its own movement as it one long rolling rock concert all day. The egalitarian, continuationist Hillsong NYC pastor, for example, embraces Joel Osteen (who speaks at their conferences) and refuses to take a stand against same sex marriage. Call it what you want, but the elements of the emerging church still have a major influence on evangelical Christianity. Come to think of it, Converge Worldwide from the change of its name, sounds like it is emerging into something from what it was when called by that boring Baptist name.

Forty years ago the big issue fundamentalists had with NE’s was that NE’s were for having dialog and seeking common ground with apostates, theological liberals, and Roman Catholics. I can’t see where CE’s and/or new-Calvinists are seeking to form such alliances.

Are some of the CE’s and NC’s in denominations with doctrinal problems? Yes. it seems that a lot of them are fighting battles similar to what T.T. Shields and Spurgeon did for years within bad denominations. They even succeeded in the SBC.

Do some of them make unwise decisions? Haven’t we all? Even the former leader of the FBF made the mistake of associating with an unacceptable group like Focus on the Family.

When even John MacArthur is suspect, there’s little hope for the rest.

BTW, I went through the resolutions of the FBFI and it gave me a better view of their identity. I think that no one but the FBFI knew about them. You’ve got to find a way to let outsiders know who you are and what you’re doing.

MRecker,

When I spoke to the Michigan Converge Director, who then called one of the Vice Presidents of Converge Worldwide, they stated that Boyd had been fired. Bethel was just trying to be political. One of the things that has happened since Boyd’s isolation in Converge is that the conference has become more conservative. This is due in part that its church planters come from schools such as Baptist Bible College and Seminary, Grand Rapids Theological Seminary (GRTS), Moody Bible Institute, Cedarville, Trinity Evangelical Seminary, but not too many from Bethel. Also, Piper’s influence with Converge is huge, which has also led to its more conservative leanings. I graduated from GRTS, therefore I know a good number of my colleagues are now either church planting or Pastoring Converge Churches. Things have changed since Boyd was let go, in that Converge has not gone down the path of emergent or post modernism, but rather has become more theologically conservative.

Alot has happened even since Boyd became pastor of Woodland. It has lost about 2,000 of its members. Your article does not come from Converge, but from Bethel. Your article is 12 years old, therefore not relevant to whether Boyd is currently a leader and influencer within Converge. The fact remains that Boyd has been censored and isolated by Converge since that article came out.

MRecker,

As for Converge, they changed their name so they could enter into countries and areas where the name Baptist is taboo. Also, so that you do not get the idea that church planting in Converge is about cheese curds, here is what the Midwest region within Converge Worldwide is doing when it comes to church planting.

https://www.convergemidamerica.org/church-planting/why-converge-midamerica

[Joel Shaffer]

MRecker,

Bethel was just trying to be political.

You mean lying to be political? I am not impressed. Thanks for the clarification.

[Ron Bean]

BTW, I went through the resolutions of the FBFI and it gave me a better view of their identity. I think that no one but the FBFI knew about them. You’ve got to find a way to let outsiders know who you are and what you’re doing.

Thanks, Ron. I am glad you took a few minutes to look them over. I find the resolutions consistent, courageous, balanced, and yet contending for the faith. Some are far reaching in their insight. For instance, there is a resolution in there regarding Institute of Basic Youth Conflict. Seemed insightful. By the way, the FBFI has a tremendous ministry of endorsing some godly and courageous chaplains.

MRecker,

My church where I am an elder is a member of TGC, which is often linked to the New Calvinists. I know scores of pastors and churches that are TGC within the Midwest and yet I have not met a single one that remotely resembles the article about “Faith Undone” from Lighthouse trails.

I am not impressed with Bethel either…….

[Joel Shaffer]

MRecker,

My church where I am an elder is a member of TGC, which is often linked to the New Calvinists. I know scores of pastors and churches that are TGC within the Midwest and yet I have not met a single one that remotely resembles the article about “Faith Undone” from Lighthouse trails.

Thanks for that, Joel, and for that, I am glad. I know there are many sincere to proclaim the Gospel in TGC. The creeping error of contemplative mysticism is being promoted sometimes subtly and sometimes not. Tim Keller actually is quite a promoter of it, so keep your eyes open as he is a leader in TGC.

http://www.newcalvinist.com/kellers-affinity-with-rome/kellers-mysticis…

Have a great Lord’s day tomorrow. Let’s give our Great Savior the Praise of which He is worthy.

[mrecker]

Joel Shaffer wrote:

MRecker,

My church where I am an elder is a member of TGC, which is often linked to the New Calvinists. I know scores of pastors and churches that are TGC within the Midwest and yet I have not met a single one that remotely resembles the article about “Faith Undone” from Lighthouse trails.

Thanks for that, Joel, and for that, I am glad. I know there are many who sincerely proclaim the Gospel in TGC. The creeping error of contemplative mysticism is being promoted sometimes subtly and sometimes not. Tim Keller actually is quite a promoter of it, so keep your eyes open as he is a leader in TGC.

http://www.newcalvinist.com/kellers-affinity-with-rome/kellers-mysticism/

Have a great Lord’s day tomorrow. Let’s give our Great Savior the Praise of which He is worthy.