Reasons Not to Support New Calvinism – Sparking Conversation. On April 2. 1, 2. Westminster Theological Seminary, Jeffrey K. Jue, wrote of his experience at this year’s Together for the Gospel 2. W hen I was a kid and even into my young adult years, evangelism was a pretty big deal in the circles I traveled. In fact, I can remember going door-to-door taking. J OHN M AC A RTHUR. M AINSTREAMING P AGANISM I N T HE C HURCH. PART 6. JOHN MACARTHUR: FREEMASON. In a 1979 Grace To You Interview, John MacArthur boasted that his. ![]() TGC1. 6) conference. Jue stated that he participated in the Westminster faculty panel at the conference and that he made a similar appearance at The Gospel Coalition 2. National Conference (TGC1. In reflecting on his experience,[1] Jue stated that he felt so encouraged by his experience that he felt it important to put together “5 Reasons why the New Calvinism is Worth Supporting”. After reading the article myself, several counterpoints came to mind.
As I considered how best to put together my response, it occurred to me that Jue had already provided a quite helpful framework. As such, I will rework his original five points, adding my own thoughts. Formatting Notes: To save space, I will provide a list of important links outlining the leadership of various New Calvinist organizations in the footnotes. I will be referencing these organizations, and the men associated with them, quite often and it is simply untenable to hyperlink every reference. All figures mentioned have ties (directly or indirectly) to the TGC1. T4. G2. 01. 6 conferences which Jue directly referenced.[2]For each public figure mentioned, a brief footnote will be added with pertinent biographical information. Only one note per figure will appear. If you wish to see how the tangled web of New Calvinist leadership works, these footnotes will prove helpful in seeing how all of these persons are directly interconnected. Also, at the end of this piece, I provide a list of speakers at the CBMW1. T4. G1. 6 conferences, any figures not appearing in the footnotes will have a short biography featured in this list. With preliminary matters out of the way, I offer the following: 5 Reasons Why the New Calvinism is Not Worth Supportinghttps: //wonderingeagle. It focuses on pastors by continuing to empower men who have otherwise disqualified themselves from ministry. New Calvinist movement is certainly known for focusing strongly on the authority and privilege of pastors above all else. Specifically, New Calvinism is known for its corrupt hierarchy and abusive personalities. ![]() ![]() Consider the following examples: 1. Mark Driscoll’s leadership was so toxic an entire network of churches closed due to his pride. He is well- known for being beligerent, misogynistic, and spiritually abusive. He has called women “penis homes” and stay- at- home fathers “worse than unbelievers.” It was these actions, and so many more, which led Darrin Patrick[3] and the rest of Acts 2. Driscoll as the organization’s president and revoke the Mars Hill church network’s membership in the organization. Driscoll has also been accused of numerous financial indiscretions with church funds. Despite the fact that all of these serial offenses eventually resulted in Driscoll resigning from The Gospel Coalition (TGC) council, John Piper[4] called the fall of Driscoll’s ministry a bad thing, even a Satanic victory. Piper claims Driscoll has a flawed personality, but overall he gets the Gospel right. Further, many leaders and institutions – including Josh Mc. Dowell, Les and Leslie Parrott, Phoenix Seminary[5], and Josh Mc. Pherson[6] – have welcomed Driscoll’s new church, The Trinity Church of Phoenix, Arizona, with open arms. Matt Chandler’s[7] leadership team was so ill- trained that they chose to place Karen Hinkley under church discipline for annulling her marriage to a confessed pedophile and child pornography addict. Further, leadership communicated demonstrably false information to church members regarding Hinkley. Finally, when the church did confess it’s sin of abusing Hinkley, the pastoral staff – including Chandler – faced no church discipline themselves for engaging in such gross abuse of ecclesial authority. Neither was Chandler removed from any position of leadership in any other organization in which he serves. Ken Ramey – student of John Mac. Arthur[8] and senior pastor of Lakeside Bible Church – placed a mother and her special needs son under church discipline for reporting rape. The son, who was 1. Ramey and staff instructed the mother not to call police but instead to submit to a church mediated reconciliation process. Ramey even went so far as to call the rapist a “perpetrator” in a letter he wrote to the LBC congregation, using scare quotes to delegitimize the story of the mother and her son. Despite his abusive actions, Ramey has seen no disciplinary action from LBC’s elder board. Likewise, there has been no outrage from any New Calvinist organization with which Ramey has been associated. Instead, as the former Youth Pastor at Grace Community Church (GCC), Ramey’s teaching and preaching are featured proudly on Grace Community Church’s site and GCC senior pastor John Mac. Arthur has promoted his book, Expository Listening. Further Ramey’s book is endorsed by Tim Challies[9], 9 Marks[1. Thabiti Anyabwile[1. RC Sproul, Jr., along with three other pastors of St. Peter’s Presbyterian Church, was defrocked by his denomination, the Reformed Church Presbyterian General Assembly (RCPGA), in January, 2. In addition, despite his claim of repentance, Sproul, Jr. RCPGA. Thus, in order to prevent further trial from his presbytery, Sproul, Jr. RCPGA. RPCGA Judgment (PDF)Repentance Letter (PDF)To Deposed Session (PDF)Upon being granted release, Sproul, Jr. St. Peter’s then petitioned the Confederate of Reformed Evangelical Churches – now the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC) – a denomination founded by Doug Wilson[1. Randy Booth[1. 3] – to accept the church under their authority. By May of 2. The CREC had decided to take Sproul, Jr.’s church under their authority. They also had the audacity to ask the RCPGA and ten other Reformed Elders for their support even as they moved to restore Sproul, Jr’s ordination within the CREC without any due process – all of this despite the fact that the RCPGA had unequivocally stated that he was unfit for any form of church leadership. CREC_to_Reformed_Men (PDF)CREC_Commission_report (PDF)Further disturbing, despite these clear violations of pastoral office and defrocking, Ligonier ministries[1. Sproul, Jr. to serve as a teaching fellow.[1. Also, he serves Ligonier as a popular public speaker, a position for which he “travels extensively as a conference speaker to teach pastors and laypeople around the world on subjects including the family, Christian education, theology, and pastoral ministry.”Also, in 2. RBC (where his father, unsurprisingly, served as president at the time and now serves as chancellor) appointed Sproul, Jr. Theology and chair of the department of Philosophy and Theology – an interesting move given the accusations of heresy. Also of interest is that, in 2. Sproul, Jr. moved his ordination to the Covenant Presbyterian Church denomination, where he is permitted to teach the heretical view he had been previously defrocked for, paedocommunion. As part of CPC, Jr. Heritage Church of Centerville, Tennessee. He also planted Ascension Presbyterian Church in Apopka, Florida, where he continues to serve as Senior Pastor, in 2. All of this proves more interesting because, in August of 2. Sproul, Jr. outed himself as having “visited” Ashley Madison and “left an old email address.” What Sproul of course carefully avoided was the reality that the only way to leave an email address on the site – which exists to arrange sexual rendezvous between persons – is to register an account (see also here). Yet despite the fact that Sproul was convicted by his presbytery of serial pastoral abuse, found to have committed tax fraud, convicted of teaching heresy, and deemed unqualified for ordination or service as an elder, Ligonier Ministries, RBC, and Ascension all placed him on paid suspension until July, 2. That means that, assuming his 2. Ligonier and RBC, Sproul, Jr. Ashley Madison. New Calvinism has produced a church polity which holds pastors virtually above reproach. Besides the names above, I could easily mention Darrin Patrick, Tullian Tchividjian,[1. CJ Mahaney,[1. 7] Joshua Harris,[1. Grant Layman,[1. 9] Gary Ricucci,[2.
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