Bridge of Reason

  Do you know someone who has left a church to join a cult? Sadly, I have heard many stories of those who have left behind Christian fellowship to join Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, or some other cultic group. Why does this happen? I want to suggest three possible reasons: i) Those who leave were just Church attenders. ii) Those who leave were Church members but not members of the Church. iii) Those who leave were ill-informed believers. They were just Church attenders. You may have heard it said that just as going to McDonalds doesn’t make you a Big Mac, so going to Church doesn’t make you a Christian. We may smile, but we understand the truth of this. Attending somewhere is not evidence of affiliation. Many people will attend church because of tradition. It is something they have always done. Perhaps they were brought to church as a child, perhaps they were christened and confirmed and have just continued with church because that’s what they do. For such ...

   In  part 1  I suggested two reasons why individuals may leave a church to join a cult. It could be that they were never truly born again believers or perhaps they had never been taught or understood biblical truth. Here I offer a further reason that may cause a person to get involved with a cultic group.  3)  The Fellowship The church is a fellowship of believers. The Greek word translated fellowship is koinonia ( κοινωνία ) which literally means contributory help, participation, sharing in. In Acts 2 we read these wonderful words spoken about the fellowship of believers: And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.  43  And awe [ d ]  came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.  44  And all who believed were together and had all things in common.  45  And they were s...

  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.   – 1 John 2:19 It may not be much of a shock for me to tell you that, every day people are recruited into new religious movements. You may find it a little more shocking, when I tell you that a some of these converts were once sat in our pews. How can that be? This is the first of two articles where I will consider three reasons why a person may leave the church and join a cult.     1) The Church Our first question should be: Was this person ever a member of the church they attended? To answer this question, we need to consider two further questions. Firstly, what is the church? and secondly, how does a person become a member of the church? You may have heard it said that the church is not the building it’s the people, this is true.  The word translated ‘ch...

Mormons claim that, following the time of the apostles, the Christian Church fell into total apostasy. They claim: Apostasy was prophesied...2 Timothy 3:1-3 A 'Restoration' was anticipated...Acts 3:19-21 But, while apostasy was foretold, the Bible disallows total apostasy: ‘And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.’ (Matthew 16:18) ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’ (Matthew 28:19/20) ‘And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of God , to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the f...

People don’t believe in miracles, not because they haven’t witnessed a miracle, but because their world view will not allow for miracles. Even though someone they otherwise respect should relate an account of a miracle many will not believe it. They will, rather, reconsider the esteem in which they hold their friend. Neither will showing them a miracle guarantee their conversion because they may make every effort to explain it away and we have seen this. So it was with the people who saw the miracles of Jesus and his disciples, who drove out demons, healed the sick and preached the kingdom message. They saw Jesus feed five thousand (John 6:1-15) and ate their fill, but this did not guarantee their accepting who Jesus was. When the crowd later sought out Jesus in Capernaum he said, ‘You are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not labour for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will ...

The Evangelical Alliance recently (2018) published the results of a survey of people’s attitudes to the Bible. Among Christians it was discovered: 57% believe the Bible should shape their daily lives "a great deal" 35% said they read the Bible everyday 73% said the Bible actively challenges them to live in a way which runs counter to the present culture in Britain 60% believe the Bible provides moral guidance, sets out God's rescue plan for humanity and shows God's priorities 78% believe the Bible is divinely inspired and 34% believe that it is free from error 68% say the Bible is regularly taught at their church Stop and think about that second statistic; 35% said they read the Bible daily. Perhaps because 73% said the Bible actively challenges them to live in a way which runs counter to the present culture in Britain? It is true that taking the Bible seriously today can seriously make you stand out from the crowd. But it has always been God’s purpose that his peopl...

As we mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation people are queuing up to offer their ‘95 Theses for the Twenty First Century.’ Not least among this number is Steve Chalke. 'In the early years of the 16th century, German priest and scholar Martin Luther came to believe that the shape of the established Church and its relationship to the State did not fit the needs of the world in which he was called to live and serve,' Chalke said. 'In the early years of the 21st century it is clear, once more, that the shape of the established Church and its relationship to the State no longer fits the needs of the world in which we are called to live and serve. It is time, once again, to reimagine the role of faith, Church and its place in the public square.' Read further here. Chalke, who has a reputation for twisting Scripture, wrenching it from its original meaning and purpose, seems just as capable of twisting history. I imagine Luther turning in his grave at being caricature...

In his Theological Word Book of the Bible (an essential on every Bible scholar’s shelf) Alan Richardson points out: ‘The knowledge of God is not reached by abstract speculation as in Gk. philosophy, but in the actual everyday business of living, or social relationships and of current historical events. God is not known by thinking out ideas about him, but by seeking and doing his will as made known to us by prophetic men and by our own consciousness of right and wrong. (cf. John 7:17 , James.1:27, 1 John 4:7 .,f 12)’ He cites in particular Jeremiah 22:15-16 , ”Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me?’ declares the LORD.” The error upon error of the Watchtower Society is mainly the product of their having sought God in books. This arises from the laudable 19th century preoccupation with universal education and the peculiarly American preo...

Legalism is defined by Chambers Dictionary as “ strict adherence to law…the tendency to observe letter or form rather than spirit, or to regard things from the point of view of law.” It also helpfully illustrates the definition with a reference to the opposing doctrines of salvation by works and salvation by grace. I do like The Chambers Dictionary and commend it to you. But what is wrong with keeping the law? Surely as Christians we believe in being law-abiding? There is certainly enough in the New Testament about obedience to authorities. We are instructed, “ obey your parents in the Lord” (Eph.6:1); obey your earthly masters with respect” (Eph.6:5); obey your leaders and submit to their authority” (Heb.13:17) and we are reminded “ to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good” ( Titus 3:3 ) The Challenge of Legalism When we witness to those with a legalistic bent we are often challenged with these and similar texts. Sometimes we are ...

The Oct. 1997 issue of the liberal Mormon Sunstone magazine (Vol. 20:3, Issue 107) carried an amusing article about alternative names for “Anti-Mormons.” (Thanks to Vince for drawing this list to my attention. Comments in brackets are my own, of course) S c eptics (And this is a bad thing because…?) Gentiles (Mormons consider themselves the new Israel) Mormon-detractors Counter-Mormons (That’s anti-Mormons to the rest of us) Anti-Christs (At least we know now what Mormons think of honest critics) Mormophobes (A phobia is a fear. This isn’t an irrational fear but a healthy scepticism – see 1 above) Nehors (Nehor is an obscure Book of Mormon character who led an apostate sect) Avatars of Satan (An avatar is an incarnation of a deity; see comment on temple “minister” below) Challengers (Fair comment. So stop name-calling and meet the challenge) The unconverted (Christians? Unconverted? Interesting insight) Contra-Mormons (pro-Christians) Post-Mormons (Tha...

  If I haven’t already said it to you personally, I wish you a Happy New Year. As we begin a New Year with fresh opportunities to bring God’s light and truth where deception has darkened people’s minds it seems good to start with the fundamentals. You will know that, even within the Christian Church, there are troubling challenges to the long-established truth of the Gospel. Add to this the claims of the cults and the increasing marginalisation of the church in an intolerant liberal society it has never been more imperative to ensure we stand on solid ground in our faith and witnessing. Even after all these years we at Reachout will get asked about groups we haven't heard about, ideas we are not familiar with. Where do you start, what do you ask, how do you asses truth claims in light of God's Word? Here are ten questions to help lay some solid foundations on which to build a reliable picture. What do they say about God? Is he the one, true God of the Bible? Is h...

An excellent and well-reasoned article from Rocky Hulse of Mormon Outreach. Well worth clicking through and reading: On the front cover of Newsweek, October 17, 2005, is a stain glass window depiction of the “First Vision” of Mormonism with the title “The Making of the Mormons,” subtitled “Beyond Prophecy and Polygamy: The Future Of a Booming Faith.”  On page 58 is an interview with the current Mormon Prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley.  The following question was asked, “Could you talk about religious intolerance and conflict around the world?  It is a difficult age.” (Newsweek, Oct 17, 2005, pg 58).  The following is President Hinckley’s response: “Hateful.  Meanness.  Bitterness.  I don’t like it.  We’re all sons and daughters of God, and therefore in a very literal sense, brothers and sisters.  And we ought to treat each other that way.” (Newsweek, Oct 17, 2005, pg 58).  After reading the rest of this article, ask yourself if the above...

Thomas S Monson, Mormon president, has announced yet another temple, bringing to 15 the number temples in Utah. There are currently 130 temples around the world. Someone wrote to Reachout recently asking about temples and here is his question and my answer:   “I am confused surely the whole purpose of the atonement of Christ was to overcome the need for animal sacrifice. He was the ultimate sacrifice. So it seems natural that by Jesus bring this higher law that superseded the Levitical laws that required animal sacrifice in temple the purposes of a temple would also change and the rituals that take place within them would develop and alter. Your suggestion that the event taking place in the modern Mormon temples does not match the operations of the ancient temples is therefore redundant as they should not be doing so but rather the Mormon temples are there to provide the ability to carry out rituals relating to this higher law of Jesus. Please respond I am genuinely in need of ...

You know those moments when you look at something you’ve looked at a thousand times before and suddenly see something new? I was looking at a blog I found via the Google Blog Alerts service and it told the familiar story of the Mormon “ Plan of Salvation”; you can read it here. There really was nothing surprising until I started thinking about what people might think if a family they knew conducted themselves the way the Mormon “family of God” do in this story. People from abusive backgrounds have problems enough with the idea of God as a Father but this story would put anyone off the idea forever! As I recount this story think about what the typical dad would do as his kids are growing up and compare it with this “exalted man.” According to Mormonism “ God created our spirits” and we lived with him in a pre-mortal existence (Mormons say “pre-existence” but it is not possible to pre-exist, i.e. to exist before you exist. The noun “existence” has to be have the prefix “pre” othe...

A Weekly Bible Reading for Bridge Builders The Richmond Briefing has been a weekly feature of the Reachout web site for five years and is now available on the blog. To find out more and read earlier briefings go here Reading – The Law Falls Short of God’s Ideal (Mark 10:1-16) The law is a useful thing to have by you at times of compromise and accommodation. When you’re in a tight spot a good lawyer can make the law say all sorts of things that those who originally drafted it never intended. Socrates was dead set against writing things down for that very reason. He argued that writing conveyed content without context and can therefore, in a different context, mean something quite other than what was intended. We see this at play in this passage. The Pharisees were trying to catch Jesus out on a subject about which he had already said a good deal. Each of the gospel writers reports Jesus’ teaching on marriage so his views must have been well known. This works out rather similar ...