Satan hates God. Satan was cast out of heaven because of his pride in his position and his beauty rose to the point of placing himself on the level of God. As a result of his rebellion, Satan was not only demoted and stripped of every precious stone that was his covering, he was cast out of heaven. So Satan really hates God. It is a vicious, snarling, consuming hatred—something almost beyond our human ability to comprehend. But Satan had no power to strike back at God directly. His only alternative was to strike at God by robbing the Creator of His relationship with man—His special creation.

Humanism’s opposition to God’s plan for mankind encompasses all of human history. The humanistic spirit of the world is of satanic origin and has been present within human society since Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden. All through history, this humanistic spirit of the world is the spirit of rebellion of man against God. It is the essence of Original Sin that infects all of humanity.

In the eleventh century BC, King David wrote, “The fool hath said in his heart: there is no god.” [Psalm 14:1. KJV] But it […] Continue Reading…

In Part I, Dr. Charles Crabtree identified three causes of the crisis of discipleship in the Assemblies of God. These causes have affected virtually all denominations. The causes have been profoundly debilitating to the liberal mainline denominations for most of a century, but the causes have also invaded non-mainline evangelical churches in varying degrees since the 1960s.

Dr. Crabtree identified the three causes of the crisis in discipleship as preaching another gospel, the failure to count the cost of discipleship, and a failure to continue in the Word.[1] These are not the only causes of the demise of biblical Christianity but account for much of the humanistic spirit of the world that has invaded the church. This invasion into the modern evangelical churches of America will be examined.

Preaching another gospel

When preaching no longer focuses on the cross of Christ, it becomes another gospel. And it is this other gospel that is preached and practiced by the pervasive Church Growth movement and which has been embraced by many evangelical churches in America over the last quarter century. Crabtree called this other gospel “good news for the ego” which is at the […] Continue Reading…

Dr. Charles Crabtree served as the Assistant General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God for fourteen years. Following his tenure at the Assemblies of God headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, he became the president of Zion Bible College in Haverhill, Massachusetts, and served until 2013. Dr. Crabtree published an article in the Enrichment Journal, Winter Quarter, 2007, titled “The Crisis of Discipleship in the American Church.”[1] This article was condensed and published as a supplement titled “Discipleship in the Assemblies of God: The Crisis, The Cause, and The Cure.”[2] This was an abridgement of a message delivered the previous August at a weekly chapel service for the headquarters employees of the General Council of the Assemblies of God.

In 2007, Dr. Crabtree wrote of the crisis he saw in the Assemblies of God with regard to the three-fold purpose laid down by the fellowship’s founders.

Evangelism – 2007

Crabtree said that the state of evangelism in the Assemblies was “unremarkable.” In support of his conclusion he stated that for the period 1995-2005, the Assemblies had 5.3 million stated decisions for Christ but the growth from those conversions was just under 222,000 over ten years (4.2% conversion growth rate). Crabtree responded to those […] Continue Reading…

In Part I we traced the beginnings of the ecumenical movement between the various branches of Christianity and within those churches embroiled in the liberal-fundamentalist controversies of the early 20th century. In Part II we examined the conflicts and controversies in the 1950s and 1960s surrounding ecumenicalism’s push into evangelicalism in an effort to achieve reconciliation and unity among evangelical, non-evangelical, and liberal churches in America and England. As was stated in the conclusion of Part II, the 1950s and 1960s were a major turning point for evangelical churches as they embraced ecumenicalism which determined their course for decades to follow.

The evangelical church’s pursuit of ecumenicalism over the last half century has blurred the once sharp line that distinguished the Christian from the non-Christian. When that line was sharp and clear, the church the church was holy, powerful, and effective in its mission of impacting culture and winning the lost to Christ. When the line between what is Christian and non-Christian became blurred, the meaning of Christianity and evangelicalism also became blurred. Iain Murray described what form this blurring took.

“…liberalism was ‘Christianity’ harmonized with the moral aspirations of all men. It was truth modified to give offence […] Continue Reading…