Atheists very annoyed by the Consider Christ Campaign!

An advert sponsored by The British Humanist Association is running on billboards in each of the UK's capital cities: London, Cardiff and Edinburgh.

From what is reported on the BBC news website the local spokesman for the BHA is very annoyed at the recent Consider Christ campaign run by the Free Presbyterian Church. 

Upon the launch of this poster Mr Brian McClinton said that the poster provided 'opposition to the near ubiquitous 'Consider Christ' ads that are currently covering most of our Translink buses'.

This comment would indicate that Mr Brian McClinton is not best pleased with the extensive coverage of our campaign has received or the media attention it has attracted. It is evidently having an effect. 

This reminds us of the power of the Word of God. You don’t need fancy marketing slogans that appear on many church signs across the country. It is the Word of God that is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, Hebrews ch 4:12. It certainly seems to be doing its work in Mr McClinton’s mind!

May it be true of individuals like Mr McClinton as was true of Saul of Tarsas: it hard to kick against the pricks. Atheists can and have been converted. 

May the Lord continue to bless those 'Consider Christ' adverts which are still on the buses.

A good day for free speech

The BBC is reporting that the government has admitted defeat in their attempt to remove a 'free speech' defence from new laws against inciting homophobic hatred.

Summary
MPs have voted four times to scrap it but it has been repeatedly overturned in the Lords, who again last night voted by 179 to 135 to keep it.

An offence of inciting hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation was brought in by legislation last year, but a 'free speech' defence, opposed by the government, was inserted by Conservative peer Lord Waddington.

The law was not brought into force while the government sought to remove the defence but on Thursday, the last day of this Parliamentary session, the government admitted defeat in a statement from the Ministry of Justice. A spokeswoman said the government was 'very disappointed' at the Lords vote and as the threshold for prosecution was 'high', the defence was not needed.

She said: 'The offence only covers words or behaviour that are threatening and intended to stir up hatred'. But she added the government could no longer delay the passage of the Coroners and Justice Bill. 'It is with considerable disappointment, therefore, that the government has agreed not to remove the 'freedom of expression' section'.

She added that the law against inciting homophobic hatred would now be brought into force 'as quickly as possible' and the government would return to the issue in future 'should it prove necessary to do so'.

However the concession was not announced by Justice Secretary Jack Straw in the Commons on Thursday. Instead deputy speaker Sir Alan Haslehurst read out a list of amendments on which 'this House does not insist, in its disagreement with the Lords'.

Conservative MP Edward Leigh asked, unsuccessfully, for a statement from Mr Straw, adding it appeared 'that the government has run up the white flag on the Lord Waddington amendment. This is a great victory for free speech, I think we should know more about it'.

MPs have, on four occasions, voted to remove the free speech clause from the bill by large majorities during its passage through Parliament. Ahead of Wednesday's vote in the Lords justice minister Lord Bach warned peers: 'There must come a point where this House, with all its great virtues, gives way to the House that has been elected by the people of this country'.

But Lord Waddington argued that peers had to maintain consistency: 'If we are to finish up with a free speech clause in the religious hatred offence but no free speech clause here, we're simply asking for trouble'.

And during the Lords debate crossbencher Lord Dear cited the example of grandmother Pauline Howe, 67, who was visited by police after writing a letter to Norwich Council to complain about a gay pride march.

The council informed her the letter was assessed as 'potentially being hate related' - she argued she was expressing her Christian beliefs.

On Thursday Simon Calvert, of The Christian Institute, welcomed the government's decision as a 'victory for common sense'.

Comment
This is indeed to be welcomed. Thankfully it is still legally possible to call sin sin and to declare with Scripture that sodomy is an abomination to God: Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination, Lev 18:22.

'The abortion capital of Europe'!

The news that Britain has become the abortion capital of Europe ought to be connected in our minds with the government's insistence that children of a younger and younger age must received 'sex education' and also with the removal of a parent's right to remove their children from receiving this 'sex education' after the age of fifteen.

There can only be one outcome when younger and younger children are introduced to topics at an age far beyond their capacity to appreciate and understand them.

One thing this 'sex education', required by the government, never includes is the moral teaching of the Word of God which forbids sexual intercourse prior to and outside of marriage.

An immoral generation and multitudes of murdered, aborted children is the result of this educational requirement.

There will be no change to these sad facts while this policy persists of introducing sex education at an ever earlier age and the absence of biblical morality.

Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people, Proverbs 14:34.

The Alpha Course part 5

What is wrong with 'The Alpha Course'?

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

The Alpha Course is 'New Age' in Ethos.

Let me briefly define what is meant by 'New Age'. It is that movement which shares a vision of a new age of enlightenment and harmony (the Age of Aquarius) and who subscribes to a common worldview. That common worldview is based on Monism (all is one), Pantheism (all is God) and Mysticism (the experience of oneness with the divine).

The New Age Movement is evidenced in the Animal Rights Activists, Eco-warriors, the Green Movement, the anti-capitalists rioters, anti-gender brigade, etc, etc. There is a spiritual side to all these lobby groups and it’s false religion. They practice a religious syncretism which brings together different and sometimes contradictory religious and philosophical teachings. The New Age Movement is not 'new' in the sense of its teachings never been known before. It is but a 'new' expression of age old heresies.

In this sense of the term The Alpha Course is New Age in Ethos.

i. The New Agers are very much at home with The Alpha Course.
Commenting on the ‘Holy Spirit Away Weekend’, Nicky Gumbel says of those who had come from a New Age background:
They are on more familiar territory in experiencing the Holy Spirit. Telling Others, page 19.

How can this be? How can something that claims to lead men to the truth be in such harmony with that which is expressly not of God? The answer is that the Alpha Course is not of God but is of another spirit, even the spirit of antichrist. The same philosophy that underpins New Ageism underpins The Alpha Course.

ii. Experience leads to explanation.
This is the philosophy of the Toronto Blessing, The Alpha Course and New Ageism. There can be no absolutes in New Ageism. There is no infallible standard by which all things are to be judged. No individual can claim to have the truth.

The philosophy of those who promote the Alpha Course is similar. Whatever works, run with it. If a methodology ‘works’ then it has value and merit, regardless of whether or not it is Scriptural.

John Wimber applied this philosophy to his life and ministry. He focused more on experience and feeling than on doctrine. He even warned against ‘worshipping the Book’. He mocked those who judged everything strictly by the Bible saying they have ‘God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Book’. He also warned against being ‘too rigid’ and ‘too heavily oriented to the written Word’, John Wimber, Counterfeit Revival.

Nicky Gumbel esteemed John Wimber very highly, tracing his ministry in many respects back to the ‘Word of Knowledge’ that Wimber gave to him. This type of practice in the professing Church of Christ is New Age philosophy at work. Anything goes, if it prospers. It is subjective religion, based on experience.

iii. A direct mirror of New Age Philosophy.
A direct parallel exists between the teachings of the New Age Movement and The Alpha Course. The two can be set side by side. The same ideas and concepts appear in both. The similarity goes to demonstrate that they both are the fruit of the same corrupt and false tree.

[1] Moving into the realm of the supernatural. The whole growth of gifts and the phenomena of modern Charismatics is often spoken of as the Church moving into the realm of the supernatural.

New Agers talk about humanity moving onto a higher plain. To them there is a coming Utopia. New Agers believe there is a new world order coming which involves one-world government, global socialism and a New Age religion.

[2] The idea of the experience of the Holy Ghost. According to The Alpha Course this is the leaving of yourself open to whatever God has for you. Attenders are to seek this experience of the Holy Spirit, which is nothing more than something emotional and subjective.

New Agers call it tuning into the divine consciousness. This ‘transformation’ is in two aspects: ‘Personal Transformation’ and ‘Planetary Transformation’.

‘Personal Transformation’ is variously described as ‘enlightenment’, ‘attunement’, ‘God realisation’, and ‘self actualisation’.

‘Planetary Transformation’ is brought about as a ‘critical mass’ of ‘personally transformed’ individuals take socio-political responsible for the world of humankind.

[3] The idea of supernatural gifts. The Alpha Course teaches that we all are to seek for the experience these gifts, have new revelations and ‘words of knowledge’ from the spirit world. As already pointed out Nicky Gumbel numbers the days of his ministry from such a ‘Word of Knowledge’.

New Agers call it ‘channelling from the spirit world’. A ‘channeller’ is one who yields control of his or her perceptual and cognitive capacities to a spiritual entity or force with the intent of receiving paranormal information.

[4] The obtaining of the anointing from a teacher. Gumbel believed he had it from Wimber. ‘Transmission of anointing’ by the closeness or the touch of a teacher on the forehead.

New Agers call it transmission into higher consciousness through the close proximity of a guru.

Conclusion
The Alpha Course is devious and ought not to be touched by any who love the truth revealed in Christ Jesus. It is deficient in doctrine, ecumenical in emphasis, charismatic in tone and New Age is ethos.

There are those who have acknowledged the validity of some of our criticisms:
An infectious enthusiasm, entrepreneurial spirit, and a bold plan for growth are all trademarks among Alpha’s top leaders. But not everyone is cheering Alpha onward. Some church leaders have found Alpha teaching too charismatic, too experience-driven, and too negative about traditional churches. Martyn Percy, director of the Lincoln Theological Institute for the Study of Religion and Society of the University of Sheffield, England, has commented about Alpha that it is ‘a package rather than a pilgrimage.’ In a recent essay, he said, ‘It is a confident but narrow expression of Christianity, which stresses the personal experience of the Spirit over the Spirit in the church. ... The Alpha approach has been faulted for pushing an experience-driven approach to evangelism that sidesteps intellectual difficulties. Christianity Today 9th February, 1998

Nicky Gumbel’s Alpha Course contains a little truth but much error. It is a well-packaged meal with a dose of e.coli. The non-discerning are at risk. To be spiritually healthly you need to avoid being contaminated with it!

Steve Chalke & 'The Lost Message of Jesus'

Further to J. Trimble's comment on a previous posting about Steve Chalke coming to Carnmoney Presbyterian Church [scroll down to page six of their Announcement Sheet] here are some interesting links that highlight his unbelief:

The Lost Message of Jesus is no message at all! - Answers in Genesis

Don’t take your cue from Steve Chalke - Takeheed Ministries

How much longer can those who profess to be born again believers remain in a Church that associates with those who deny the biblical account of creation, the Fall & the penal nature of Christ's atonement for sin?

The words of Obadiah the prophet come to mind:
In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them, Obadiah v11.

To say and do nothing when a man who teaches these errors visits the church of which you are a member or an elder is to condone his error!

The Alpha Course part 4

What is wrong with 'The Alpha Course'?

Part 1
Part 2Part 3

The Alpha Course is Charismatic in Tone.

As the root so are the branches. Remember that a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. The Alpha Course could be nothing else, other than charismatic, when a closer look is taken at its author.

i. From the same stable as the ‘Toronto Blessing’.
The Church that brings us the Alpha Course is the same Church that brought the ‘Toronto Blessing’ to the U.K. It was in Holy Trinity Church, Brompton in the early nineties that the so called ‘laughing revival’ first appeared in Britain.

Nicky Gumbel was one of the leading lights in the promotion of the ‘Toronto Blessing’ around the country. He attended a meeting at which a Mrs Eleanor Munford was present. At this house meeting she told of her experiences in Toronto and ‘invited the Holy Spirit to come’. The moment she did that strange things began to happen. One person was thrown across the room and lay on the floor howling and laughing, ‘making the most incredible noise’. Another man lay on the floor ‘prophesying’. Some appeared to be drunken. Gumbel testified that he had an experience ‘like massive electricity going through his body’.

He got himself together and rushed to his Church where he was now late for a meeting. At its close he thanked the Lord for all He was doing and prayed that He would send His Spirit. The same phenomena were manifested with one individual lying on the floor with his feet in the air 'laughing like a hyena'. Taxis were provided at Holy Trinity for parishioners too ‘drunk in the Spirit’ to drive home from services. May 29th, 1994 was the start of this in Holy Trinity Brompton. The national newspapers carried the story shortly after. Nicky Gumbel has said:
I believe it is no coincidence that the present movement of the Holy Spirit (Toronto Blessing) has come at the same time as the explosion of the Alpha Courses. I think the two go together, Renewal May 1995, page 15.

ii. The Alpha Course itself is full of Charismatic error.
Nicky Gumbel’s Charismatic tendencies are to the fore in the Alpha Course. The phenomena of the Toronto Blessing are seen in Alpha:

[1] The calling down of the Spirit. In this Alpha Course each one is taken through the ‘experience’ of receiving the Holy Ghost. In conducting the course in his own Church Gumbel prays for the Holy Spirit to come down. The language is the language of the Charismatic Movement. This has no resemblance at all to what is taught in God’s Word. They are not looking for the infilling of the Holy Ghost, after He has indwelt them, so that they may live holy lives, glorifying Christ. This falling of the Holy Ghost upon them is the only time He comes and it is for the purpose of having the Charismatic gifts, outlined in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11. These gifts have ceased. They were for the early Church to authenticate the ministry of the apostles and were in evidence only for a limited period of time.

[2] Speaking in tongues. People are encouraged to look for the gift of tongues. Gumbel describes tongues as ‘talking to God in a language that he gives you to use’. He quotes: For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God 1 Cor 14:12 as proof that tongues is a form of prayer. This is not what Paul is saying if we read the whole verse and the next verse. If this is the substance of tongue speaking it is of no profit, cf. 1 Cor 14:13-15. Gumbel’s perception of tongues is not the Bible’s. He encourages people to learn this gift. They: ‘take time to develop. Most of us start with a very limited vocabulary. It gradually develops. Tongues is like that. Don’t give up’, Questions of Life, page 147.

Is this the gift of tongues as found in the Bible? The Apostles on the Day of Pentecost did not ‘learn’ tongues in this way. They were immediately able to speak other languages.

[3] Spiritual slayings. Here is another aspect of this error. The participants are encouraged to open themselves to the slaying of the Spirit. They are said to ‘shake like a leaf in the wind’ and experience a ‘glowing all over’ and ‘liquid heat’.

They are to empty their minds and let whatever comes in have its way. This is hardly in keeping with the injunction to let all things be done decently and in order. Gumbel’s advice is a licence for chaos. Where is this found in God’s Word?

[4] Words of knowledge. John Wimber, from the Vineyard fellowship in Toronto, gave Gumbel a ‘Word of Knowledge’. He told him he had a gift for telling others. Gumbel says he can trace his ministry of telling others to this time. The Alpha Course is the philosophy of Wimberism.

There are no revelations from God outside His Word. God speaks alone to individuals from the pages of Holy Writ and not through some modern day ‘seer’.

The Charismatic Movement is not based on the Word of God and therefore the Alpha Course, so full of this falsehood, is not built either on the Rock of Holy Scripture.

Pre-millennial Protestantism

The following article is well worth reading. It is entitled Premillennial Protestantism. It first appeared in Watching and Waiting, published by the Sovereign Grace Advent Testimony.

It is based upon a sermon preached by Rev Gordon Dane, minister of Crossgar FPC at a conference in Wales.

Premillennial Protestantism

The Alpha Course Part 3

What is wrong with 'The Alpha Course'?
Part 1
Part 2

The Alpha Course is Ecumenical in Emphasis.

There is considerable emphasis placed upon so-called unity in the Alpha Course. Alpha has extensive cross denominational support. Church leaders from all the major denominations have voiced their support for it. Anglican, Baptist, Elim, Methodist, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic and The Salvation Army all support Alpha.

i. The stated ecumenical philosophy
Nicky Gumbel says the following about his intentions:
We need to unite...there has been some comment which is not helpful to unity. Let us drop all that and get on. It is wonderful that the movement of the Spirit will bring churches together. He is doing that right across the denominations and within the traditions… we are seeing Roman Catholics coming now.… Nobody is suspicious of anybody else... People are no longer ‘labelling’ themselves or others. I long for the day when we drop all these labels and just regard ourselves as Christians with a commission from Jesus Christ, Renewal, May 1995, page 16.

This Alpha Course is the product of a confirmed and committed ecumenist. All that he sets forth in these lessons is geared to bringing the Churches together. He wants unity at any cost. The things that divide - drop them. That means the fundamental doctrines of the Scriptures and the Reformation, and the historic confessions of faith are to be dropped. All are to be sacrificed on this altar of ecumenical, God-dishonouring false unity. At the Reformation the Spirit of God did not take men back into the arms of popery. He brought them out of that wicked system. Will the Spirit now reverse what He has previously done? I think not!

To use Alpha is to promote ecumenism. That is why it is so bland in respect of doctrine. It will please everybody and offend no one in these ecumenical churches. It does, however, offend the God of heaven. No right-thinking, Bible-believing Christian should have anything to do with it.

ii. Rome is entirely happy with the Alpha Course
The Roman Catholic Church has set up its own Alpha office and produced a number of booklets to go along with Alpha. ‘Alpha for Catholics’ in the section: Can Alpha work ecumenically? says:
Yes, because Alpha focuses on the basic Christian message, it easily lends itself for use by ecumenical groups. It aims to present the core truths upon which the churches have already agreed and which form the real but imperfect unity that the Catholic Church already enjoys with other Christian Churches....

Nicky Gumbel states that the differences between Protestants and Catholics are:
Totally insignificant compared with the things that unite us...we need to unite around the death of Jesus, the resurrection of Jesus; the absolute essentials at the core of the Christian faith on which we are all agreed. We need to give people liberty to disagree on the things that are secondary, Talk page 8 section ii.

The things which divide Biblical Christianity rediscovered at the Protestant Reformation and
Romanism are highly significant. They go the very heart of how a sinner can be right before God. The Bible teaches justification by faith alone. Rome teaches that it is by a mixture of faith and works.

Bishop Ambrose Griffiths RC Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle says:
Alpha does not contain anything that is contrary to Catholic doctrine. What’s more it provides, in wonderful form, the basis of Christian belief which many Catholics have never cottoned on to..…, Alpha, God changing lives page 8.

How can Alpha set forth the true way of salvation if this bishop can say that there is nothing contrary to Catholic doctrine in it? The Council of Trent Session vi Canon 10 has this to say about the Biblical doctrine of salvation by faith alone:
If any one says that justifying faith is nothing else than trust in the divine mercy pardoning sins for Christ’s sake; or that it is by trust alone by which we are justified; let him be accursed.

Evidently Alpha does not set forth salvation by faith alone or else the Bishop could not say that there is nothing in it contrary to Catholic doctrine. How then can this lead any man to a true saving knowledge of Christ and a proper understanding of the Christian Faith? It is a betrayal of the true doctrine of salvation.

iii. It is seen as being useful in the renewal of Romanism
Rome is encouraging her people to conduct the Alpha course. This is with the objective of renewing her people’s devotion to Holy Mother Church. Alpha is praised in Church magazines as a tool to this end. The renewal of devotion is to that system of popery which our forefathers fought to the bitter death.

In a Post Alpha Catholic Teaching manual, under the heading: Who needs the Catholic Church? a most startling statement is made:
I want to give thanks for the gift of the papacy to the Church. It really is a wonderful blessing. The episcopacy, the papacy are moorings which keep us from drifting away with any fad that comes along... we are blessed to have that sort of Anchor.... I need the Church’s tradition because I’m not smart enough in reading the Scriptures to understand what they say. It is only with the help of St Augustine, St Gregory of Nicea, Thomas Aquinas and St Catherine of Sienna that I can hope to understand what God is saying to me and to all of us as I read the Scriptures... I really need the saints not only in their wisdom but in their example. They keep me motivated knowing that if they made it I can make it through their prayers and by the power of the holy host, Exploring the Catholic Church by Dr M D’Ambrosio, Professor of Theology, Catholic University of Dallas.

The Alpha Course has not changed Rome. She is still a harlot Church. If Rome is happy with Alpha then no Bible lover should be. Alpha does not deliver from sin as the true Gospel did in the lives of the Reformers and many others. Rather it renews Rome. Therefore it cannot be of God. For these reasons we call on all who desire to contend for the truth to turn away from the Alpha Course.

Favourable coverage from Newtownabbey Times

The Newtownabbey Times in their most recent edition have carried a favourable report of the 'Consider Christ Campaign' and our own upcoming Gospel Mission.

Gospel Mission

Newtownabbey
Free Presbyterian Church

Gospel Mission

11th - 25th October 2009

Main Evangelist: Rev Brian McClung

Lord's Days 7.00 pm, Monday - Friday 8.00 pm

Guest preachers:
Wednesday 14th Oct Rev Darryl Abernethy
Wednesday 21st Oct Rev David McMillan

Special singing or testimony each evening

The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved, Jer 8:20

The Alpha Course Part 2

What is wrong with 'The Alpha Course'?Part 1

The Alpha Course is Deficient in Doctrine.

It has to be remembered that 'The Alpha Course' comes from a denomination that has long tolerated false doctrine. A whole profusion of Biblical doctrine has been denied and false doctrine permitted to hold sway, within the Anglican Church. The virgin birth is denied, along with the sinlessness of Christ, the vicarious atonement, the resurrection and ascension. Sodomy is tolerated and the ordination of women ministers accepted. The question is asked: Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one Job 14:4.

The Saviour says: A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit Matthew 7:18. The Alpha Course is the fruit of a corrupt tree. It is deficient when it comes to doctrine.

i. The God of Alpha is not the God of the Bible.
God is revealed in the Scriptures as the great and mighty God. He is the Creator, Sustainer and Upholder of all things. He is the Sovereign God of all the earth, Isaiah 40:25-28. Man is a creature of the clay, responsible and answerable to Him. There are divine claims upon mankind.

There is no declaring of these things in Alpha. God is referred to, but never described. In many ways The Alpha Course bypasses God the Father altogether. There is no setting forth of who and what God is. There is continual mention made of God being love. But this is not how God is only described. He is much more than this.

How can something that claims to be an introduction to the Faith fail to start at the beginning, with the most important thing of all, In the beginning God...? This is where the Bible begins. There can be no true understanding unless we begin with God Himself and man’s relationship to Him. This is what the Christian Faith is all about.

ii. The condition of man in Alpha is not what it is in the Bible.
Man is totally and utterly depraved before God. There is no good in him. He is a rebel, at enmity with God. The wrath of God abideth on him. He is bound for hell. He is deserving of no good thing from God.

In Alpha man is viewed, not as to how God sees him, but rather as to how man feels before God. He is spoken of as having ‘feelings of sadness and unhappiness’, and ‘feeling dead inside, often guilty’. Man’s sin is spoken of as ‘rubbish that clutters up our lives and our world’. This is not how man is described before God. Man doesn’t feel dead he is spiritually dead. He is not often guilty, he is always guilty.

These are but a reference to the effects of sin and even then they are not accurate. The Alpha Course never sets forth man as a sinner who is under the wrath of God. In one manual I read through, there is no mention of the judgment of God or hell at all. Christ spoke about hell. A sinner has to be brought to see their need, only then they can be pointed in the direction of the work of Christ on the cross.

Nicky Gumbel has this to say about mankind:
In every human being the image of God has been to a greater or lesser extent tarnished, and in some cases almost eradicated by sin. Good and bad, strength and weakness coexist in all human beings, Questions of Life page 18.

This is not in accordance with God’s Word. The image of God has been lost entirely due to sin. There is no good at all in man. God’s Word says: There is none good but one, that is, God. Mark 10:18.

iii. The Christ of Alpha is not the Christ of the Bible.
Alpha has much to say about the Lord Jesus. It tells us what He did, what He said, and it does establish the certainty of the resurrection. In the chapter entitled: Why did Jesus die? it does not set forth the Christ of the Scriptures. Alpha does not set Him forth as the one who died because the justice of a holy God required it. We are left with the impression that Christ sacrificed Himself to rescue us from some impersonal and rather arbitrary justice system. Having bypassed God the Father it cannot adequately explain the death of Christ.

You can never come to understand the death of Christ until you realise that for a sinner to be saved the just demands of God’s law must be satisfied.

iv. The Holy Spirit of Alpha is not the Holy Spirit of the Bible.
There is more space devoted to the Holy Spirit than to the Lord Jesus in Alpha. That in itself it instructive, when we consider John 16:13,14: Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

The Holy Spirit will always work to uplift Christ Jesus not Himself. This is not taking place in Alpha. The Holy Spirit of Alpha is the agent for giving to people an ‘experience’ that is going to make God real to them. The main focus of this is the ‘Holy Spirit Weekend Away’. Going on that weekend people are told to expect that all manner of things might happen to them. We will have more to say on this.

v. Conversions of Alpha are not the conversions of the Bible.
In the Scriptures when men were converted there was deep sorrow for sin and a crying to God for mercy:
Acts 2:37: Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
Acts 16:29: Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas...

Conversions of Alpha are often nothing more than emotional experiences about the love of God with no conviction of sin or sorrow over sin and no turning from sin. People can feel forgiven yet never have known conviction of sin. These are mere professions of Christianity. It is all an act of their own will. They make a conscious decision to live as a Christian, believing some basic tenets and doing Christian activities. But no heart change has ever taken place.

On page 221 reference is made to the extent of the Christian Church. The Encyclopaedia Britannica is quoted that the church has some 1.7 billion adherents. This confuses Church membership and outward profession with belonging to Christ. Not every one who is a Church member is a child of God.

As to when this change occurred in their lives, most said it was at the ‘weekend’. The decisive moment is when the Holy Spirit comes in rather than the momentous occasion when they were supposedly converted.

One account of conversion in Alpha News July/October 1997 demonstrates this:
I still needed some physical evidence of the existence of God, part of the course was the Holy Spirit Weekend at a camp, which I wasn’t looking forward to. I went and maintained a stone wall approach until the second day.... suddenly a feeling of joy came over me and I began to laugh uncontrollably. At that point I knew that I had become a Christian.

Men do not laugh their way to salvation rather they weep their way to the cross. Another so called testimony demonstrates that there is no reality to these ‘conversions’:
I have virtually stopped drinking. I only drink socially now - just the odd beer or glass of wine. God gives complete victory over sin not partial victory.

The truth is, this movement is energised by another spirit. It is doctrinally deficient.

Free Presbyterian Outreach at Ploughing Match in County Kildare

For a number of years gospel outreach has been conducted at the annual ploughing match in the Republic of Ireland. In recent years a marquee has been hired for this purpose. Much help was give by the Lord to those who gathered. In total twenty workers were present over the three days.

Calendars with gospel texts are distributed along with free Bibles, New Testaments, and other literature. Free tea, coffee or juice and biscuits are offered with the hope that a conversation about spiritual things can be struck up. Among those who were given gospel literature were the Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Mary Lou McDonald.


RTE interviewed Dr Lindsay Wilson on two occasions, once for a radio documentary and once for the television news.

The Alpha Course Part 1

The Alpha Course is being run once again at the local Corrs Corner Hotel here in Glengormley. There will follow DV a synopsis of a series of sermons preached on 'The Alpha Course' a few years ago in Newtownabbey Free Presbyterian Church. 

What is Alpha?

The Alpha Course is supposedly an introduction to the Christian Faith in a non-threatening environment. The program consists of 15 sessions run over a 10 week period. It covers such basic topics as:
Who is Jesus?
Why did Jesus die?
How can I be sure of my faith?
Why and how should I read my Bible?
How does God guide us?
How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit?
Does God heal people today?
What about the Church?

The sales pitch is ‘no preaching’!

ACROSTIC

The Alpha plan is described by the following acrostic in a brochure used to advertise Alpha:
A - Anyone interested in finding out about the Christian Faith.
L - Learning and laughter. It is possible to learn about the Christian faith and have fun at the same time.
P - Pasta and pudding. Eating a meal together gives people an opportunity to get to know each other.
H - Helping one another. The small groups give you a chance to discuss issues raised in the talks.
A - Ask anything. Alpha is a place where no question is regarded as too simple or too hostile.

Most of these topics may seem perfectly innocent and to be encouraged. But no book is to be judged by its cover. We need to try the spirits whether they are of God because many false prophets are gone out into the world, cf. 1 John 4:1: Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

PRESENT VERSION

The Alpha Course is the brainchild of Nicky Gumbel, curate of Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Brompton, London (in the Knightsbridge area). The original Alpha Course has been running for almost 30 years. It has been a formidable success. Since its relaunch in 1992 the numbers signing up to run this course have been steadily rising. From 200 in 1993 in how has over 1.5 million attending. Churches are full where this course is run. Churches which closed down for lack of interest are being reopened. Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Pentecostalists and Romanists all run Alpha Courses. All with a strong spirit of ecumenical 'Christian' unity.

We as a denomination disapprove in the strongest terms of the Alpha Course. There is no false teaching as bad as that which mixes truth and error. The Alpha Course has a form of godliness but it denies the power thereof. From such, all who love the truth, are to turn away. They may use what seems like the right terminology. But it falls far short of genuine Bible religion.

Next part: Why we oppose the Alpha Course.

'We're born to believe in God'

Humans are ‘programmed’ to believe in God and the supernatural, scientific researchers have found.

A study into the way children’s brains develop suggests that beliefs in the supernatural are present from birth. The findings of Bruce Hood, professor of developmental psychology at Bristol University, challenge the claims of atheists such as Richard Dawkins.

Professor Dawkins’ assertion that religious belief is a result of poor education and ‘indoctrination’ is well known. Professor Hood said: “Our research shows children have a natural, intuitive way of reasoning that leads them to all kinds of supernatural beliefs about how the world works.” Other academics have said that their research supports Prof Hood’s findings.

In the science journal Nature, Washington University anthropologist Professor Pascal Boyer said: “Religious thinking seems to be the path of least resistance for our cognitive systems”.

“By contrast, disbelief is generally the work of deliberate, effortful work against our natural cognitive dispositions — hardly the easiest ideology to propagate.”

Speculating as to why their research showed religious belief to be ‘hardwired’, Prof Hood and his colleagues offered an evolutionary reason. They suggest that in the past, shared religious beliefs brought social benefits as believers cooperated to ensure mutual survival, while atheist societies lacked such beneficial cohesion.
The Word of God has long taught this truth. It is not attributable to evolution but rather to creation and the Creator. The God who created man in His own image has created us with an innate knowledge of Himself. Sadly, due to the Fall this knowledge is corrupted, distorted, and partly lost for it not what it was. It is not now a saving knowledge of God. This is why mankind needed the special revelation of the Scriptures. It is what is known as: 'The Seed of Religion':
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse, Romans 1:19,20;
For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another, Romans 2:14,15;
God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring, Acts 17:24-28.

John Calvin had this to say about the matter:
That there exists in the human mind, and indeed by natural instinct, some sense of Deity, we hold to be beyond dispute, since God Himself, to prevent any man from pretending ignorance, has endued all men with some idea of His Godhead, the memory of which He constantly renews and occasionally enlarges, that all to a man, being aware that there is a God, and that He is their Maker, may be condemned by their own conscience when they neither worship Him nor consecrate their lives to His service, Institutes of the Christian Religion 3:3.1.

He further said:
All men of sound Judgment will therefore hold, that a sense of Deity is indelibly engraven on the human heart. And that this belief is naturally engendered in all, and thoroughly fixed as it were in our very bones, is strikingly attested by the contumacy of the wicked, who, though they struggle furiously, are unable to extricate themselves from the fear of God, Institutes of the Christian Religion 3:3.3.

Once again we have another example of those who are wise after this world catching up with the teaching of the Scriptures!

Sermons worth listening to:

1. Separation: A Battle That Must Be Won Again by Rev Ivan Foster

2. Four reasons why Revival tarries by Rev Ivan Foster

False Prophecies of the Jehovah's Witnesses

Just had a visit from the Jehovah's Witnesses this morning.

I have discovered that one of the best ways to witness to them is to undermine their confidence in the Watchtower organisation and then tell them your own testimony of how Jesus Christ has cleansed from sin and has given the assurance of a home in heaven.

There are many documented false prophecies found in the writings of the Watchtower organisation. Here are a few:

1. Charlas Taze Russell, their founder, taught that 1874 marked the date of the second coming of the Lord, this teaching was held until 1943.

2. The date of the close of that 'battle' [Armageddon] is definitely marked in Scripture as October 1914, The Watchtower, 15th January 1892.

3. In 1898 the year 1914 was announced as the end of the world as we know it: In this chapter we present the Bible evidence proving that the full end of the time of the Gentiles, i.e. the full end of their lease of dominion, will be reached in A.D. 1914, The time is at Hand 1898, pages 76-77.
...the battle of the great day of God Almighty' ( Revelation 16:14 ), which will end in A.D. 1914 with the complete overthrow of earth's present rulership, is already commenced, The Time Is at Hand, page 101, 1898.

3. Therefore we may confidently expect that 1925 will mark the return of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the faithful prophets of old, particularly those named by the Apostle in Hebrews 11, to the condition of human perfection, Millions Now Living Will Never Die, page 89, 1918.

4. In 1924 Judge Rutherford stated that: 1914 was the beginning of the end, and set 1925 as the new date for the end of the world, The Watchtower, 15th July 1924.

5. The year 1925 is here. With great expectation Christians have looked forward to this year. Many have confidently expected that all members of the body of Christ will be changed to heavenly glory during this year. This may be accomplished. It may not be. In his own due time God will accomplish his purposes concerning his people. Christians should not be so deeply concerned about what may transpire this year, The Watchtower, 1st January 1925, page 3.

6. Some anticipated that the work would end in 1925, but the Lord did not state so. The difficulty was that the friends inflated their imaginations beyond reason; and that when their imaginations burst asunder, they were inclined to throw away everything, The Watchtower, page 232, 1926.

7. There was a measure of disappointment on the part of Jehovah's faithful ones on earth concerning the years 1917, 1918, and 1925, which disappointment lasted for a time...and they also learned to quit fixing dates, Vindication, page 338, 1931.

8.… the evidence required, all of it, and it is overwhelming!’ that ‘the last days are here’ and Armageddon would take place in 1975, Awake! Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 8th October 1968.

9. The imminent events of 1975 were said to have been a major factor in influencing many couples to decide not to have children at this time, Awake! Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 8th November 1974 page 11.

All these statements have be set within the context of what they themselves have stated. In 1972 the Jehovah's Witness Watchtower claimed to be the prophet of God, The Watchtower, 1st April 1972, page 197.

Deuteronomy 18:22 counsels us what we are do with these types of prophets: If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.

Further ecumenism and apostasy in Carnmoney Presbyterian Church

The Newtownabbey Clergy Fellowship have organised a local 'Pentecost Global Day of Prayer Service' to be held in St Bernard’s Roman Catholic Church in Glengormley on Sunday 31st May 2009 at 3.00pm.

This service has been announced on the Carnmoney Presbyterian Church website. As the title indicates this venture is part of events here in the Northern Ireland and further afield.

What is interesting to observe is the contradiction and confusion that lies at the heart of this Day of Prayer. On the website of the organising body: 'The World Prayer Center', which has arranged similar events throughout the United Kingdom, there is a statement of faith. In this statement of faith Point 8 clearly states that the organising body believes in 'The justification of sinners solely by the grace of God through faith in Christ'.

This raises a number of important questions:
1. How can so-called Protestant Ministers and born again believers attend a Roman Catholic Chapel and join in prayer with those who deny the truth that is contained in this statement of faith? Truth which contradicts fundamental tenets of Romanism. This is nothing short of utter confusion, dishonesty and hypocrisy!

It is no surprise at all that the unconverted run after Romanism. They are just as deceived as Roman Catholics are on the matter of salvation. What is grieving is that those who claim to have been 'converted to Christ' are taken in or else choose to remain silent when such departure from the truth of the Gospel is taking place in their churches. They are like those who joined with the enemies of God's cause in Old Testament times: In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them, Obadiah 1:11.

2. Is keeping the peace within the Clergy Fellowship more important than integrity and honesty? How can these 'Protestant ministers' arrange and attend an event like this when the organising body's statement of faith so clearly condemns Romanism?

As ever the Word of God makes a telling observation about this ecumenical prayer service: He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination, Proverbs ch 28:9.

If this event in St Bernard's is built on the foundation of compromise and the denial of the Gospel, and it surely is, then according to the Word of God the prayers of those who attend will never be heard. More than this their prayers are an abomination to God.

How much more departure from the truth of the Gospel needs to take place before born again believers in the mainline Protestant churches speak up and get out as commanded in the Scriptures? It would seem that they have been lulled to sleep!

I have emailed the contact given on the website for this local event and await a reply!

Good News from the 'Doing something more for God' campaign

Huge Saving On Printing Costs - Answer To Prayer!

Rev Ian Brown reports that Every Home Crusade has offered to print 1,000,000 tracts for the campaign free of charge.

This is excellent news!

Reasons for opposing a papal visit

Northern Ireland Secretary of State Shaun Woodward has re-issued the invitation for the Pope to visit Northern Ireland.

Every Bible believer ought to oppose a papal visit.

The reasons for doing so are:

1. The claims of the Pope -
i. He is a sovereign;
ii. He is the supreme Judge;
iii. He is the director of men's consciences;
iv. He is the successor of the Apostles, the vicar of Christ and the way to God;
v. The British Monarch is an usurper.

2. The Act of Settlement.

3. The memory of the Reformers.

4. The past and present deeds of Roman Catholicism.

Sermons Worth Listening To

1. Christ knocking on the door of the Free Presbyterian Church by Rev Ivan Foster

2. Securing The Next Generation For Christ by Rev John Wagner

3. Why Revival Tarries by Rev Ivan Foster

Pencil Portrait of John Calvin

This year marks the 500th anniversary of Calvin's birth.

One of the teachers in our Christian school in Newtownabbey has drawn a A3 Pencil Portrait of John Calvin.

Copies of this Pencil Portrait are available to anyone wishing to purchase them with the proceeds after costs going towards the work of our School.

The prices are:

A3 Print + single Mount
£ 18.00/US$ 27.00/ Can$ 33.00 + p&p

A4 Print + single Mount
£ 12.00/US$ 18.00/Can$ 22.00 + p&p

A5 Print + single Mount
£ 8.00/US$ 12.00/Can$ 15.00 + p&p


We are also offering the possibility of getting the A3 Print + Double Mount framed [50 mm black frame].

The cost for framing a A3 print & Double Mount would be £55.00 in total. The smaller sizes can be framed as well with single mounts.

There is also the possibility of a few original drawings [signed and dated] done on a first come, first served basis as there is considerable work in this [about 3 days].

The cost of an original would be £75.00 for the drawing + double mounting & framing which would cost another £45.00. £120.00 in total.

If anyone is interested please contact me.

Soul Winners' Convention

Newtownabbey
Free Presbyterian Church

Ballyclare Road, Corrs Corner, Glengormley

Soul Winners' Convention

Saturday 19th April 7.30 pm

Missionary report by Miss Joanne Greer
on her recent trip to Liberia

Preacher: Rev William McDermott [Moneyslane FPC]

Offering for Whitefield College of the Bible

Supper will be served

Lord's Day 20th April

11.30 am Preacher: Rev Ian Brown [Londonderry FPC]
7.00 pm Preacher: Rev Jonathan Creane [Convoy FPC]

All welcome For further details Tel 9083 5942

… the night cometh, when no man can work. John 9:4.

Special series marking the 150th anniversary of the 1859 Revival

Newtownabbey Free Presbyterian Church

First Lord's Day of each month January - June 2009
at 7.00 pm

Preacher: Rev Brian McClung

January
The Need of the Revival

February
The Origin of the Revival

March
The Spread of the Revival

April
The Features of the Revival

May
The Impact of the Revival

June
The Heritage of the Revival

The Newtownabbey Times carries my criticism of cross community carol service

The Newtownabbey Times has finally carried a much watered down article outlining my criticism of the cross community carol service which took place in Glengormley Methodist Church. I had initially written a letter which they have not published but only quoted a few lines.

They evidently don't want to rock the ecumenical boat too much!

The 1859 Revival preceded by a banking collapse

It became known as 'The Bank Panic of 1857'.

Prior to the third Great Awakening in America in 1857-58 there was a collapse of the banking system in America that also spread to Europe. Due to the long, hard winter of 1856-1857, transportation and trade transactions were delayed. The spring of 1857 brought some relief, but by the end of summer, businesses had begun to collapse. Before September 1857, the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company of Cincinnati, with a branch in New York City collapsed causing panic.

Some banks refused to redeem their promissory notes, while others suspended operations altogether, including eighteen of New York City's leading banks. On 14th October, 1857, the extensive banking system of the United States collapsed bringing ruin to hundreds of thousands of people in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and the industrial centres of the nation.

The Panic caused rich men to go broke literally overnight. Suicide and murder increased, and people roamed the streets of the cities destitute.

May there be a parallel with our times and 1857 in more than just a banking crisis. May the Revival that followed this banking crisis in America and which came across to Ireland come again in the aftermath of the financial crisis that is presently being experienced in 2009.

Letter sent out from the General Assembly in 1858 on the subject of Revival

Due to the news of the Great Awakening in America 1857-1858 and the initial stirrings of the Holy Spirit in the district of Connor in 1858 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church discussed the subject of Revival when they met in Londonderry in June 1858.

As a follow up a pastoral letter was sent to every minister, elder and member. It is well worth reading as it contains a challenge to each individual to personally seek for Revival. True Revival is more than the conversion of the lost. It is the putting right of matters among the professing people of God.

Here is a short extract from that letter:

What then are we to do? How are we to seek an awakening among ourselves? Not certainly by mere imitation of the American meetings; not by any mechanical process of new and laborious measures, productive of little else than a transient and barren excitement; not by any instrumentality apart from individual consecration of the heart and life unto God.

Dear Brethren, if you really wish to see a solid permanent work of God advancing amongst us, begin with your own souls. Seek a revival there. When you complain as sometimes you do, of the low state of the church, you are generally disposed to look away from home for an explanation. You are prone to find fault with ministers and elders with the Synods and Assemblies. You seldom think of estimating your own particular share in the amount of the our general delinquency. Let every member of the Church put away the beam from his own eye, and then shall he see clearly to take the mote from his brother's eye.

Again look to the state of religion in your own households. What have you to say of family prayer? Of family catechising? Of your efforts to bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord? Put away the strange gods that are among you, if you would be prepared to meet and to hold communion with the Lord.

Further, consider that as members of the Church you are sacramentally pledged to be fellow-labourers in Christ for the emancipation of your fellow-countrymen from the bondage of Satan and of sin, and for the establishment of the kingdom of God over the whole earth… Beloved brethren, we have much to do in our own hearts, much to do in our own homes, much to do in our own Church, much to do in our own country. Let us regard these as our primary duty.

May the Lord indeed help us to take heed to ourselves!

New Testament teaching on Separation from Apostasy

In the New Testament the term ‘apostasy’ comes from a word which means ‘a falling away’. It is found in 1 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition. The same word is also used by the Jews when mistakenly accusing Paul of forsaking the teaching of Moses in Acts 21:21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.

‘Apostasy’ is the term used to describe a revolt against and a departure from the truth of God. The use of the word in Acts 21:21 shows that it properly describes a forsaking of the great truths of the written Word. The written Word of God and nothing else constitutes the faith once delivered to the saints. We are warned in Scripture that there will come a falling away from the truth of God as the return of Jesus Christ approaches. The love of many shall wax cold!

The question to be addressed is: what is to be the Christian’s attitude to this falling away? We have the answer in the written Word of God.

1. We are to mark out those who depart from the faith. Romans 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. The Christian is to measure up all that they hear taught against the infallible standard of the Bible.

2. We are to reprove them. Ephesians 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. The child of God is not to remain silent and complicit with error, they are to speak out against the error, reproving those who teach it.

3. We are to reject them. Titus 3:10 A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject. If there is no turning from error after repeated counsel then we must reject those who teach the error.

4. We are to have no fellowship with them. 2 Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? We cannot remain in fellowship with any who teach error.

5. We are to separate from them. 2 Corinthians 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. Not being able to fellowship with them we must part company from them and join a Church that does hold to the faith once delivered to the saints.

Update - The Bible also teaches Secondary Separation, that is, it requires the Bible believer to separate from other believers who are walking disorderly: Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.…And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother, 2 Thess 3:6,14,15.

Ecumenism in Glengormley

The Newtownabbey Times has reported on the Community Carol Service which took place in Glengormley Methodist Church during December. This event is in its third year and 'rotates around the four Glengormley Churches annually, under the auspices of the Glengormley Clergy Fellowship'.

Invited guests include local retailers, representatives from local community groups and schools, as well as the Mayor of Newtownabbey, Alderman Victor Robinson, the Mayoress and local councillors. Taking part in the service was: Rev Mervyn Kilpatrick of the Methodist Church; Rev David Brice from Glengormley Presbyterian; Rev William Boyce from St Brigid's Church of Ireland; and 'Father' Dan Whyte of St Bernard's Roman Catholic Church.

This event further highlights the gross apostasy of the mainline Churches which can conduct joint worship with a Roman Catholic priest. A letter was sent to the Newtownabbey Times pointing this out:

The ecumenical spirit on display at the Community Carol Service in Glengormley is a sad betrayal of the Gospel of Jesus Christ by those Protestant ministers who joined with and permitted a Roman Catholic priest to participate. 

Romanism is not Christian therefore no Romish priest should be taking part in any service in a Protestant Church. The doctrinal statements of the Church of Ireland, the Presbyterian Church, as well as the teachings of John Wesley which forms the basis for the doctrinal beliefs of Methodism, clearly emphasis this. 

God can only be properly worshipped on the basis of truth, John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. There can be no common ground between Romanism and Biblical Protestantism. 

The 'Christ' that Romanism preaches is one totally different to that revealed to us in the Word of God. It is not possible for these so called Protestant ministers to profess allegiance to the Saviour and the Bible and at the same time associate with one who openly denies the Christ of the Bible. Romanism preaches another Christ and 'another Gospel' which will not save anyone, Gal 1:6-9. 

Sadly we live in times when great departure from historic orthodox Christianity has taken place. These Protestant ministers are part of that growing departure, 2 Thess 2:3. 

Born again believers should have no part in such a service and also have no association with those who betray the Gospel in this fashion. 

We are commanded in the New Testament to mark out those who have departed from the faith, Rom 16:17; reprove and reject them, Eph 5:11, Titus 3:10; have no fellowship with them, 2 Cor 6;14 and separate wholly from them, 2 Cor 6:17. That was evidently not happening at the community carol service. 

May in this year that marks the 150th anniversary of the 1859 Revival we see a return to Biblical Christianity.

The Sound of an Alarm

During the ministry of Rev Ivan Foster in Whiteabbey Free Presbyterian Church in the mid 1960s a church magazine was commenced entitled 'The Sound of an Alarm'. The words of the title were taken from the Book of Joel 2:1: Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand. Its purpose was to be a witness in the area among those who could not come in under the sound of the gospel; and also to challenge the apostasy as some of the local papers refused to carry articles critical of the departure from God's word prevalent in the mainline Churches. Copies of some originals still remain.

It is the desire to recommence that witness in the form of a personal blog. May the Lord be honoured in all that is written in the days to come in His will.