I have been learning about the emergent church recently. A cursory glance makes it seem so nice even good. After all they (seemingly) just want to reach this generation. But when you dig a bit deeper you get to the no hell and how can we incorporate bits of Buddhism and truth is relative. This movement really frightens me because I don't think the average person would notice it as it creeps into their church. Because (as with all of his best lies) Satan won't just jump out and say the worst parts. In fact now that I have been learning more about it, I can see how it has been seeping into my church. It is so subtle. For now. Here is a video about the emergent church movement. It is the last (but I thought best) part of a sermon.
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My general evaluation about The Emergent Church is that it is a religious movement largely arising out of but departing from Biblical and evangelical faith. It appears to be a syncretism of the old religious modernism and social gospel movements that arose in Protestantism a century or more ago along with peculiar borrowings from different faith traditions and an oppenness to worldliness in living. The Emergent Church tends to denigrate the Bible as an authoritative guide and tends to minimize or question the great fundamental doctrines of Christ and the Scriptures for a hodgepodge marriage of the Kingdom of God with the kingdoms of this world.
The Emergent Church is not yet a single well defined movement and the above evaluation may be oversimplified, but I believe my theological and philosophical observations are generally on the mark.
Raymond,
From what I understand, I think that you are right on target.
The most difficult part is to identify "emergent." On the one hand you have the far out like Brian McLaren and his "Generous Orthodoxy." But on the other hand you have some folks who are mostly orthodox/reformed in doctrine, but want to add more "experiential" elements to worship like candles, art, etc. Like so many other "movements", we can learn from the desire to reach this generation; we just have to be very discerning about where some of these folks will lead us.
Your caution is well founded.
Scott,
Even the experiential stuff makes me nervous. I am not against candles and art per se. I do see a danger in focusing your experiences as a Christian things done inside the church building. I think you experience God and his power more when you are out in the world helping the lost come to know Christ and helping others in His name. Obeying God brings us closer to him than lighting candles or burning incense. It seems that many of these people that claim to be emergent are big on sensory and little on obedience and truth. Now I did enjoy the time at our church where an artist painted a picture of Jesus during the service.
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