False Prophets and Religious Globalism on the Ascent
This millennium has unveiled several 'new' heretical movements led by popular 'Christian' leaders and authors, who in reality are false prophets masquerading as shepherds of the Body of Christ. Honing their heretical trades since the 1970s, these movements with their false prophets, who teach a gospel antithetical to the gospel of Jesus Christ, have been predicted in the Bible to spin a mighty deceptive web that will ensnare millions in the last days: "But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies" (2 Peter 2:1),and
“For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible” (Matthew 24:24).
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3 - 4).
In other words, false prophets teach unbiblical doctrines that stray from Scriptural principles. They teach heresies that are anathema to God's Word and truth. Some even make predictions about the future of the world that are proven to be false. Nevertheless, they are more popular than Biblical orthodoxy, particularly among the youth, the moral relativists and the liberal Christians who prefer a gospel that lends credence to their deviant lifestyle.
The heresies that are popular today are simply variations of the same heresies that have arisen throughout the history of the Church, from the time of the first-century church when the apostle Peter accurately observed her slide into heresy, and predicted that she would continue this downward slide through the Church Age to present times. Among the false doctrines and heresies prevalent this century are Gnosticism, Arianism, Universalism, Ecumenicism, and New Spirituality. Indeed many in today's mainstream and evangelical churches (Lutheran, Methodist, Calvary, Presbyterian, Anglican, et. al.) are voting to abandon Christian orthodoxy in favour of embracing the doctrines of demons including ordaining homosexuals into their leadership and allowing gays and women to teach from the pulpits.
In this article, I am going to delineate the heresies of the ecumenical and New Spirituality movements, which are the preponderance of the postmodern movements responsible for infiltrating into many of today's churches their seductive and insidious false gospels and postmodern approach to truth and godliness that removes historic scriptural authority from their teachings. As well, I will mention the names of the leading false prophets of these movements. Finally, I will conclude with an exposition of the heretical movement known as the 'Mission of Maitreya'.
The Ecumenical and New Spirituality / Emerging (or Emergent) Church Movements
In the guise of Christianity, these movements are being promoted and embraced in the Christian church by professing Christian teachers and authors such as Leonard Sweet, Brian McLaren and Rick Warren. Lately, even popular authors like Greg Laurie and Chuck Smith have been reported to have lent their support to the Emerging church / New Spirituality causes [1]. Many of these Emerging church advocates, calling themselves leaders of the 'New Spirituality' (which has replaced the term 'New Age') or 'New Light', teach their congregations the belief that God is in everything – a New Age / New Spirituality teaching that has panentheistic tenets as its core apologetic.
The New Spirituality's latest assault on the Church is the farce of ecumenism which is promoted and glorified throughout the world. A Satanic system of lies built on the deception that all religions are equal and worship the same God, ecumenism is the postmodern substitute for Christian charity and teaches that all faiths should join together in unity regardless of doctrinal integrity. What used to be a Christian movement to unite all Christian denominations has become a worldwide interfaith campaign to fulfill the ecumenical efforts predicted in the Book of Revelation. Therefore cathedrals, stadiums and conferences are filling up with Muslim, Christian, Catholic, Baha'i, Jewish, Buddhist, and Hindu clerics, all praying together under one roof for a common worldwide peace and anti-terrorism initiative (perhaps I should use the PC term "Overseas Contingency Operation").
A leading proponent of this interfaith unity is Saddleback Church pastor, Rick Warren, and like the New Spirituality leaders who promote the 'all paths lead to the same God' credo, he is known to speak at conferences of interfaith leaders to implement his global P.E.A.C.E. plan, a plan not unlike the New Spirituality P.E.A.C.E. plan, and a plan that any discerning Christian will realize is sympathetic to a humanistic dominionist's aspiration [1]. What's more, Warren doesn't appear to realize that salvation is not possible with God out of the picture, for Scriptures teach that only Jesus is the way to God.
Aside from teaching a poor theology, Rick Warren's Purpose-Driven Church Growth plan is also one of the avenues through which the heresy of New Spirituality is entering the Church. This movement borrows heavily from the meditative ideologies and practice of Buddhism and other practices of eastern mysticism and pagan spirituality, such as contemplative prayer, meditation and yoga.
The attempts of ecumenism, New Spirituality and the Emerging movement to build a bridge to all faiths and incorporate eastern mysticism and pagan spirituality in the Church are anathema to Christ for Jesus never taught that doctrine was unimportant or that there were many paths and they all led to the same God. In fact, Jesus taught that He was the only way to God (John 14:6). Jesus also taught that there would be a strong delusion before His Second Coming and this delusion is manifested in the movements of Brian McLaren, Rick Warren and Leonard Sweet.
The Mission of Maitreya
There is another movement deluding the world and it has been bringing together individuals from diverse denominations including Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, Oral Roberts University, the Roman Catholic Church and the Word-Faith Movement. This movement is in the process of syncretizing all denominational/religious groups via 'signs and wonders' to form a One-World church. It has been suggested that the leader of this movement will proclaim himself to be 'Christ returned' to lead this church of the New World Order. To many of his followers, his name is Lord Maitreya. The Buddhist Maitreya is variously known as the Muslim Mahdi, the Jewish Messiah and the Christian Christ, who is the one the world's religions await to usher in world peace.
To discerning believers, however, Maitreya is another false prophet; nevertheless there are scholars who opine that he is the perfect candidate to be the Antichrist or the False Prophet of Revelation 19 and 20. One reason for this is his purported new seal. The seal of Maitreya consists of the 666 (the number of the Beast) elements and is emblazoned with icons of some of the main religions of the world: the I-Ching, the Star of David, the Cross, the crescent moon, a nine-armed star, another Star of David with a rising sun, and a seventh sign meaning 'Pure Consciousness' with a swastika symbol in its center. The entire logo is called the Greatest Sign and belies an ambitious endeavour of Maitreya's followers to syncretize all the world's leading religious systems.
The Mission of Maitreya teaches that Jesus was simply one of a long line of prophets pointing a way to God, which is the reason the mission is embraced wholeheartedly by the New Age / New Spirituality movement. Maitreya is credited for many of the world's sightings of wonders and signs such as weeping statues, crop circles, crosses of light and milk-drinking waters!
What this means for the world
I have no doubt that we are living in the age the Lord Jesus Christ has called the Laodicean age (Revelation 3:14 - 17), which is the final Church Age characterized by the great apostasy. Total apostasy from God is a sign of the last days and it is inextricably bound with false prophets and the religions of cults and heresies.
I fervently believe that the above are movements that are inexorably leading up to a universal religious system which will usher in a period of false peace, love and brotherhood under the leadership of a personality that they call the Christ, but we know from the Word of God is the Antichrist. In the last days Antichrist will assume totalitarian power in the world's political landscape to lead its global One-World government alongside his sidekick, the False Prophet, who will be the leader of the false One-World church (Revelation 19 and 20).
Ergo the ecumenical and Emerging church movements so popular today are preparing their adherents for the False Prophet's future global religion that shall be a counterfeit of the Body of Christ.
I fervently believe that the above are movements that are inexorably leading up to a universal religious system which will usher in a period of false peace, love and brotherhood under the leadership of a personality that they call the Christ, but we know from the Word of God is the Antichrist. In the last days Antichrist will assume totalitarian power in the world's political landscape to lead its global One-World government alongside his sidekick, the False Prophet, who will be the leader of the false One-World church (Revelation 19 and 20). Ergo the ecumenical and Emerging church movements so popular today are preparing their adherents for the False Prophet's future global religion that shall be a counterfeit of the Body of Christ.
Consequently, we believers in the Body of Christ are exhorted to try every spirit to discern if it is true or false lest we are led to believe the lie of the spirit of this age:
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
Maranatha!
Footnote:
1. Links to sites previously provided but the sites have now been removed by the respective authors.
Footnote:
1. Links to sites previously provided but the sites have now been removed by the respective authors.
