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I'll expand on this poem later. Even though I told myself that I was done with writing poetry for a while--but over the last few days, been talking to a new friend about theology and heretics, one in particular.
But I  became inspired suddenly. So I decided to write.
Going to expand later; probably going to try and make it applicable for Christians, and not just a random poem about how too often Christians aren't discerning.
Anyways, here it is. Literally, just finished it.

"You do not know the wolf you
prance so happily about.
You figure all he says is true
He never let you doubt.

What a dangerous game you play
Letting him speak
You invite him to stay
And discernment is leaking.

Letting the world turn grey
Kind and powerful words he uses as the bait
Soaking in all that he has to say
In this way you choose your own fate."


God Bless,
  A.W.

Open Or Private?

The worst thing that has happened this week was going to my favorite blog, and finding an open letter to one of my favorite preachers. It's a sad thing when you find the people in your own camp shooting not at the wolves who are leading people astray, but firing at their own fellow men.
That breaks me.
Perhaps it is because I already know so many people who either are led astray by false teachers, or many of the other people I know who have alright theology just go along and support the heretics and false teachers blindly.
After reading comments and talking to people, I realized I don't know quite how to say how I feel about it all. I am disappointed, and maybe that is just because I am so sick of the Reformed camp arguing about the little things when they could be shooting the real wolves.
There are some things that I won't argue with people about because I don't think the Bible is all that clear about. Some of which are the end times and spiritual gifts.

Am I against open letters to people? No, not at all. What I am against is bringing up the little things and making them a huge ordeal. Seems like once a well respected person attacks someone for something that isn't heretical, like having a vision from God, everyone else follows.
I think in this case, the person who wrote the letter should have gone to the other person in private. Now there is this huge ordeal developing again, and is giving people more of a reason to hate.
I don't like that. That really bothers me.
Maybe that is just because I am so used to people dealing with heretics and false teachers the wrong way.
I think it would be wise to draw the line between going to your brother in private and calling him out openly.
I think that if the person is preaching every week continually to his whole congregation about something like that, there is a problem. And perhaps that person does need to be called out openly. But I do believe that there is a point in which the best thing to do is to go in private to someone and to tell them where they disagree with them.
It's sad to see the people in my own camp argue with and fire at their own men. And at times, instead of writing open letters and calling out someone in public for the small things, they need to aim their guns at the wolves who are sneaking their way into the flock. Though they are important things to discuss with one another, I think that we have to draw the line between making your disagreement with someone open and going to them in private.

God Bless,
  A.W.

Why Not Me?

Last week while working on an outline, I kept thinking of what God used to save me. God used a heretic who has led many people astray with his false teachings. I know so many people who have accepted his teachings. It breaks my heart at what this man had done. I deserved to be led astray by that man, just like so many of my friends have. The question that will never leave my mind is, 'Why not me?'.
I didn't know any theology when I first became a Christian. I was so vulnerable to be led astray by that man. I should have been led astray like so many others. I don't understand why God didn't let me though.
It breaks me to see the man's ministry flourish, and to know that more people are being led astray. And to know that I should have been one of those people.
I deserved to be led astray. I would have definitely learned the hard way to know the importance of theology.
I wish I could only know the answer to that question. Why not me? It's been running through my mind all this weekend. Why not me? Why not me, O God?
I don't understand why God would save a wretched sinner such as me, and I don't understand why He kept me from the heresy that the man was preaching.
When I tell people my testimony I can't help but feel that they don't understand it really.
It's hard to know that the heretic who God used to save me has led some of my dear friends astray.
That's what grace is though.
God has given me so much grace in my life! Saving me from myself! Breaking my addictions! Showing me the truth through a man's lies! God has been so gracious to me, to give me the right theology. To keep me from falling into heresy.
But still the question will always remain: Why not me?

Faith

Listened to a sermon last night on faith. It was a pretty good sermon.
The preacher mentioned something that I haven't thought of in a while. And that is that Christianity takes a lot of faith. The preacher asked how do we know that Christianity is real?
What if when we die we stand before God and realize that it wasn't Christianity that was the real thing, it was some other religion. How do you know that it's Christianity?
It takes a lot of faith to tell a Mormon or a Muslim that they are wrong, it takes a lot of faith for that. What if you were the one who was wrong in the end, and now you stand before a different God whose people you told were going to hell.
You would be condemned for that.

That takes a lot of faith, but you know what even takes more than that?
Telling a professing Christian that he is wrong.
It's hard to stand up against a heretic or a false teacher and say that what they believe, what they are standing for is all wrong. How do you know that you aren't just as off as they appear to be?
You must know your Bible. That's one of the reasons that you must value theology in your life. 
It takes a lot of faith to stand up in the Christian community and say that someone is wrong.
It takes a lot of faith to know that what you believe is what the Bible teaches, that what you believe is what Jesus Christ taught.
It takes a lot of faith to stand  when so many people are under a delusion of how wonderful that heretic may be. It takes so much faith.
And the question comes down to this: Do you have that faith? Do you have that faith that you can stand against the heretics in the Christian community and say 'no'? Even when no other human being is with you.
Do you really have that much faith to know that what you are saying is right, and what the other man is saying is wrong?
Is that the faith you have?

God Bless,
  A.W.

Stand

In my last post I told you about how far we have fallen, not only in our culture, but in the Christian community too. One thing I didn't go into much detail about was about the wolves we have let in.
I know too many people who have accepted false teachers saying, "Oh, they are nice. They wouldn't lead anyone astray. And if they do it isn't going to damn them to hell if they believe it, so it's okay."
People don't care anymore if anyone is lead astray. As long as the heretic is nice and sweet it's okay that he comes and preaches his heresy at our church.
Even the people who say they are in the same boat as I am, the people who say they hold to the same doctrines I do, will not stand.
No one wants to take a stand because it's too hard, or because they know that if they stand they will be persecuted. And others don't stand becuase they don't want to.
There are people being led astray every day, and the false teachers and heretics who are around us we let be. We don't really love people if we are inviting a heretic into our church.
People are being led astray and the people of God refuse to stand.

Some people assume that men like Phil Johnson and James White will find the heretics and deal with them. But just because God has greatly used those men to show us why certain people are wrong, doesn't mean that the other "ordinary" Christians can't defend their faith too.
If the day hasn't come already that someone will step up and challenge you about your beliefs, it is coming.
What did you say when that day came? Were you able to defend your views?  Did you stand? Or did you fall?
I do not believe that the Bible teaches that women should be in leadership, but I do believe that every man and woman should stand and defend the Word of God when need be.
Every Christian should be a theologian. And part of being a theologian is defending the truth.

Studying theology is hard work but God calls us to stand, and we can only stand if we know what we believe and why we believe it.
If you love God and if you love your brothers and sisters in Christ, and if you love the truth, you will stand, and defend the Word of God.
You don't really love your brethren if you will not stand to show them the truth. You do not really love God as much as you think you do, if you do not stand and defend His Word.
A lot of times we don't defend it because we don't want to be alone. We don't want to be on the "bad" side.
People will look down on you if you stand. People will be angry. People will hate you. People will persecute you for the things you say.
And sometimes on the other hand, people will thank you. And tell you that God used you to open their eyes. For most of the time, at least in my life it's the first group, of people not liking you after. But when someone does thank me, everything seems worth it.
Some of you know what I am talking about.
Other times no one says thank you. And that doesn't always mean that God didn't change anyone. God might have opened someone's eyes, you might just never know.
Either way, it's worth it to stand. And to stand is to obey.

As Christians we have become so afraid in not only the world, but also the Christian community. We've become soft, and don't love our brethren. We've put on a mask at times, and "stood" to defend the Word, but then when we aren't in a debate we accept those heretics just the way they are. For doing great works, or being greatly used by God.
We are loosing it in our community, that we have become so weak and so caught up with what everyone else is thinking.
How many of us will take a stand? How many of us can and will defend the Gospel when the time comes to rise? Who will stand? Who will stand?

God bless,
  A.W.

The Greatest Generation

The Greatest Generation is one of the best Non-fiction books that I have ever read. I have always loved stuff from the 1940s. I love the movies, the clothing, the hairdos, the lifestyle, the history--pretty much everything.
The book made my smile, laugh, and cry as I read it. The things they said made me cry at times, becuase I knew how true all of it was. One woman said that family time was important to everyone back then, but nowadays we don't have time for family.
Most families are broken and both parents work. No one has time for family anymore, the woman said.
And that was another thing--when a couple got married they would stay together, that's just how they were. They didn't just get divorced and move on to someone else like it's nothing. Some people did that, but they say that the great majority didn't.
So unlike today, there thousands of broken families in America.
Everything has changed so much over the last 60 or so years. Our society no longer has values and morals. And the things we accept now would shock someone who lived in the 40s. They would be shocked that we have accepted the most vile and disgusting lifestyles and thrown the things that matter most in the dump.
And that's just in our society as a whole.
But the church is a different story.
We can't expect anything from the world, but for it to get darker and darker.
But from the church we should expect more, don't you think?

The church is supposed to be the light in this dark world. But is it as it should be?
We always say we don't conform to the world. But take a step back and then tell me again that the people of God aren't conforming to this world.
Have you ever looked to see what we have accepted? Churches are beginning to accept the gays and lesbians like it's nothing. And not only are we refusing to take a stand against the world, but we will not even stand against the heretics and false teachers in our own group.
It's easier to stand against gay marriage, than it is to take a stand against a well respected false teacher in our own field.
Do you even realize how dangerous a false teacher is? Do you even understand what you are letting in your church?
There are thousands of people who are blinded by the devil and led astray by heretics, and we sit back and do nothing! Don't you see anything wrong with that?
God has given us His Word so not only will we know how to live, but so we will also know how to defend the truth. And when a false teacher comes we just follow right after him because he might be famous or well-respected in this world. We follow right after and even though we see his teaching blinding others we do nothing but follow and support him.
Am I the only one who sees something disgusting with that?

What would Calvin or Luther or Edwards say if they lived in our day and they saw what we had let in? What would they say?
Part of me says they would fall down and weep for the condition of the church today. They would weep and we just accept it all. We have forgotten how to cry.

God Bless,
   A.W.