John MacArthur – Transformation of Grace Community Church
This information has been painstakingly put together by Bob Johnson over a period of several years. It’s shocking and I believe it’s the truth. Bob has been attacked by John MacArthur and Phil Johnson who have tried to discredit him, but the facts remain standing strong.
I am going to present this information only because I stand for the truth AT ALL COSTS. [Edited by DTW: 31 Mar 2010 – I have made a public apology too everyone I told that MacArthur is legitimate. I am very very sorry for this. I trusted MacArthur and I was deceived and I led others to believe he was ok. Every bit of credibility I gave John MacArthur I retract. I did not understand the doctrine of Calvinism at the time, now I do. Please see here for my sincerest apology: http://www.discerningtheworld.com/2010/03/30/what-do-you-do-when]
Now before anyone gets all carried away, I am not a Calvinist. I am a born again Christian and my ‘denomination’ is what lies between the pages of the Word of God. I believe in free will and I believe that repentance of sin is an ongoing essential part of your relationship with Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. We are not predestined, or elected by God before the foundation of the world (for biblical predestination understanding please see What it Really Means to be Elected, Chosen, and Predestinated – The Biblical Truth); I won’t even get onto the topic of John Calvin as that’s another story all on it’s own and Calvinism has it’s roots in Rome.
Are there people who are genuinely saved under GCC – Absolutely, when they find out the truth as to what Calvinism is all about, they will leave there sooner or later. God knows our hearts. He knows what we think, He knows what we believe, He knows everything about us. I believe we are all judged on what we know up to a certain point in time. (I am NOT talking about sin here, or using this as an excuse to say, “oh I never accepted Jesus, because I didn’t know anything, or no one told me.) Because the Bible commands you to study to find yourself approved anyhow, so no one has any excuse. And if you have the Holy Spirit in your life you will never get something so wrong or believe and follow something so wrong as the doctrine of Calvinism and the fruit of John MacArthur speaks for itself.Now when the Holy Spirit reveals to us what’s really going on behind the scenes, this is when we are now faced with a massive decision of “should I stay or should I go” – will you accept the false teachings that are slithering its way in, or will I stand firm on the Word of God and warn others about what is happening and get out because you will not tolerate men insulting Jesus Christ! When the Holy Spirit has warned you, you can’t ever say to Jesus one day, “I didn’t know”, because you did know, but you CHOSE (free will) TO IGNORE IT. And in doing so you continued to stay and support ungodly doctrines.
Even if John MacArthur carried on preaching what sounded like the greatest gospel from the pulpit (which we know is not because it’s Calvinistic) – he will slowly but surely lead his congregation astray more and more astray as he turns to Rome along with every other denomination in these end times.
Will his preaching start to change? Will it become a more emergent gospel? It appears has as he is embracing contemplative spirituality for some time: John MacArthur and Dallas Willard – Two Contemplating Calvinists
Does John MacArthur have to make a choice like the rest of us to follow Jesus Christ 100% or follow Satan instead? Absolutely.
We ALL sit in the same position. Jesus Christ is LORD, He is our KING, He judges ALL, NO ONE gets an ‘immunity card’ from GOD.
Ok let’s get onto the info shall we…
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The Transformation of John Macarthur’s Grace Community Church
How Change Agents are Transitioning GCC into the New World Order
Introduction –
by Bob Johnson On January 2, 2005,
John MacArthur gave a sermon to his congregation in which he described the state of his church. In that sermon John MacArthur stated, “I feel like part of the ministry I must discharge before the Lord and you is a ministry of warning about danger. Our church is not in particular danger from some dominating iniquity. It is not in particular danger from some infiltrating heresy. It is not in danger from some loss of resources financially or human. Everything you can see on the surface looks to be good. And we would have every reason to think we stand, and still be on the brink of a fall.”
John MacArthur said that his church was not in particular danger from infiltrating heresy. This paper will show that a dangerous heresy has infiltrated his church; a heresy known generally as the church growth movement. And this paper will show that this movement, being backed by globalists and being used to fulfill their one-world agenda, is now manipulating GCC into that same agenda.
John MacArthur said that his church is not in danger from some dominating iniquity.This paper will show that John MacArthur, being the dominant figure in his church, by disobeying the doctrine of separation, has allowed men to speak at his church and has allowed men to occupy leadership positions in his church, who, professing to be Christians, are actually dedicated to this one-world agenda.
John MacArthur said that everything you can see on the surface of his church looks to be good. I have been to his church, and I have attended his ministries, and I didn’t have to look beyond the surface to see that everything there is not good. I didn’t have to look beyond the surface of his church in order to see the presence of the Purpose Driven Church (PDC) model or the dialectic sessions employed by that model.
Nor did I have to look beyond the surface to see that John MacArthur’s international ministry, a ministry dedicated to “training church leaders worldwide,” is a church growth organization now partnering with foreign governments.In his “state of the church” sermon, John Macarthur said that GCC could be on the brink of a fall. GCC has gone beyond that brink and has now fallen. GCC is not holy, peculiar, sanctified and set apart, but rather, is a church that has now found common ground with Satanic agents pushing the one-world agenda via the church growth movement.
Allow me, by way of introduction, to say how I became interested in the goings on at GCC. My interest in GCC began in March 2005 when a local pastor invited me to accompany him to the GCC Pastor’s Conference being held that same month. Wanting to get information about the conference, I went to the GCC website where I noticed that Dr. Albert Mohler was to be a keynote speaker. I’d never heard of Dr. Mohler.
When curiosity pressed and an internet search ended, I had discovered information about Dr. Mohler that was not in accord with his Christian profession. I had discovered that Dr. Mohler was a Founding Fellow of the “think tank” of a UN-NGO. I had discovered that a UN-NGO is a non-governmental organization that is listed with the UN and that serves the UN and its one-world agenda. And therefore, I concluded that it must necessarily follow, that Dr. Mohler, being a Founding Fellow of this UN-NGO’s “think tank” which serves the UN and its agenda, must also serve the UN agenda. (It has since been confirmed to me by a colleague of Dr. Mohler’s that all the Fellows of the “think tank” of this UN-NGO are dedicated to the principles of the charter of the UN).
Knowing that the UN agenda is satanic and knowing that this agenda includes the destruction of Biblical Christianity, I wondered why John Macarthur would invite a man dedicated to this agenda into his church and into his pulpit. Was John Macarthur aware of Dr. Mohler’s UN affiliation? (I have since learned that Dr. Mohler holds leadership positions in at least two organizations that serve the UN globalist agenda as NGO’s.)
I proceeded to write a letter to each of the members of the GCC elder board. I warned them all of Dr. Mohler’s associations. I received a reply from elder, Phil Johnson, dated March 23, 2005. Regarding Dr. Mohler’s associations, Mr. Johnson wrote, “We may not agree with all his associations, but nothing in Scripture demands that we separate from a true brother in Christ just because we may disagree with him on where he draws the circle of his own fellowship.” Is this a true statement? Is there nothing in Scripture that demands separation from a professed Christian who is affiliated with satanic evil (the UN)? Many verses in Scripture demand that Christians separate from evil and 2 Thess. 3:14 demands separation from professed Christians who are disobedient: “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.” Scripture does demand separation from Dr. Mohler.
Why didn’t the GCC elders seem to be alarmed by Dr. Mohler’s affiliations? Why were they willing to ignore Biblical commands in order to continue a relationship with Dr. Mohler? Being dissatisfied with the reply I’d received from the GCC elder board, I then decided to make phone calls to several other GCC pastors in order to inform them of Dr. Mohler’s UN connection. Surely, they would all be concerned. I told them all that Dr. Mohler was a Fellow of a UN-NGO. What was their response? The pastors all angrily denied this easily verifiable fact. I then decided to write letters to about ten more GCC pastors. I expressed to them my concern that Dr. Mohler was a Fellow of a UN-NGO.
I received a reply from one pastor, Rick Mclean, responding for all, who, putting himself in the position of God, told me that the information I’d given them regarding Dr. Mohler’s associations “was of no eternal consequence.” This pastor also told me to never contact them again regarding this matter. In November 2005, a member of GCC agreed to meet me for a discussion. His name was George. I had asked George during a phone conversation if he’d be willing to have a discussion with me concerning some things at GCC that I had found troubling.
Two days after agreeing to meet with me, I received an email from George informing me that our meeting couldn’t take place. He told me that after checking with his church’s authorities, those authorities had decided not to allow our meeting to take place. George also informed me that only one man at GCC would meet with me. This was the same pastor who had already written to tell me to never contact them again. The email that George sent me was cc’d or copied to this same pastor and George informed me that any future correspondence I might have with him would also be cc’d to this pastor. The GCC authorities were exercising strict control over this situation. If Dr. Mohler’s UN affiliation was “of no eternal consequence” according to pastors at GCC, then why were they taking such extraordinary measures in order to prevent the exposure of that affiliation? Why were they willing to go to such lengths in order to keep knowledge of that affiliation hidden from their church membership?
George was not allowed to meet me for a discussion in a local coffee shop. In not allowing one Christian to meet another, the GCC authorities had taken authority not given them in the Word of God. In not allowing one Christian to meet another, the GCC authorities were exercising a type of control that is cult-like. Believing the GCC authority’s behavior to be deceitful, and knowing they didn’t want Dr. Mohler’s UN affiliation exposed, I decided to do just that at their March 2006 Pastor’s Conference. With Dr. Mohler again invited to be a keynote speaker, I stood outside their church and handed out flyers to the arriving pastors. The flyer was titled “Al Mohler and the United Nations.”
The flyer basically contained 2 facts: Al Mohler was a Founding Fellow of the Research Institute (think tank) of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) and that the ERLC was a UN-NGO. How did the GCC officials respond to these flyers being handed out on the public sidewalk outside their church? A GCC pastor, Eric Bancroft, with the head of security in tow, approached me and angrily told me that my flyer contained “all lies”; he then warned me that if I was to set foot on GCC property, I’d be arrested.
When I left GCC that evening, some GCC officials followed me and with the head of security present, they photographed my car and wrote down my license plate number. What began as an effort to warn the saints at GCC about Dr. Mohler’s UN affiliation didn’t end with my threatened arrest. The GCC authorities had tried to keep Dr. Mohler’s UN affiliation hidden from their membership. I couldn’t help but wonder what else they may be hiding. “Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.”
So, I decided to take a closer look into their ministries. GCC has eight subministries listed on their website. Two of these subministries are singles ministries. In looking through these two ministry’s web pages, I began to notice the presence of certain “buzzwords” common to the Purpose Driven Church (PDC) model. I noticed that much of the language used to describe the activities of these ministries was identical to the language used in the PDC model. Being very familiar with both the “buzzwords” and structure of the PDC, I strongly suspected that these two ministries were run on that model. My suspicions were confirmed after I attended both of these ministry’s Friday night “Bible studies.”
It was then that I realized that the church growth movement (CGM)/PDC model had infiltrated GCC in at least their two singles ministries. Knowing that the PDC movement had already spread like wildfire across America’s churches and knowing that once this movement gets a foothold in a church it will spread like cancer throughout the entire church body, I knew that it was my Christian duty to warn the saints at GCC about this real danger within. In the summer of 2006, I wrote a letter intended for the Christian remnant at GCC in which I warned them of this dangerous church growth infiltration.
It was titled “A Wake Up Call to the Saints at Grace Community Church.” While standing on the sidewalk across the street, I handed out copies to the congregants as they left the church. I handed out this letter of warning for three consecutive Sundays. On the second Sunday, as I handed out the “Wake-up Call,” the police were called. A black and white unit stopped and an officer approached me and told me that they had received a call claiming that I was harassing the congregation. I was handing out my letter to Christians as they left the church. I never harassed anyone and no one had complained to me.
Why were the police called? On that same day, in what could be construed as another act of intimidation, a GCC official approached me and told me that the GCC authorities were considering a lawsuit against me. Since handing out this letter of warning, I have continued to look into the activities of various ministries at GCC and I have continued to find activity indicating the presence of the church growth movement. For example, I have seen that a GCC ministry called The Master’s Academy International (TMAI), which states that its mission is to “train church leaders worldwide,” is actually a church growth organization that is now partnering with foreign governments. (A goal of the church growth movement is to merge the church into a partnership with business and government. This is called Communitarianism.)
Later, I will describe both the leadership and the activities of TMAI in detail. Grace Community Church (GCC) [www.gracechurch.org], pastored by John MacArthur is being subverted and transformed by the church growth movement (CGM). This paper will give a description of the CGM, how it manifests itself at GCC, and how it has infiltrated GCC.
Part I
How the Church Growth Movement Manifests Itself at GCC (The Guild and The Foundry)
The Master’s Academy International (TMAI) Leadership
TMAI Leader’s Transformational Language
TMAI Training Centers
TMAI Brazil
TMAI Honduras
TMAI South Africa
TMAI New Zealand
TMAI Mexico
TMAI Russia
TMAI-Philippines
The TMAI Leadership Community
Part IV
How the Church Growth Movement Infiltrated GCC
John Macarthur’s Ecumenical Roots
Hi Fred,
Okay, I’ll give it one LAST try. In short, concise, logical steps.
1. God is completely OUTSIDE of the stream of TIME.
2. We are completely INSIDE the stream of TIME.
3. Therefore, from OUR viewpoint within the stream of TIME, God ‘FOREKNEW’. God ‘PREDESTINED”.
BUT!
4. From God’s viewpoint, He experiences, in a constant, eternal PRESENT tense, the end,the middle and the beginning, as NOW.
He doesn’t look FORWARD. He doesn’t look BACKWARD. He just LOOKS.
He uses words we can relate to, because it’s easier for our minds to grasp some concepts that way, but His ways are NOT our ways, and His thoughts are NOT our thoughts.
Again, the reason that Jesus said; “Before Abraham WAS, I AM”, is because that’s His relationship to time, always I AM, never I WAS, or I WILL BE, just I AM.
The problem we all have is that we have to use words and ideas that are slaves to our experience. We can’t know what it is like for God, because we’re not eternal. All we can do is try to state something as honestly as we can, while not really grasping the reality of what it would feel like, because we are trying to describe something about God who is ultimately beyond our understanding.
We can only use the words and concepts given to us in the Bible and not try to add to them, take away from them, or limit it them by forcing them into a human framework, just so we can explain it in half hour sermons that neatly wrap God up in bite size parcels, like chicken nuggets.
Sorry, my sense of humour sometimes sneaks in to my words, so no offense intended, just trying to ‘smile’ as I write. Not that this is a laughing matter, far from it, but I don’t want to just trade broadsides.
That’s as much as I want to say on the subject. I don’t think I can express this TIME issue any better, so if you still don’t get it, may I humbly suggest that you pray, without any kind of bias at all, for the Holy Spirit to reveal the Truth to you? I had to be prepared to let go of MANY long held beliefs, so I know how frightening it can be, but we must LOVE the truth above all things and be prepared to search for it as if for hidden treasure and to let go of anything that is not true, no matter the cost.
May God richly bless you Fred, in Jesus’ wonderful name,
Shalom.
Alan.
Hi All,
Elmarie posted a statement of Fred’s above, which had this in it:-
“As I have stated at the outset of this debate, both the Guild and the Foundry are singles groups. By definition, they have a different tone in those fellowship groups because they are singles.”
I know that the whole idea of ‘singles ministry’ (whatever that means) has become very commonplace nowadays, but really, where on earth in the Bible is there any justification for this ‘ministry?
In some churches, this is the euphemistic name for their version of a singles club, where men or women can go to find someone to marry. Of course there are many singles who see being involved in a church as a means to that end, which is wrong too; we should be seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, then all these things will be added unto us.
This is a subject that is much on my mind of late and I don’t know what the future holds for me right now (whether or not I’ll remarry that is), but I will leave that to the Lord. If He wants me to be remarried, then He will arrange it, if not, it won’t happen. I will wait on him.
Just a thought,
Alan.
Deborah,
You are wrong in stating that Watch Unto Prayer has published “serpent seed teaching” on their website. No where on that site does Barbara Aho state that the serpent had sex with Eve. Since this gnostic teaching isn’t to be found on Watch Unto Prayer, then you must repent of your false assertion that it does. Both Barbara Aho of Watch Unto Prayer and Bob Johnson of The Watchman Wakes In Vain have stated correctly that the fallen angels mated with human women as stated in Gen 6, but neither has ever taught or advanced serpent seed teaching.
Let me add that your recent blog commenter, Fred Butler, is a long time employee of John Macarthur’s Grace To You and is a well paid sychophant for both Phil Johnson and John Macarthur. Like all Macarthur employees, he is a zealous Calvinist, but don’t waste your time telling him that Calvin was a Jew, an occultist, a tyrant that rivaled the worst of popes, and a multiple murderer because Fred won’t attend to facts. If you go to Fred’s blog, then you’ll see that like most Calvinist blogs, his first link is to Al Mohler. But Fred won’t attend to the fact that Mohler, leading NGO’s of the United Nations and signing the Catholic, ecumenical Manhattan Declaration, shows that he can be a Calvinist, but not a Christian. Then again, how could Fred object to Al Mohler’s evil agenda when his boss, Macarthur, considers Mohler to be his close friend and invited Mohler to speak at his recent pastor’s conference?
Allow me to continue. Fred Butler, in toeing the line to uphold John Macarthur’s Christian image, must tell many lies. For instance, when John Macarthur’s singles ministries were publicly exposed for following the Purpose Driven model, and when these ministry’s websites were gutted in an attempt to remove the evidence, true to form, Fred toed the party line by stating the bold and absurd lie that these websites were gutted “due to normal website maintenance.” And it is of no consequence to Fred that the pastor who was leading one of these Purpose Driven ministries is now leading a Purpose Driven-style ministry in North Carolina complete with facilitator-led groups…
I recall seeing that Fred left a comment on this post stating something to the effect that he understands what the Purpose Driven model is, “but it’s not about TQM or Hegelian/Marxist stuff.” The truth is that Fred hasn’t the slightest notion what TQM is or that it IS the organizational model for all Purpose Driven churches and that this fact can be easily proven if one understands TQM and that Peter Drucker, who developed TQM, was Rick Warren’s mentor. Nor does Fred understand that the basis of the Purpose Driven Church and TQM are facilitator-led groups which ARE Marxist dialectic sessions.
When it was exposed that the chairman of the Grace Church elder board, Rob Iverson, was a director of a false Christian org (a “church growth” org) called Leadership Resources International, Fred responded again in ignorance by telling the lie that this org was Christian and biblical. Just on the surface, does Leadership Resources International sound like a Christian org to you? I could go on with many more of Fred’s lies, but I’ll close by mentioning just one–as you may have already discerned, Fred, incredibly, doesn’t even believe that there is a world government in the making. To suggest there is a NWO in the making makes you a conspiracy theorist in Fred’s mind and if you peruse his website, then you’ll read that Fred believes that anyone who speaks about conspiracies is considered a nut (like anyone who has enough discernment to see that John Macarthur is a false Christian).
Apostacy! There is a falling away. Until 1830, the church believed in God’s sovereign power over man’s plight to boast in himself. If your faith precedes your salvation, which it doesn’t, then you are responsible for your own salvation.
Faith, too, is a blessed gift from God! We don’t earn our faith based on what’s in our hearts. The heart will do as God commands -or- does your heart deceive you into thinking you have 100% control over it.
Christ’s death is enough to save anyone that God desires for it to save. He doesn’t need the works of men. But he does command it & so we preach a Christ crucified despite the futility of man trying to figure in the fairness doctrine.
Read the Bible. Trust in the Lord! Ask him to reveal his Truth! Submit to His Will and be His.
The traditions of men will be a stumbling block for all who think they must add to God’s redeeming power.
Be blessed. Jesus is Risen!! Praise to our KING & SAVIOUR!!!
This article concerning John MacArthur does not surprise me. I’ve read his testimony, any man who receives a Master’s in Divinity, does not necessarily mean he is walking in the Spirit. The whole concept of how ‘traditional Church’ functions is not from a New Testament foundation, it stems from the traditions of the Roman Catholic Church. All of the ‘popular’ radio, tv, and print; speakers, teachers, and pastor’s are all basically falling away, why? They all have a mental knowledge of the Bible, but do not know the Author of the Bible.
If a person is not born of the Spirit of the Living God, meaning regenerated by the Holy Spirit, convicted of sin first, by the revealing of the Truth which is in Christ Jesus, born by the faith of Christ, is not truly born again. All of these men such as: Chuch Swindoll, Paul Washer, Chuck Missler, John MacArthur, to name a few, are all ‘hirelings’, these men have all made the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ a ‘marketing tool’. They and their churches have made a fortune in marketing the Gospel. Did Jesus ever sell His sermons for $5.00 dollars a shot? Did Jesus live in a fine home making more money than any of His followers? None of these men were truly called of God, they have always served a god of their imaginations, the reasoning mind, all this is enmity against God, and the spirit of Anti-Christ.
No one truly born of the Spirit of the Living God will fall away, they may succumb to false teaching, but the Lord promised He would deliver them, that I can attest too. Jesus said He would not “lose one of His sheep”. So those running this website better get a better footing on what they believe. A man has not the free will to turn to God, they must be drawn by God, and granted the gift of repentance, which is given by God.
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
Gal 2:17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.
Gal 2:18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
Gal 2:19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Gal 2:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
I am not a Calvinist, never read anything by him, so spare me any talk concerning him. I have been saved by Christ coming to me, I did not seek him, but He sought me, and revealed the truth, very much the way Saul met the Lord, Saul’s so-called free will was to persecute, and kill anyone following the Lord Jesus Christ, but God had other plans, and came up against Saul, and you could say God willfully came against Saul and interrupted Saul’s plan. God invaded Saul’s will. Saul did not turn from His sin then accept Christ, Christ came and revealed the Truth to Him, then Saul (who was blind, was made to see). Saul was changed, and He did not have to do anything, God did all the work, by opening His eyes leading him to believe and trust in the Faith of Christ towards God.
It makes me so sad to see how great these men have fallen, but what do expect from hirelings, they were never of God, so why should it come as such a surprise. The terror that strikes my heart is, that these men have been teaching a false Gospel, how many people have accepted a false Christ and have been lead to the spirit of Anti-Christ. All of these men are going to give an account, and that is going to be a fearful day.
Debs I found this and more about Bob Johnson and JMA. I’ll post the other info under
My Interview with a Crackpot
Friday, May 19, 2006
My Church is occasionally besieged by a variety of kooks, some more notorious than others, who are troubled by something my pastor said, or taught, or doesn’t teach firm enough; or whom he fellowships with or doesn’t fellowship with, or refuses to separate from.
Generally these assortment of nuts are lone crusaders, but sometimes there may be two or three. They may picket with ugly, hand made signs expressing their criticisms of why our Church or pastor offends them, but it seems as though all of them hand out literature allegedly “documenting” the “bad” teaching coming from the pulpit. Now mind you, I am not talking about small, little tracts, but detailed, term paper length screeds. Many of them are copiously footnoted with three or four citations in just one sentence. Bible verses are also piled upon each other to provide a “spiritual” foundation to why our pastor or Church is wrong. I just marvel at how they have the money to run off 500 copies of a 15 page document.
The last few Sundays, one of these self-appointed “watchmen” has been handing out a paper claiming among other things:
* Grace Church has been infiltrated by the Church Growth philosophy
* Our small group Bible studies are promoting Marxist ideology
* The leaders of the various small groups use secret “buzz” words used to brainwash people to think in Marxist-Hegelian, Dialectic and Praxis terms
* Folks in these small groups don’t quote enough Bible verses when they interact with each other
* Al Mohler is a U.N. agent who is secretly working to bring in the new world order and the reign of the Anti-Christ.
What a combination! The first 3 complaints are so unbelievable that it is fall to the ground laughable. The 4th is a matter of personal opinion and no where reflects the reality of our small groups at Grace. The complaint about Al Mohler being in league as an agent for the U.N. and a one world government truly intrigued me. I have met Christians bugged by Al’s membership on the board of directors of Focus on the Family, as well as his connection with the Billy Graham Crusades, but I had yet to meet anyone who charged him as being a diabolical U.N. agent.
Apparently, according to the detailed research found in the literature I was handed, Al Mohler is a founding fellow for the For Faith and Family, a Southern Baptist ministry of the Ethics and Religious Liberty. The ERLC is on the list of the United Nations Non-Governmental Organizations. If you discerningly connect the dots (and I am sure there is a money trail to follow somewhere, too) it is clearly documented that Al Mohler is an agent for the U.N. Paige Patterson and Carl Henry are also founding fellows, so they must be agents as well.
I was so amazed by this protester’s charges, as well as annoyed with his slander of some of my friends he names in his report, that I had to speak with him on a recent Sunday afternoon.
I quickly learned his name was Bob and he is from Rhode Island. He likes John’s ministry, but has grave concerns over how the leadership is destroying John’s ministry by bring it down with the use of church growth philosophy.
An Update on Bob Johnson
The Transformation Buster
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Some long time readers may remember the name, Bob Johnson.
For the last four years or so, Bob has been a loud voice warning the Christian Church at large about John MacArthur and our ministries at Grace Church.
I first encountered Bob in May of 2006 out in front of Grace Church on Roscoe Blvd. He was passing out a multi-page report that allegedly documented how a couple of our fellowship groups had succumbed to Purpose Driven Life philosophy and were engaged in seeker-sensitive church growth techniques. He further claimed the PDL philosophy was really akin to Hegelian-Marxist techniques that seek to brainwash individuals to think in terms of an ungodly group think (whatever that maybe). Some of the ways this “group think” supposedly manifested itself was in the manner of “vision casting” talk, small group dynamics where “facilitators,” as Bob called them, would lead the group in “brainwashing” sessions, and the building of relationships.
Bob also had it in for Al Mohler, claiming that he was a secret, U.N. agent bent on infiltrating the Christian Church in America.
I spent a good 30-40 minutes talking with Bob and I wrote up our initial encounter with a snarky posted entitled, My Interview with a Crackpot.
I thought Bob would remain something of a onetime, local conspiracy kook, but before I knew it, he had taken to the internet with his screeds against John and Grace Church. Both Phil Johnson (no relation) and I would receive phone calls and emails from individuals from all over the world asking about the accusations in Bob’s papers. One of the recent mission conferences even addressed Bob’s material, because he was claiming our Master’s Academy International, a seminary ministry designed to train foreign national pastors in their home countries, was a secret group with the agenda to subvert the Christian churches in the various countries where they operated.
It became clear Bob needed to have something of an answer, at least to me. I pulled together a number of personal emails I exchanged with Bob and a couple of his minions (though I think one or two of them was the Bob in question) and I published them as apologetic articles for inquirers who had run across his internet sites.
Seeing that I have been Bob’s most vocal opponent, I thought I would post it here:
I have deleted the article regarding the transformation of John Macarthur’s church. The reason this article was deleted is because it was an article written in judgment which is unbiblical. It was also written more in a spirit of “I’ll show you” than in love.. Does that mean that the facts in the article were untrue? I am unaware of any factual errors in that report.
For instance, did Grace Church have purpose driven ministries? Yes. Do/did they have ministries that partner with governments and UN-NGO member orgs? Yes. Are their agents transforming Grace Church from within? Absolutely. Phil Johnson belongs to an org called FIRE. This org has a slogan identical to that of Phoenix Freemasonry. I said that was of interest but I never intended that anyone assume Phil Johnson was a Mason. I apologize to others at Grace Church who have been similarly hurt.
Judge not lest you be judged. It was wrong for me to sit in judgment of Grace Church and John Macarthur and others. Only by God are they judged. How can I judge the speck in the eye’s of others when I have a log in my own? And I fear now that His judgment is upon me.
In spite of Bob’s claim that what he wrote he believed was factually true, it was not. I will say a lot of his charges against our Church stem more from his strange interpretations of what he considers “church growth” philosophy. If he begins with his particular model in place, I can see how he can easily find ghouls when none really exist. For instance, we have never utilized “Purpose Driven Life” principles in any of our ministries. The use of small groups, utilizing contemporary music, even talking about “catching a vision” does not equate to church growth-PDL philosophy and is only a figment of Bob’s conspiratorial mindset.
I will say I am concerned for Bob, especially regarding his last sentence of how he is fearful of God’s judgment coming upon him. I have never wished such a thing on Bob, just that he would admit his mistake and cease from lying against my pastor and church.
In addition to Phil’s admonition to put up an announcement about why he is doing what he is doing, I would even encourage Bob to write up a page to be handed out to our congregation expressing his wrong doing and asking for forgiveness and spend a Sunday or two handing it out to the folks coming and going to church. Maybe it is a little too much and perhaps unneeded, but I for one would love to see how God can change one of the biggest critics of my church into one of the biggest supporters.
Labels: Bob Johnson
http://hipandthigh.blogspot.com/2010/08/update-on-bob-johnson.html
Hmmm…
It seems that Bob is just another one hopping down a bunny trail. (Here we go again, but I haven’t found a better way of expressing it.) Bob has several credibility issues, mainly his connections to Barbara Aho, et al. He was hopping down the PDL bunny trail regarding JMA and Grace church. Some of his info is no doubtedly correct, but he can’t be considered a credible source with his conspiratorial tone.
Then there is the bunny trail of the blood of Christ. These are all diversions away from the crux of the matter – JMA’s Calvinism beliefs. (See my other post on the JMA “Blood Thread”.
JMA appeals to the mainstream because he doesn’t wear his Calvinism like a badge like others who subscribe to that doctrine. He appeals to the “discernment community” because he takes stands on those type of issues. He is a “John of all trades” as he appeals to a broad spectrum of believers.
I have seen people snookered into Reformed/Calvinistic beliefs by this subtle Trojan horse methodology. JMA is a master of mixing truth and error. He has a pleasing manner and does not get into debates like other Reformed folks like James White.
Bottom line, we have to be careful and not get led down some bunny trail that takes us away from the main path. Bunnies are known for hopping all over the place but getting nowhere. Better to be a tortoise plodding steadily along the trail to the finish line.
Right now I feel like a tortoise that’s been driven over by a car 🙁
Fred Butler went as far as to say in the comments above that because I did not believe in the Calvinist version of Predestination I am a reprobate. This is what is scary about a staunch Calvinist… what do they really think of everyone else.
Deborah (Discerning the World) wrote:
I have been driven over by a car as crank tortoise 🙁 really soooooo tired from the traveling.
Debs. you will recall that tortoises have hard shells into which they can retreat for safety. That “shell” is the solid doctrine of the Word of God and His truth.
Bunnies on the other hand, have no such protection. They are just warm and fuzzy and big ears that like to be tickled. And to carry the analogy a bit further, they multiply like crazy. 😉
BL
You are right. I was actually thinking about that after I wrote that comment. I pictured this poor little tortoise on the road sorta flat but still intact haha. Thanks for reminding me about the rock hard shell.
In light of Bob’s recent “repentance” I am curious as to what that Peter guy says after he posted all those nasty things about me on June 8. Wow. I’ll admit to being a sycophant, but I am hardly well paid. =-)
When did I say this? Either I wasn’t clear about something I wrote, or you are reading into my comments. I need some specific documentation.
Fred
Fred Butler
Yes Fred. Go and read what you wrote above it’s all there.
Yes Fred. Go and read what you wrote above it’s all there.
Be specific. I don’t have time to do that.
Fred
Shame, poor you.
Yes, Debs – Fred expects YOU to take the time to go back and dig out his own quotes but can’t be bothered to do it himself. But we have to remember that Fred is an important guy and you are…….well, guess you aren’t as important. But somehow I think you can live with that……..
BL
Yip I can live with that. Cos as a reprobate *drum rolls and cymbal crashes* , I’ve realised that using things like CTRL+F to find words is something only lower class people like me can do. It’s terrible, I know, but there are perks to being unimportant. lol.
Deborah,
Please take the article I wrote about J Macarthur’s church down. It’s not true. There is no transformation going on there. J Macarthur s a great Christian and his church is solid. I just took a few facts and made a mountain out of a molehill. I did it because of envy and spite.
Bob Johnson
Bob
I have no idea why you gave in to this man. To be honest you have played right into Satan’s hands. As much as I did not agree with you on other doctrinal issues, I am shocked that you are bowing down to JMA.
“We are not predestined, or elected by God”.
Really? Ever read, ohhh, I dunno, maybe the 1st chapter of Ephesians?
It’s not whether or not we’re elected by God, but on what basis.
Are we elected by God unto salvation because God looks down the corridor of time and sees we’re going to do a good thing (believe the Gospel) and then rewards us for our good work’
Or does God elect his people based upon his grace alone, and having nothing to do with the sinner. In fact, that God must awaken the dead sinner (you know, the enemy of God, dead in sins, a lover of self, hater of God, blind and deaf to spiritual things, unable to understand spiritual things, opposed to holiness, enslaved to sin, under the dominion of Satan, etc), and give him eyes to see, ears to hear, a heart that beats with the love of Christ, enabling him to see his sin, to loathe it, to comprehend the wrath of God about to come upon him for his sin, so that now he turns to Christ for salvation from his sin, from the dominion of Satan, and from the wrath of God.
You know THAT kind of election?
Yeah. That would be the teaching of the Scriptures.
stegokitty
Do you actually read your bible? If you do read it, do you understand it properly? Like I dunno, maybe the the 1st chapter of Ephesians?
Just because the word predestined is mentioned in the bible does not mean it’s actually what John Calvin twisted it to be. Open your eyes to SEE that JESUS CHRIST DIED FOR THE WHOLE WORLD AND NOT JUST FOR YOU (THE CHOSEN).
Stegokitty,
You have a catty way of expressing yourself. Sounds like pride. But that is a common characteristic of Calvinist/Reformed folks.
I have no merit in myself – the Holy Spirit drew me through a ministry that delivered the message of salvation, the Gospel. I chose to respond and the Lord accepted me in the beloved. Calvinists would say that if I was chosen, I was marked by God and come hell or high water I would become a Christian with no choice in the matter. But my sister who was not chosen could hear the Gospel over and over and because she was chosen NOT to be saved it would roll off her like water off a duck’s back with no hope. That my dear is heresy!! That is an insult to our Lord and Savior.
@Deborah, just read this article you posted in Marc h about GCC and whenI tried to read the details in the pages all the links were down? Could you please help.
Thanks
PS Thanks for you posting / Web-ministry, praise God for His faithfullness through you.
TonyP
The guy Bob who did the info took his site down, it seems he was threatened. I wanted to make a copy of it but I was too late in doing so as well. Sorry dude, GCC wins this round…
The expose of John Macarthur is posted here:
http://www.johnmacarthurexposed.blogspot.com/
Kay
THANK YOUUUU! I’ve been searching for a copy 😉
http://www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/80-53_The-Lordship-Controversy dear Burning Lamp, here is a teaching on Lordship salvation, i listened to it. Maybe try to understand what he is saying. If not, that’s ok, just wanted you to hnow that not every nuance of what he believes is contained in any single message. Thanks for your patience in hearing me out.