Worship and Outreach in Spirit and Truth

Live from Salt Lake City, Utah This is HOTM Where we do all we can to worship God in spirit and in truth.

Hey! I have a novel idea – let’s pray together, shall we? It’s been a while.

PRAYER

We haven’t been together live for nearly a month – not that McKenna Denson wasn’t worth the time – but it is always good to sit down and catch up. I mean we’ve had some awesome things develop and some unfortunate things occur so it will be good to catch up on all of this.

Promoting Effective Outreach

But first, let’s take a moment to promote a really effective outreach to the LDS – super effective on teaching people the differences between Mormonism and the clarity of the Good News. Take a look:

Show 51 October 16th 2018

Talking to Mormons here. Tell your friends about it, and share it all over the place, folks.

While we are talking about the LDS I want to reiterate a few things:

First, where I do NOT accuse ANY LDS person of being unloved by God and headed to hell or any of that clap-trap, I remain entirely convinced that the religious body of doctrine and practice is heinous.

Can an LDS individual know and love God and Jesus and be saved? Certainly. As much as a five point Calvinist can, or a snake handling Southern Baptist, or anyone whom God has written His law of Love upon their heart.

But Mormonism – and I’m not playing that can’t say Mormon BS game ever, and I challenge all people to openly resist that MANipulation at every turn – but Mormonism – its supposed priesthood, its supposed authority, its doctrine, its demands, it practices are singularly evil in the end. Why?

They not only systematically undo the Good News they put people in bondage from which Jesus came to the world to liberate. And they call this goodness.

It’s true that many religious institutions, churches, and denominations are also guilty of this to some degree or another, and we stand up to them as well, but Mormons are MY people – they are still my family, and old friends, and they have been beguiled by these men and women from their founders Smith and Young, to Nielson today.

Never think, because I have turned from focusing on Mormonism that I agree with one single doctrine, teaching, policy or practice that serves to put ANYONE in bondage from which Jesus has utterly set the world free. This is why we continue to let all of our videos run online – as a means to reach seekers who are LDS and to warn those who are considering it as their religion.

Meeting with Biola Students

So speaking of Mormonism, I had the blessed opportunity to meet with a group of students from Biola out of Southern California. Here’s a picture of us after we talked for nearly two hours together.

(SHOW PHOTO HERE)

Now I want to let you in on a personal side to this.

Years ago, after I was kicked on live television, and especially after openly questioning the Trinity, there was a hidden rally where behind the scenes I became persona non-grata in Evangelicalism. To the point that people and groups (like Biola student ministries) cancelled meeting with me. The church police spread the word that I was heretical and need of adult supervision.

Generational Shift in Faith Discussions

Since that time I have been speaking of a time coming in the world where our teens and young people are not going to put up with the old school approach to the faith where finger pointing and differing views are forbidden – and where they would not only be willing, they would demand less dogma and more freedom to explore things like science, divergent views and love for those lifestyles that have been marginalized and hated by their Christian forefathers.

Well this Biola visit was an indication that this generation has come. When the leader contacted me to ask about the visit I told him in no uncertain terms that I was considered heretical by many Christians today (who might know of me).

The leader of the group wrote me back and essentially said, “that doesn’t matter. We would still like to come hear from you.”

Now, in the past, that would not have happened. I would have gotten a reply that would have said, “after some discussions we have discovered that there is a scheduling conflict so we are going to have to pass on our meeting” OR, more likely, no response at all.

Not with this generation. They want real talk that is void

The Future of Christianity and Engaging Divergent Views

My hat is off to this Group at Biola. I have renewed faith in the future of Christianity because of such willingness to engage, to consider, to reconsider, and to even alter some opinions and traditions imposed upon them in their past. Thanks for the breath of fresh air – Garrick, Jacob, Riley, Christian, Sabrina, Sarah, Hunter, Abbey, Ashley, and Haley – who I hope is fully healed from her bronchitis.

Speaking of being ignored, I am trying to launch a specially event in 2019. I want to call it Sundays Best and the idea is to have guest experts in Reformed Theology, Arminianism, Catholicism, Mormonism, Orthodoxy, and any other differing soteriological approach to come and present, “Why their Approach is Best.” I maintain that when all of them have had the time to explain themselves and their approach to the faith, using the Bible and whatever else to support their views, that the presentation I have from scripture will prove superior. I put this challenge out and am serious about it. So help me out – contact those experts out there who you trust and admire and have them contact me so we can put this together.

Sundays Best: An Invitation to Theological Discussion

What makes this difficult is the Old School doesn’t want to engage with me much because it draws attention to the ministry – something they are afraid of – otherwise they would mind participating. For instance, I have put the invitation out to James White – nothing. He goes on detailed rants against me as recently as two weeks ago on his show, but he isn’t replying because in the end to reply puts him and his views in jeopardy.

So come on brothers – give us your best shot! Explain, in the light of all the other explanations why your particular stance is superior to others. This is your CHANCE, in the face of other views, and with a two full recorded hours, to present the essentials of your particular view and to have them contrasted with the views of others. Chicken? Fearful? Politically driven? Don’t want me to get any attention? Get over it and stand your ground and tell our viewers and listeners why your views are superior . . . to all others . . .

Here’s my email.

shawn@alatheamedia.com

All I ask is that you are someone your community would agree is capable of representing your particular beliefs.

Weekly Teachings and Important Announcements

A couple more general announcements:

First of all, we do weekly online live streaming verse by verseTGNN’s Bible teaching series—book-by-book, through the lens of fulfillment and spiritual liberty. teachings every Sunday. You can watch them anytime, live or archived at www.campuschurch.faith

But there is one teaching I invite all of you who seek to grow and mature in the faith to consider. It was the teaching held on Sunday September 30th MILK where we cover I Corinthians chapter 12:27-end.

Also, in two weeks – Tuesday October 30th 2018 at 8PM Mountain we are going to unveil the single most important thing our ministry will ever do and we invite you to join us. The news will be met with tremendous criticism and speculation, but in the end we are certain that this will do more to help the Body now and in the future as anything we have done or could ever do in the future.

Now, many of you know that we teach that the faith is not Objectively delivered but is subjectively experienced and lived. And that we also teach that the Bible is NOT a manual of musts written specifically to us in our day but a

Example of Titus Chapter One Verses 4-16

Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles in that day of the Lord and the End of the Former Age, writes:

Titus 1:4 To Titus, mine own son after the common faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour.

5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee:

6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of riot or unruly. 7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; 8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; 9 Holding

Analyzing Instructions to Titus

Hold fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.

10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision: 11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake. 12 One of themselves, even a prophet of their own, said, “The Cretians are alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies. 13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; 14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

Evaluation of Faith and Purity

15 Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. 16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

To whom was this written? To Titus.

Contextual Instructions to Titus

Titus – thee, thou, thee – three times. Nothing to do with anyone else but Titus. At this point he gives instructions to? That’s right, Titus, in that day and age. And speaking of choosing or appointing elders in every city, as Paul had directed, Paul says:

Do these characteristics apply to people who will do things in the organizations that form today? Sure. Why not. It is overall sound and wise advice and to choose such people – whether it be to oversee a business or a football team or a church it’s wise. No problem.

But Paul does NOT suggest that these instructions were written to anyone but Titus, nor does he say something like: “and let this model be in place forever more.” Contextually, he is more likely saying: “Let this be the model until the day of the Lord,” because he said this about other things in other epistles (like taking communion).

Then, at verse 10 Paul begins to explain why he wants men to be of this character then in the church until the day of the Lord.

Observations on the Ancient Context

“They of the circumcision” speaks directly to Jews. This is NOT applicable today – unless special circumstances prevail. And he goes on, saying:

Sure, we can take these words and use them and apply them against others, but Paul had a specific group in mind then he was talking – and we have to take great liberties to make them applicable today. Then Paul gets even more specific, saying:

Whoa Nellie! First, he speaks of an ancient prophet of the circumcision who libels a whole race of people – the Cretians, or the people from Crete – and Paul agrees with this prophet who says that they are “ALWAYS liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.” Are these words the everlasting words of God to the world forever and ever? Should the world turn against Crete and its entire population? Of course not! But this was written in the Apostolic Record, right?

It was. As a history of that day and age and time. It is up to each individual reader to decide if these words “speak to them and their present situation” and to refuse using them in some twisted manner to make them fit today.

At this point Paul delivers what we might suggest is an eternal principle – may the Spirit lead as he wrote:

So finally, after 15 verses we arrive at something that can obviously be extracted (as led by the Spirit) and used as a principle in the subjective faith today. I mean let’s be reasonable. I personally find verse 15 to be a principle of God – but I do not find verses 12-14 necessarily applicable anymore. Is that so far-fetched? I don’t think so.

And then wrapping the chapter up, Paul returns more directly to the matter at hand for Titus, and seems to be referring to the dangerous group around in his day, saying:

We might apply this verse to ourselves too – it has application. But out of 16 verses in chapter one of Titus we have 2 verses that are actually and realistically applicable to us today.

The other verses are great for insight into that age, and we can learn principles from them – but the point of this exercise is to challenge readers of the Bible to think, and reject the insidious idea that every word of the Bible was

The Principle of Sola Scriptura and Calvinism's TULIP

Years ago I suggested a refutation of Calvinism’s TULIP summary through a feeble acronym I called ICURP. Let’s cover that one more time as a means to reach into the hearts of more believers – especially youth and university believers who have been beguiled by the systematic ideologies of Jean Calvin and those who follow Him and not the Spirit.

Understanding TULIP

I am going to take the definitions of TULIP straight from my friend Matt Slicks website. Here we go

TULIP with the T being

T.otal Depravity. (Says Matt)

Man is completely touched/affected by sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. in all that he is (in nature he is completely fallen) but is not as bad as he could be (in action, i.e., not all murder, etc.). Furthermore, this total depravity means that the unregenerate will not, of their own free will, choose to receive Christ.?It is the unbeliever who is deceitful and wicked, full of evil, loves darkness rather than light and does evil, does not seek for God nor does any good, is ungodly, dead in his sins, by nature a child of wrath, cannot accept or understand spiritual things, and a slave of sin.

On this point I am most closely aligned with Calvinism as I believe that human beings will not naturally choose God and so if God did not love us first, and send His Son, and then His Spirit, none of us would live sinless selfish lives to some extent or another.

ICURP's Response

But in response to the Total Depravity, the I of the ICURP stands for

INSENSATE NATURE which says that Man is born wholly selfish and incapable of choosing God by or through his fallen nature. Our loving God therefore calls to all humankind through several common and constant ways. Because of His calling, humanity is given the chance and choice to respond to ignore Him. Without His calling, humanity would never attempt to discover Him.

U.nconditional Election

“God elects a person based upon nothing in that person because there is nothing in him that would make him worthy of being chosen; rather, God's election is based on what is in God. God chose us because he decided to bestow his love and grace upon us, not because we are worthy, in and of ourselves, of being saved.?Election is the sovereign act of God where, from before the foundation of the world, he chose those whom he would save. This election to salvation is not conditioned upon any foreseen faith or any good works of any individual.

The election is based completely on God's sovereign choice according to the kind intention of his will. God chose the elect because he decided to bestow his love upon them based solely on his sovereign grace and for his glory.

We realize that since God has elected some to salvation not based on anything that they have done that God has simultaneously elected some not just to annihilation (which is bad enough) BUT to eternal suffering in literal flames of hell and torment – because all deserve it – but His grace saves some.

C of ICURP

CONDITIONAL ELECTION

Man chooses to hear God’s constant calls or to ignore them – according to his free will (all things considered). All men know from their heart (from His callings) that He exists but choose to either reject or to receive Him. By His foreknowledge of the free-will choices all men will make, loving God elects human beings to accomplish certain things relative to the choices He knows we will make. He does this with nations and individuals.

In the end, however, all will freely choose to receive His conditional election as every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.

L.imited Atonement – says Matt (and James White, and all others of the Calvinist Cult)

Christ bore the sin only of the elect, not everyone who ever lived.

(LONG BEAT) and REPEAT

Christ's blood was sufficient for all, but not all sin was imputed to Christ. Christ's blood is sufficient to cover all people. But the sufficiency relates to his divine value which is different than our legal debt. Sin is a debt since it is breaking the Law of God. In limited atonement, Calvinists are saying that there was a limit to whose sins were imputed to Christ in a legal

The Concept of Atonement and Grace

They are not denying the sufficiency of Christ's blood to cover all people. Instead, they look at the legal aspect of the sin debt. Peoples' sin debts were transferred to Jesus and were canceled on the cross, not when we believe. Therefore, legally speaking, those canceled sins cannot be held against the sinner because their quality of being a debt has been canceled by being paid on the cross. If the debt is canceled, it does not exist and cannot be held against the debtor/sinner. Therefore, Christ only legally bore the sins of the elect even though his blood was sufficient to cover all.

Matt makes some sense here and he was sure to point out that Jesus blood is sufficient enough to cover all the sins of the world, but it is in a judicial sense ONLY paying for the debt of sin that God has elected. Logically, if God only elects some then limited atonement is permitted, and if Jesus did pay for the sins of the entire world, then that payment would be efficacious and applied to the whole human RACE. That is my stance. And its an either/or in my estimation.

Universal Atonement

So in the ICURP the U means UNIVERSAL ATONEMENT (not universal salvation – there is a difference and the difference is in the will of the individual. So to the U of ICURP

God has reconciled the entire world to Himself by and through the shed blood of His Only Begotten Son. All sin has been legally paid except the unforgivable sin of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost (which is the refusal to believe and receive God’s call of the Holy Spirit for all men to accept the offering of His Son). All humanity has therefore been forgiven and reconciled to God by the shed blood, but comparatively speaking, only a few have received this gift by faith – yet.

Irresistible Grace vs. Resistible Grace

Matt says:

The term, unfortunately, suggests a mechanical and coercive force upon an unwilling subject. This is not the case. Instead, (and sorry, but listen to this relative to what he just said) it is the act of God making the person willing to receive him. It does not mean that a person cannot resist God's will. It means that when God moves to save/regenerate a person, the sinner cannot thwart God's movement and he will be regenerated. God moves the heart of the person where he wishes it to go. The choice and mercy of God depend on God's desire, not man's ability.

With a great deal of imagination, the ICURP responds to “Irresistible Grace” with . . . “Resistible Grace!” (Hey Ho!)

“All men are free to choose to receive the Gift of God and/or to reject it – Listen – at any time of their existence. God never ceases calling to all. This does not mean the rewards are the same for all, it just speaks to freedom of choice and admits that even those who have once tasted of the heavenly gift can choose to abandon it for non-belief.

Perseverance of the Saints

Matt writes:

“That we are so secure in Christ, that we cannot fall away. Jesus will not lose any who had been given to him by the Father; he gives eternal life to them so they will never perish, and those who leave the faith were never believers to begin with.

Contextually speaking, the Apostolic Record Matt sites speaks specifically and frequently to the Apostles being elect and His never losing them but admittedly in that age of the Bride they also speak to other believers IN THAT DAY – IN THAT DAY THAT THE BRIDE WAS CULLED FROM THAT WORLD BEFORE THE DAY OF THE LORD.

In our day, and even in theirs, I conclude with my response to Perseverance of the Saints with the P:

Perseverance of the Faith-Filled, meaning

Those who receive God’s gift are saved by grace through faith. Those who abide in His gift endure by grace through faith – no faith, no salvation. Salvation cannot be lost, but it can be forfeited by rejecting faith. Without question.

So TULIP or some semblance of ICURP.

Let me wrap this show up by publicly challenging any EXPERT on Calvinism, Arminianism, Catholicism, Mormonism, Orthodoxy or any other Ist or Ism of Oxy to email me and come out and present the tenets of your beliefs without infringement – and see them wilt in the light of His light, truth and love.

And remember – Tuesday, October 30th 2018 –

Major Announcement in HOTM

For the biggest and most announcement announcement this ministry has ever made.

Looking Forward

See you next week, here on HOTM.