Excerpt From Book

Calvinism, New Ageism, and Hedonism represent a spiritual side of man that rests in postmodernism, humanism, atheism and destructive textual criticism.  The concepts formulating this spiritual enlightenment deal with the TULIP principle of Calvinism, transcendence in New Ageism, and ethical measure of pleasure in Hedonism.  Each of these components of their dangerous ‘isms shares two characteristics.  The first is the overwhelming appeals to a spiritual power.  The second component is that these dangerous ‘isms prey upon the self-doubt and self-effacement of individuals to be persuaded to them.

Calvinism stalks upon the weak and weary souls beaten down by guilt and sorrow for their sins.  Pouncing upon its prey Calvinism soothes by promising a spiritual connection to God which will allow the believer to be reformed into a beautiful tulip.  New Ageism sashays before unsuspecting suitors flaunting her freedom and allurements.  By giving gifts of crystals and promises of returned goodness through karma, this seductive guru reveals a spiritual spring of inner peace and power free from the restrictions of “traditional religion”.  Hedonism slips and slides it way into the lives of men encouraging them to follow this pied piper of pleasure away from the pain and torment of this world.  By making the world a giant amusement park this multicolored musician malevolently masks the lack of universal justification of his doctrine all the while tooting terrible tall-tales tantalizing teens to be their own spiritual masters and adults too.

The promises and hopes of salvation through easier methods of morality by means of one’s own power or by means of something other than one’s self pushes the Biblical concept of the church to the back corner.  Their entertainment provides a dark corner from which the Bible church sits unobserved by the duped “spiritual but not religion” person.  The church is a mocking term to the uninitiated into the perfect transcendental world.

However, the Bible does not teach that the church is a building or temple or synagogue or a mosque.  The church according to the Bible is the called out.  Can a building be called out by God? Therefore, one must ask who or what is to be called out.  The only appropriate response is man must be the called out.  Man, then, is the church.  The church is the people.  Accordingly, the Anti-Church establishment parading their dangerous ‘ism is attacking not some building or idea or static environment; they are attacking you and me.  Throughout the book of Acts we read of the church as its members.  Saul wrecked havoc upon the church (Acts 8:1-3). Does this mean he destroyed the buildings? Saul wrecked havoc upon men and women who followed Jesus.  The Lord added to the church (Acts 2:47).  Did the Lord add buildings to one another?  God is not a city planner but God did add man to man creating the one body of Christ 1 Peter 2:9-10 reveals the concept of the church; “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”  There is no doubt that the called out are the people of God which walk in the marvelous light of mercy.  The connection between called out and church is found in Ephesians 1:22-23, “And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”  “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:18).