Excellent post from Tricia Tillin - another example of what has been “birthed” at Fuller
and the US Center for World Mission - ugh!
signed...
Nef
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Dear All, I seem somehow to have been retained on the Open Church mailing list and recently received a communication from them. The Open Church Ministries sounds innocuous but in fact is a cell-church organisation, headed by James H. Rutz, based in Colorado Springs, and listing amongst its supporters and members many of the current revivalist leadership.

The Open Church were the ones who put out an audio tape a few years back promoting their aims - “Christianity In A New Key”. They surveyed what they called the top thirty movements of God in America and showed how they were leading to a new type of Church. They also listed 150 top leaders with their circular, presumably with their permission and approval. Amongst them are most of the names you’d expect to see, top players in the current renewal movement.

Even more interesting (and those following world/church events will see the connections) are the involvement of Open Church with those who have been proposing global database structures. And James Rutz has written for World Vision, Wycliffe, Youth for Christ, Prison Fellowship, Lausanne Committee, Jews for Jesus, and InterVarsity.

Organisations represented on the list of leaders include Lausanne, YWAM, Church Growth Institute, Willow Creek, Campus Crusade, Vineyard, Concerts of Prayer, Focus on the Family, Billy Graham Inst., Bill Hamon’s Prophetic organisation, Jack Hayford’s Church on the Way, IVCF Global Projects, WEC International, Christian liberty Assn, DAWN, Gary North’s Institute, OM, Dennis Peacocke, PK, Christian Coalistion, Harvest Evangelism, Ralph Winter’s US Center for World Mission, Wagner’s Fuller Theological Seminary, World Concern, World Relief, and World Vision. These are just a FEW of those listed!

Anyway, the letter I mentioned was interesting, in that it reported a supposed 200 instances of people coming back from the dead, of which 100 are “documented” - what does that mean? If it just means somebody told somebody else who wrote down what was said, it doesn’t say much. And these happen in Central America where they can’t be easily checked out. Draw your own conclusions.

However, undeterred, Open Church see this as a sign that God is going to create a whole new type of Church, without divisions between clergy and laity. (Um, somebody should tell them we have been enjoying that for centuries.)

They all gathered and prayed that the “much-grieved” Holy Spirit would forgive the Church for being institutional and that “cleared the air” so he could bless us now. Makes you feel much better, doesn’t it? They asked for a sign that this new order had begun, and lo and behold, just before their Atlanta conference, the sign happened. Yes, Mother Teresa and Princess Diana died. WOW. Talk about miracles. (excuse me folks, but really......)

Then - we are in the early stages of national revival, they claim. (and afterwards they admit there are no mass conversions. But never mind, eh?)

Still, early signs are: Global Prayer movement, Reconciliation movement, Confession of sins, Miracles, and a rapid shift in the way we practise Christianity.

They say they are creating a model for the new Church to copy, and are launching a major new strategy for the US church, to lead to reformation. For it’s time to “reinvent the Church”.

HOW TO BE JEWISH IN FIVE EASY DAYS: their heading, not mine!! Yes, now you too can be a Jew, for the small cost of 425 dollars per person.They say that the immense richness of Hebrew life that had developed for two thousand years was a terrific legacy for the early Jewish Christians. Their understanding of the Torah, God family, and holy living gave them big advantages over the Greek believers. Jewish believers had an inside track with God. And now that heritage can be yours by attending the Pinecrest Hebraic Short Course, at which all the teachers will “be awesome” according to the brochure, but they don’t tell you who these awesome teachers will be.

Lastly, they announce they have a new web site at www.openchurch.com. It’s going to be state-of-the-art, so we’d better log on right now because we don’t want to miss out on the reformation of the entire Church and the New Order do we? They say that the most important part of this new web site is “The Oasis” which is a national directory of open churches. You can register your church or any church online. Yet another database to be created, and who knows whether your home church will be listed or not - presumably some kind soul will register for you whether you like it or not.

I apologise for the tone of this message.
But some days, if you don’t laugh, you cry. Know what I mean?

Tricia Tillin
"Lift up a Banner for the Peoples!" (Isa. 62:10)
Banner Ministries Visit the CROSS + WORD
Web Site at: http://www.fardistant.demon.co.uk/

Return to Despatch Vol.9:4 December, 1997.
 

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