Even though most of the CTF research time and effort concerns the rebuttal of atheistic/humanistic philosophy, we also feel we must identify the inroads of this same philosophy into current Biblical theology. Below are a few examples of this terrible infiltration of compromised Biblical theology.

The mention of these examples is not meant as indictments against those who are involved; rather, it is to show the incredible confusion caused by this anti-Christ philosophy and the unconscious alluring effect it has had on modern day Christianity. Truly, the modern church finds itself in the unenviable role of the children of Israel after God delivered them from Egypt.

Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” And Aaron said to them, “Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt.”  Exodus 32:1-4; NKJV

The inference here is that Israel, while having had firsthand experience with the personal Creator, reverted quickly back to the predominate philosophy of their recently removed Egyptian environment. Oh, how fickle and deceptive is the mind of fallen man, for even before the memory of their miraculous delivery from Egypt had faded from their immediate recollection, they had abandoned Him in their hearts. This led to the disastrous and torturous conclusion that their God was a golden calf, along with all of its attendant sacrileges. God grant that we might manifest the embodiment of the Paul’s admonition found in Romans 12:1&2.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. NKJV

To explore this trend in our culture, let’s examine some present day examples in these excerpts from the following articles.

No plans to preach. Yet, he’s hot-wired to a generation of young adult Christians he says are “on fire with faith” – a generation that eludes many churches, retailers, and publishers.

These are the 18 to 34 year olds who ignore denomination, who erase the lines between secular and religious realms, who insist, as Strang says, “God is God, truth is truth, and they’re everywhere, so you have to look everywhere.”

“Sight, sound, experience – that’s what my generation is about,” says Strang.

Then he added Relevant Books. Its first hit, “Walk on: The Spiritual Journey of U2,” about rocker Bono, has sold more than 40,000 copies. Relevantmagazine.com came next.

Relevant mixes a Bible-based perspective on social issues with an of-the-minute cultural sensibility. The first issue’s consumer guide to Jesus action figures got the magazine banned from the bookstore at Strangs’ alma mater, Oral Roberts University…

Every issue features reviews of pop, rock, hip-hop and rap artists, some Christian, most not. (Emphasis added) “Twentysomethings are old enough to know what they like in secular music or books,” says Kyle Chowning, 30, director of sales and marketing. “We won’t listen to the segregationists who say you can’t be in both worlds.” (Emphasis added)

“We don’t get hung up on the trappings, the legalisms, the stuff that worries fundamentalists,” Strang says.

While evangelical leaders, including his father, call for a ban on gay marriage, Strang says Relevant “upholds the same moral standard but questions whether we need the government to enforce our beliefs, our religion, on people who don’t adhere to the same faith.”

Consider the tumultuous tenure of Matthew Paul Turner, former editor of CCM magazine, which covers contemporary Christian music. When he mixed in secular language and subjects – even hinted that a singer was sexy – “all hell broke loose,” Turner recalls. He soon decamped to Relevant…

There are several Biblical worldview issues that catch my attention here:

Finally, I find the statistics revealed in this article alarming, confirming and somewhat misleading in their presentation.  Alarming in that these statistics show a continuing downward spiral of young people leaving the church; confirming in that we knew there was a problem years ago, and by God’s grace, are taking steps to reverse this trend through our Institute of Biblical Worldview Studies (more about that in the Worldview Tool Box update section); and misleading in that the statistics appear to justify the presentation of this “new Christianity,” when in fact, it is the inculcation of humanism/naturalism into the church that has disenchanted and disenfranchised our youth from the Truth of the Gospel. May God grant His mercy.

Sources: Zondervan/Harris Interactive poll of 2,148 adults May 25-27; Barna Research Group study of 2,660 adults 20 to 29, September, 2003

First, we were given George Burns as a cigar smoking God; now we have “everyman.” This article begins with “What if God were all of us?” Joan of Arcadia has become a very popular prime time television series, which portrays a young “religious” girl who is persistently troubled by the problems of life, both her own and others, and she is constantly meeting God … in the form of other people, and He always has something for her to do that she doesn’t want to do, but is always glad she did.

“’The fact is: God is different every time. It’s one of the first things I thought of when I developed the show,’ says creator (of the series, not the universe) Barbara Hall.”

Often, God’s form is relevant to Joan’s task, such as when the Naval Officer God asked her to build a boat.  “It’s pretty much the most interesting face, the people who are you or me,” Rosenburg [the show’s writer and  director] says. “It’s people that other people can relate to without being afraid.”

Among the more memorable Gods Joan has encountered this season:

Biblical Worldview Issues: