VIDEO: Church of Tares - Purpose Driven, Seeker-Sensitive, Church Growth

Is there anything more important than a correct view of the Lord and a faithful presentation of His Word? (That's a rhetorical question, my friends.)

In this next video, you'll see how the so-called "Emergent Church" and its leaders have contributed to the current "Purpose Driven / Seeker-Sensitive / Church Growth" movements that have infiltrated the Lutheran Church (particularly the LCMS).

Even though Pastor Rodney Zwonitzer's 2002 book Testing The Claims of Church Growth suggest that the "Church Growthers" have been alive and well in the LCMS for nearly 30 years now, I am just now coming face-to-face with them and their un-Biblical methodologies at the local church where I'm a member as we are in the process of calling a new Pastor and a majority of my brothers and sisters there are starting to reveal that the only thing they want to be Lutheran about the congregation is the name on the church sign out front.

In any event, I think this documentary is even more relevant to what's going on in the LCMS at the moment. The "Emergent Church Movement" seems to have found a home in the ELCA while the "Church Growth Movement" seems to have found a home in the LCMS. Both represent the "Church of Tares" within Christ's Church.

Can the Church borrow the marketing tools of the world and apply them to the Church? What is the history of the Church Growth movement and its false premises? Who is involved in the new evangelicalism and second reformation? Why are these movements embracing contemplative mysticism? How does this movement play into the New World Order? These questions and more are answered in Church of Tares: Purpose Driven, Seeker-Sensitive, Church Growth, And New World Order.

Church of Tares chronicles the man-centered pragmatism of these evangelical Christian movements in comparison to the Bible’s instruction for building the Church of Jesus Christ. As a sequel to The Real Roots of the Emergent Church, Church of Tares documents the connections between the liberal Emergent Church movement and the Church Growth movement. Both movements’ leadership were discipled by business management guru Peter Drucker, who was attracted to the mega-church movement as a social phenomenon that could bring about his “new society” and New World Order. Mega-church pastors Rick Warren and Bill Hybels as well as Leadership Network founder Bob Buford all acknowledge Drucker (who professed not to be a Christian) as their mentor and have built their organizations upon his secular business management philosophies rather than the foundation of Jesus Christ.

The fruit of these movements is great compromise of the Gospel and the Great Commission. Rick Warren claims to be ushering in a new spiritual awakening and second reformation with his P.E.A.C.E. Plan. But this reform appears to be a social reformation rather than a spiritual one by joining together in ministry with unbelievers to fight global giants. Such compromise has led to the affirming response letter to the "Common Word" document which declares Muhammad to be a prophet and the Bible and Qur’an to be of the “same Divine origin.”

This film is non-profit and FREE, not to be bought or sold, but you do have permission to make copies and distribute freely. To obtain a DVD, simply contact us for a free copy or make a donation with your request. Your support is greatly appreciated. Resources are mailed as time permits. Your patience is appreciated. Please give extra time if this material is needed by a certain date.

Written, edited, narrated and directed by Elliott Nesch.

Original interviews with: Paul Smith, leader in the Calvary Chapel movement founded by his brother Chuck Smith, who also wrote the foreword to Paul Smith’s book New Evangelicalism: The New World Order. Phil Johnson, executive Director of Grace to You, a Christian tape and radio ministry featuring the preaching ministry of John MacArthur. Chris Rosebrough, Captain of Pirate Christian Radio and Host of the Fighting for the Faith radio program, holds a degree in Religious Studies and Biblical Languages from Concordia University. Joe Schimmel, Senior Pastor of Blessed Hope Chapel in Simi Valley, California, head of Good Fight Ministries and producer of such films as The Submerging Church and They Sold Their Souls for Rock and Roll. Gary Gilley, Senior Pastor of Southern View Chapel in Springfield, Illinois, and author of several books including This Little Church Went to the Market: The Church in the Age of Entertainment. Bob DeWaay, former Senior Pastor of Twin City Fellowship in Minneapolis, Minnesota, author of Redefining Christianity: Understanding the Purpose Driven Life Movement, The Emergent Church – Undefining Christianity as well as over 90 articles on important theological issues through Critical Issues Commentary. Ray Yungen, speaker, research analyst and author of A Time of Departing and For Many Shall Come in My Name. James Sundquist, founder of Rock Salt Publishing and author of Who’s Driving the Purpose Driven Church? Eric Ludy, bestselling author of dozens of books on Christian thought and living, the President of Ellerslie Mission Society, teaching pastor at the Church at Ellerslie, the lead instructor in the Ellerslie Leadership Training. Robert LeBus, Bible researcher, apologist and evangelist.

Running time: 119 minutes Free download by visiting this link and “Download linked file.”

IMPORTANT NOTE: Admittedly, in Matthew 13:24-30, the field represents the world, not the church. The title Church of Tares was not intended to misuse Jesus’ parable, but to be thought-provoking. As Bill Hybels, Rick Warren and Steven Furtick admit, their churches exist for unbelievers. Furtick goes as far as saying that his church, Elevation Church, is “not for you” if you are a Christian (this is documented in the film). So while people are calling these institutions “churches,” I think we would understand them better if we stopped calling them that because of what the founders described them as -- for unbelievers (tares). By their own definition, these are “churches” of tares (unbelievers). Of course there are no tares in God’s true church, only wheat, that’s what makes it wheat. Tares or darnel, which the rabbis believed to be corrupt wheat, are indistinguishable from the wheat until the final fruit appears (Matthew 13:25-30) or it is so closely related to the root systems of the wheat that uprooting the tares would also uproot the nearby wheat. Some have abused this verse in contradiction of much of the NT to suggest that Christians should not practice church discipline but to let the tares continue abiding in the church until God sorts it all out. This position cannot be reconciled with the following teachings of Christ and Paul: (Matthew 18:15-17; Romans 16:17; 2 Thessalonians 3:14). Obviously, a Christian is required to disfellowship from those who live unrepentant lives of lawlessness. This is not in contradiction to the parable because the field does not represent the church but the world (Matthew 13:37). The church is required to keep a standard of purity and holiness. A “church” or institution of tares is not the Church. So “Church of Tares” is a thought-provoking contradiction to provoke us to stop calling these organizations “churches” because they were not intended for the wheat but the tares.

I get that it might be difficult to come face-to-face with the truth, especially if it condemns someone you have admired for quite some time.

Personally, it was faithful presentations like this one that finally convinced me that I had to leave American Evangelicalism. It hasn't been easy at all, but I have been in Wittenberg as a Confessional Lutheran for the last several months now, thanks be to God.
Remember, God's Word makes it perfectly clear that we are to be like the "Bereans" (Acts 17:11) and should "test all things" (1 Thessalonians 5:21; 1 John 4:1). We are not supposed to just look the other way when it comes to such blatant lies that distort who God is, who Jesus is, and what the Word of God says. In fact, we are expected to contend for and defend the faith "once delivered to the saints" (Jude 1:3; Galatians 2:5).

Just be sure to always enter the spiritual battlefield as truth-loving apologists and always speak "the truth in love" (Ephesians 4:15) using His Word at all times since it is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness: that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good word" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

In a Lutheran layman's terms, that's why this documentary (and the one we highlighted before it) is so important for us today.

[NOTE: As you know, I am a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is not consistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray. Finally, you might discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog definitely fall into that category since I was a Lutheran-In-Name-Only at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a "Book of Concord" containing our Confessions even existed. I decided to leave those published posts up only because we now have this disclaimer and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life. Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time and help. Grace and peace to you and yours!]

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