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For A Time Such As This

Guts! Spine! Backbone! These are words our society uses to connote courage, bravery, and honor in the face of difficult circumstances. Christianity used to be a Faith that HAD TO demonstrate these attributes. I'm not so certain anymore. After years and years of watching people support a corrupt seminary president, and not just any seminary president but one that has influence with many of today's leading Christian writers and speakers, after this I'm pretty much disillusioned. It hasn't shaken my faith but has made me frightful. Frightful because in the past when such influential men within Christianity have had this sort of effect on his followers, something big happens.

During perhaps the most difficult time in Christianity's history where forces were attempting to eradicate the historic Trinitarian belief (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinitarianism), Christianity needed people who could stand against fake-friendships and being bought off with free tuition or promises to be part of the inner circle of the powerful.

When times such as these come, there are some typical responses:

  1. Dropout - withdraw from all conflict.
  2. Join the corrupt - hoping no one will call them out.
  3. Challenge the corrupt - speak up.

The last option is something we don't do too much anymore. I mean, why make waves? Just go away quietly. It's not worth it you will be told. It's not your place. Besides, if you do stand up against the corrupt and powerful they will come after you. They will attempt to shut you up, and make you go away.

During the fight for the Trinitarian Faith of Christianity, Christian Athanasius often stood virtually alone as the "black dwarf" against the Arians. Emperor Constantine ordered Athanasius to restore Arius to fellowship. Athanasius refused, since he didn't believe Arius had actually repented of his heresy even though Arius pretended to repent by signing the Nicene Creed -- with his own modifications of course. So then, Constantine banished Athanasius. (source)

Today, there are high-profile Christian writers and seminary presidents in bed with the heresy of hyperpreterism. Sure, they don't openly endorse hyperpreterism but instead they present their repackaged brands, sometimes simply calling it Preterism or "Realized Preterism" or "modified Preterism". But in essence, it still is akin to the heretical hyperpreterism in premise. They act like hyperpreterists are simply brothers in Christ in error -- even calling them "brothers". Yet Christians still support these people.

Perhaps someone reading this might say to themselves, "Come on, Roderick -- aren't you making a bigger deal out of this than it is?" But imagine had Christians taken a stronger stand against Dispensationalism when it first started infecting Christianity. Maybe then, we wouldn't of had to endure 200 years of rabid "Left-Behindism".

Lastly, for someone who says, "But Roderick, aren't you a Calvinisti who believes God is in control of all things? Why don't you just 'let go and let God'?" A REAL Calvinistic Christian would never say something like this since although we surely say God is Sovereign, we also know that God calls us to oppose evil and support good (Is 5:20).

Where are the Christians for a time such as this?

RELEVANT TEXTS:
Esther 4:14