All posts Time for a millstone?
11/12/2009 1:34:54 PM
Teaching others regarding the things of the faith is a profound privilege and a grave responsibility. God holds those who teach to a higher standard. James 3:1 reminds us that “Not many should presume to be teachers … because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”
Having presented himself as a preacher of the Word and a teacher of the things of the faith, Dr. Mark Achtemeier is now rightfully being scrutinized. He has publically exchanged the truth about God for lies. He has publically renounced the truth of the Word of the Lord by subordinating that Word to his own sincerely held and heartfelt desires. He has become the kind of teacher about whom we are warned in II Timothy 4:3-4: “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”
Jesus has something to say about false teachers: “Jesus said to His disciples: ‘Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin’” (Luke 17:1-2). Harsh words? Yes, but they are not my own.
I might wish for the kind of god who did not call me to holiness, but then, that would be a god of my own imagining, not the One True Holy God. I might wish for the kind of god who did not reveal the depths of my depravity, but then, I would not know grace nor salvation, which comes through Jesus Christ, and Him alone.
Dr. Achtemeier has borne witness to the truth over the years, but he has now exchanged that truth for lies. He is leading people into falsehood, and he is advocating that the rest of us would blindly follow. I, for one, will not. I am not ashamed of the Gospel. Indeed, it is the very power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. In the Gospel, both the righteousness and the wrath of God are revealed (Romans 1:16-32). Let those who have ears to hear, hear; even as those whose ears have grown itchy continue to recruit teachers who will tell them what they want to hear.
(A rebuttal of Dr. Mark Achtemeier’s entire speech is planned for next week.)