The Real Christmas Story

The Way of the Master – Adultery – Episode 11

Related Posts:

Hell’s Best Kept Secret

The Way of the Master – The Firefighter – Episode 1

The Way of the Master – The Mirror of the Ten Commandments – Episode 2

The Way of the Master – The Motive of the Sinner – Episode 3

The Way of the Master – The Summary of Salvation – Episode 4

The Way of the Master – Practice What You Preach – Episode 5

The Way of the Master – Idolatary – The Darling Sin of Humanity – Episode 6

The Way of the Master – The beauty of a broken spirit – Atheism – Episode 7

The Way of the Master – WDJD – Episode 8

The Way of the Master – Blasphemy, Sabbath and Parents – Episode 9

The Way of the Master – Murder –  Episode 10

True and False Conversion

Where does your Christianity stop?

Every Christian needs to see this

A message to Christians

Whatever happened to Personal Evangelism?

A Collosal Fraud

Below is another article writtem before  Unholy Trinity, which I believe hits the nail right on the head. This is taken from  Shepherd’s Fellowship

(By John MacArthur)

Former NASDAQ chairman Bernie Madoff ran a ponzi-scheme swindle for nearly 20 years, and he bilked an estimated $18 billion from Wall-Street investors. When the scam finally came to light it unleashed a shockwave of outrage around the world. It was the largest and most far-reaching investment fraud ever.

But the evil of Madoff’s embezzlement pales by comparison to an even more diabolical fraud being carried out in the name of Christ under the bright lights of television cameras on religious networks worldwide every single day. Faith healers and prosperity preachers promise miracles in return for money, conning their viewers out of more than a billion dollars annually. They have operated this racket on television for more than five decades. Worst of all, they do it with the tacit acceptance of most of the Christian community.

Someone needs to say this plainly: The faith healers and health-and-wealth preachers who dominate religious television are shameless frauds. Their message is not the true gospel of Jesus Christ. There is nothing spiritual or miraculous about their on-stage chicanery. It is all a devious ruse designed to take advantage of desperate people. They are not godly ministers but greedy impostors who corrupt the Word of God for money’s sake. They are not real pastors who shepherd the flock of God but hirleings whose only design is to fleece the sheep. Their love of money is glaringly obvious in what they say as well as how they live. They claim to possess great spiritual power, but in reality they are rank materialists and enemies of everything holy.

There is no reason anyone should be deceived by this age-old con, and there is certainly no justification for treating the hucksters as if they were authentic ministers of the gospel. Religious charlatans who make merchandise of false promises have been around since the apostolic era. They pretend to be messengers of Christ, but they are interlopers and impostors. The apostles condemned them with the harshest possible language. Paul called them “men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain” (1 Timothy 6:5). Peter called them false prophets with “heart[s] trained in greed” (2 Peter 2:14). He warned that “in their greed they will exploit you with false words” (v. 3). He exposed them as scoundrels and dismissed them as “stains and blemishes” on the church (v. 13). 

Those biblical descriptions certainly fit the greed-driven cult of prosperity preachers and faith healers who unfortunately, thanks to television, have become the best-known face of Christianity worldwide. The scam they operate ought to be a bigger scandal than any Wall Street ponzi scheme or big-time securities fraud. After all, those who are most susceptible to the faith-healers’ swindle are not well-to-do investors but some of society’s most vulnerable people—including multitudes who are already destitute, disconsolate, disabled, elderly, sick, suffering, or dying. The faith-healer gets lavishly rich while the victims become poorer and more desperate (cf. Ezek. 34:1-4, 10).

But the worst part of the scandal is that it’s not really a scandal at all in the eyes of most evangelical Christians. Those who should be most earnest in defense of the truth have taken a shockingly tolerant attitude toward the prosperity preachers’ blatant misrepresentation of the gospel and their wanton exploitation of needy people. “But we don’t want to judge,” they say. Thus Christians fail to exercise righteous judgment (John 7:24). They refuse to be discerning at all.

How many manifestos and written declarations of solidarity have evangelicals issued condemning abortion, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, and other social evils? It’s fine, and fairly easy, to oppose wickedness and injustice in secular society, but where is the corresponding moral outrage against these religious mountebanks who openly, brashly pervert the gospel for profit 24 hours a day, seven days a week on international television?

Advocates of abortion and euthanasia don’t usually try to pass their message off as biblical. The people who say we need to redefine marriage haven’t portrayed themselves as an arm of the church. But the prosperity preachers deceive people in Jesus’ name, claiming to speak for God—while stealing both the souls and the sustenance of hurting people. That is a far greater abomination than any of the social evils Christians typically protest. After all, what the prosperity preachers do is not only a sin against poor, sick, and vulnerable people; it also blasphemes God, corrupts the gospel, and profanes the reputation of Christ before a watching world. It not only tears at the fabric of our society; it also befouls the purity of the visible church and abates the influence of the true gospel. It is surely among the grossest of all the evils currently rampant in our culture.

In the weeks to come, we’re going to be looking at the preposterous claims and false teachings of some of religious television’s best-known figures. We’ll analyze why a disproportionate number of celebrity faith-healers and prosperity preachers have succumbed to serious immorality. And we’ll see what Scripture says about how Bible-believing Christians ought to respond. I hope this series will challenge you to take a more active stand against the phony miracles and false teachings that are being peddled in the name of Christ.

Unholy Trinity….Well someone had to say it

John MacArthur has come out with all guns blazing in the article below. The sad thing is that some of the same people who ‘agree’ with this are the same ones who will be saying amen after their sermons. This is because they have been so indoctrinated that they dont even realise that they are deceived and swallow every wind of doctrine that comes their way without searching the scriptures first like the Bereans (Acts 17:11). Even in the UK, we have many churches which are also following this deceitful pattern, yet they are the most popular churches that are polluting the pews every week and have TV ministries that are polluting the airwaves.

John MacArthur

I don’t watch much television, and when I do I generally avoid the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). For many years TBN has been dominated by faith-healers, full-time fund-raisers, and self-proclaimed prophets spewing heresy. I wrote about the false gospel they proclaim and the phony miracles they pretend to do almost two decades ago in Charismatic Chaos (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992. See especially chapter 12). I had my fill of charismatic televangelism while researching that book, and I can hardly bear to watch it any more.

Recently, however, while recovering from knee-replacement surgery, I decided to sample some of the current fare on TBN. From a therapeutic point of view it seemed a good choice: something more excruciating than the pain in my leg might distract me from the physical suffering of post-surgical trauma. And I suppose on that basis the strategy was effective.

But it left me outraged and frustrated—and eager to challenge the misperceptions in the minds of millions of unbelievers who see these false teachers masquerading as ministers of Christ on TBN.

I’m outraged at the brazen way so many false teachers twist the message of Scripture in Jesus’ name. And I’m frustrated because I’m certain that if these charlatans were not receiving a large proportion of their financial support from sincere believers (and silent acquiescence from Christian leaders who surely know better), they would have no platform for their shenanigans. They would soon lose their core constituency and fade from the scene.

Instead, religious quacks are actually multiplying at a frightening pace. One thing I discovered to my immense displeasure is that TBN is by no means the only religious network broadcasting poisonous false doctrine around the clock. The channel lineup I receive includes at least seven other channels whose schedules are filled with false teachers and charlatans. There’s The Church Channel, Daystar, GodTV, World Harvest Television (LeSEA), Total Christian Television, and several others. Some of them feature blocs of family television programing and a few fairly sound teachers who provide moments of escape from the prosperity preachers. But all of them give prominence to enormous amounts of heresy and religious claptrap—enough to make them positively dangerous. And TBN is singularly responsible for kicking that door open so wide.

The continued growth and influence of TBN is baffling for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the thick aura of lust, greed, and other kinds of moral impropriety that surrounds the whole enterprise. A long string of scandals involving notable charismatic televangelists between 1988 and 1992 should have been sufficient reason for even the most credulous viewers to scrutinize the entire industry with skepticism. First came the international spectacle of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s moral, marital, and financial collapse. That was followed closely by the revelation of Jimmy Swaggart’s repeated dalliances with prostitutes. Shortly afterward, an episode of ABC’s Primetime Live exposed clear examples of deliberate fraud on the part of three more leading charismatic televangelists. Those incidents were punctuated by a score of lesser scandals over several years’ time. It is clear (or should be)—based on empirical evidence alone—that preachers promising miracles in exchange for money are not to be trusted. And for anyone who simply bothers to compare Jesus’ teaching with the health-and-wealth message, it is clear that the message that currently dominates religious television is “a different gospel; which is really not another” (Galatians 1:6-7), but a damnable lie.

TBN is by far the leading perpetrator of that lie worldwide. Virtually all the network’s main celebrities tell listeners that God will give them healing, wealth, and other material blessings in return for their money. On program after program people are urged to “plant a seed” by sending “the largest bill you have or the biggest check you can write” with the promise that God will miraculously make them rich in return. That same message dominates all of TBN’s major fundraising drives. It’s known as the “seed faith” plan, so-called by Oral Roberts, who set the pattern for most of the charismatic televangelists who have followed the trail he blazed. Paul Crouch, founder, chairman, and commander-in-chief of TBN, is one of the doctrine’s staunchest defenders.

The only people who actually get rich by this scheme, of course, are the televangelists. Their people who send money get little in return but phony promises—and as a result, many of them turn away from the truth completely.

If the scheme seems reminiscent of Tetzel, that’s because it is precisely the same doctrine. (Tetzel was a medieval monk whose high-pressure selling of indulgences—phony promises of forgiveness—outraged Martin Luther and touched off the Protestant Reformation.)

Like Tetzel, TBN preys on the poor and plies them with false promises. Yet what is happening daily on TBN is many times worse than the abuses that Luther decried because it is more widespread and more flagrant. The medium is more high-tech and the amounts bilked out of viewers’ pockets are astronomically higher. (By most estimates, TBN is worth more than a billion dollars and rakes in $200 million annually. Those are direct contributions to the network, not counting millions more in donations sent directly to TBN broadcasters.) Like Tetzel on steroids, the Crouches and virtually all the key broadcasters on TBN live in garish opulence, while constantly begging their needy viewers for more money. Elderly, poor, and working-class viewers constitute TBN’s primary demographic. And TBN’s fundraisers all know that. The most desperate people—”unemployed,” “even though I’m in between jobs,” “trying to make it; trying to survive,” “broke”—are baited with false promises to give what they do not even have. Jan Crouch addresses viewers as “you little people,” and suggests that they send their grocery money to TBN “to assure God’s blessing.”

Thus TBN devours the poor while making the charlatans rich. God cursed false prophets in the Old Testament for that very thing (Jeremiah 6:13-15). It’s also one of the main reasons the Pharisees incurred Jesus’ condemnation (Luke 20:46-47). It’s hard to think of any sin more evil. It not only hurts people materially; it deludes them with groundless hope, deceives them with a false gospel, and thereby places their souls in eternal peril. And yet those who do it pretend they are doing the work of God.

That’s not all. Almost no false prophecy, erroneous doctrine, rank superstition, or silly claim is too outlandish to receive airtime on TBN. Jan Crouch tearfully gives a fanciful account of how her pet chicken was miraculously raised from the dead. Benny Hinn trumps that claim with a bizarre prophecy that if TBN viewers will put their dead loved ones’ caskets in front of television set and touch the dead person’s hand to the screen, people will “be raised from the dead . . . by the thousands.”

Ironically, one doesn’t even need to be an orthodox Trinitarian in order to broadcast on the Trinity network. Bishop T. D. Jakes, well known for his rejection of the Nicene creed in favor of oneness Pentecostalism, is a staple on TBN. Benny Hinn has repeatedly attempted to revise the doctrine of the Trinity in novel ways, notoriously teaching at one point that there are nine persons in the godhead.

And yet evangelical church leaders typically show a kind of benign tolerance toward the whole enterprise. Most would never endorse it, of course. They may joke about the gaudiness of the big hair and tawdry set decorations on TBN. Ask them, and they will most likely acknowledge that the prosperity gospel is no gospel at all. Press the issue, and you will probably get them to admit that it is a dangerous form of false doctrine, totally unbiblical, and essentially anti-Christian.

Why, then, is there no large-scale effort among Bible-believing evangelicals to expose, denounce, refute, and silence these false teachers? After all, that is what Scripture commands church leaders to do when we encounter purveyors of soul-destroying substitutes for the true gospel:

The overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain (Titus 1:7-11).

Those who remain silent in the face of such grotesque lies may in fact be partly responsible for turning people away from the truth. Consider the testimony of William Lobdell, religion reporter for the Los Angeles Times, who once considered himself a devout evangelical Christian, but after doing a series of investigative reports on the moral and doctrinal cesspool at TBN; then “finding that his investigative stories about faith healer Benny Hinn and televangelists Jan and Paul Crouch appear to make no difference on the reach of these ministries or the lives of their followers, he [gave] up on the beat and on religion generally.”

All those who truly love Christ and care about the truth have a solemn duty to defend the truth by exposing and opposing these lies that masquerade as truth. If we fail in that duty because of indifference, apathy, or a craving for the approval of men, we are no less guilty than those who actively spread the lies.

The Lexi Show: Bishop Carlton Pearson “The Inclusion Conclusion”

I have previously touched on The Gospel of Inclusion in my previous post about the marks of false christian teaching and teachers. As stated in that post, here are a few things that taught in this false doctrine

Hell doesn’t exist in the way the church has taught and that all people will eventually be reunited with god.

The whole world is redeemed but we are just not aware

God will have to send some people to hell, but he will not leave them there

Hell is not a destination but a detour; a long-way-round road some people must take before they will reach God

Here  are the videos with Lexi interviewing Carlton Pearson. Look out for when Jamal Harrison Bryant has his turn to speak asking the crowd to pray for Carlton and just watch Lexis’s expression. Maybe its just me but I thought he was just so insensitive and its this backwards thinking that puts me off some black churches (not that it only happens in the black church but that has been my background). Also take note how Bishop Van Gayton’s intellectual speaking is belittled which is also a problem in a lot of churches in that they leave their brains at the door and just talk about ‘the anointing’.

Part 1 Clip 1

Part 1 Clip 2

Part 1 Clip 3

Part 2 Clip 1

Part 2 Clip 2

Part 2 Clip 3

Part 3 Clip 1

Part 3 Clip 2

Part 3 Clip 3

To read more about the gospel of inclusion, click here

Shai Linne – As The Hour Draws Near “Short Film”

Three different lives, three different stories, three different outcomes…. with music from Shai Linne 

Part 1

Part 2

Charismatic Chaos

Following my videos on Give me the Truth Part 1 and Part 2 and my post on ‘Did God actually say that?‘ I realise that the things mentioned in these posts happen predominantly in charismatic circles where I came from. Now let me say from the very start that not everything in charismatic churches is bad as there is bad in every church and I would agree with John Macarthur when he says:

I’m very much aware of the fact that not everyone who is associated with the Charismatic movement is engaged in the kind of extreme error that we will be, from time to time, referring to.  There are people who are more moderate.  There are people within the Charismatic movement who, themselves, are very, very concerned about the heresies and the aberrations that exist within that movement

However, there are so many things in there which is error that we cannot ignore it.

Here are some classic examples

Now there may be somethings below that you may not agree with but on the whole, I think that John Macarthur hits it right on the head. You can listen to each sermon by clicking on the appropriate link or download it by right clicking on the link and saving the files. 

Does God Still Give Revelation?

Does God Still Give Prophecies?

Proper Biblical Interpretation

Does God Do Miracles Today?

The Third Wave

How Do Spiritual Gifts Operate?

What Was Happening in the Early Church?

Does God Still Heal?

Speaking in Tongues

What Is True Spirituality?

Does God Promise Health and Wealth? Part 1

Does God Promise Health and Wealth? Part 2

Does Experience Determine Truth?

Did God Actually Say That?

One thing that I have noticed a lot is that God is ’speaking’ and ’showing’ everybody some kind of revelation. I am VERY wary about listening these things (maybe I am wrong but I dont think so). I personally like to ere on the side of caution and stick with what is written in scripture. That way you can’t go wrong or rely on fallible man. I have seen many a ‘prophecy’ spoken over someone that has not come true

RT Kendall warns us to beware of using God’s name in vain

One of the hardest habits for some of us to break is saying, ‘The Lord told me this’ or ‘Here is what the Lord showed me.’

If you question whether this is truly a bad habit, I answer: yes. It is one of the worst claims being perpetrated in churches today and is almost certainly a violation of the third commandment: ‘You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name’ (Exodus 20:7).

How do you misuse God’s name? By making yourself look like God. That is at the bottom of our claims, ‘This is what the Lord told me.’ After all, we bring in him for one reason: to elevate our own credibility. It is not his name we are thinking of, it is our reputation. So if I can add the weight of God’s name to what I say, it gives me authority and respectability.

I am not thinking of God’s name and glory at all when I do this – I am thinking of my own.

Who makes this mistake? Probably, we all do, especially those who have a prophetic gift or aspire to intimacy with God. If they can say, ‘The Lord told me’, we have no choice but to listen! After all, if it is God speaking, I must stand at attention. And if I tell you that God has revealed something to me, you had better give heed! I am not thinking of the accuracy of such claims – at the moment. I am thinking of our motives in making the claims. I can tell you what my motive is if I tell you “God told me this”. It is to make you respect what I say.

The thing is, if God really told me – since I am in a postcanonical age and not writing scripture, do I need to bring his name into it? In other words, if God himself has shown me something and I pass it along to you, would it not be just as true if I left his name out? My reason for claiming his authority is to elevate my own – in your eyes. Otherwise, I fear you would not listen to me.

There is no sign in north-west Arizona that says, ‘You are now looking at the Grand Canyon.’ When you see it, you know what it is. There are no substitutes or counterfeits when it comes to the Grand Canyon. It would be silly, not to mention that it would cheapen the entire aura, if there were signs reminding us that we are actually looking at the Grand Canyon.

Therefore if I really have a word from the Lord, I can say it without mentioning his holy name. It will speak for itself. And if people don’t recognise my authenticity because I don’t bring in God’s name, that is not my problem.

As for the accuracy of claims when people say, ‘The Lord told me this,’ that is quite another story. When you ponder the thousands of times people have made this claim already today – and then get to the bottom of whether it really was the Lord, the angels must be saying, ‘Really?’ God’s name is brought in for so many ‘words’ that are not from him at all.

Why do we quote people when we speak? It is to give ourselves a bit more credibility. Certainly that is why I quote scripture. And if I quote St Augustine or John Wesley, it is to make you feel that I have a greater measure of reliability on my side. But when I say, ‘The Lord told me this about this verse of scripture,’ I have misused his name. I have a perfect right to say ‘in my opinion this is what the scripture means,’ but if I say, ‘The Holy Spirit has revealed this to me about this scripture,’ I am not thinking of the Holy Spirit but my own credibility. It is misusing the spirit – indeed it is abusing his name.

Most of us do not like name-droppers. Why do we drop names? If I told you I know Oral Roberts or Billy Graham, or the Pope – who would I be trying to make look good? Not them. But when I drop God’s name in my conversation, writing or preaching, I have in that moment violated a trust which must make the angels blush.

By the way, how would you feel if I told you ‘God told me to write this article?’ Did he? You tell me.

Give us the Truth – Part 2

As promised yesterday, below is Part 2. Can you relate? Again the lyrics are below

INTRO
Give us the truth…part 2 (part 2, part 2, part2)
Give us the truth
For every email, for every phone call
For everybody that came up to me at a show, Here’s part 2…listen yo

VERSE 1
After the platinum show the two I did with cross movement
I said my goodbyes ’cause I had to fly back to St. Louis
I left there to early for my first semester in school
I was exposed to so much truth that I had to choose
between what I had learned and what I was taught to do
at my church on my zone I was so confused
the first sunday morning back it was a culture shock
watching the shepherd and sheep explode like a soda pop
they’re heads was shaking, they shaking over these chintzy sermons
people spitting and shouting but nobody’s discerning
I left the building
my feeling were crushed I felt forsakin’
the one place I was supposed to come for restoration.
and worship of a Holy God and exalt Him in praises
spent the whole prayer time rubuking the satan
spent the whole sermon time just talking ’bout money
while I was dying inside and spiritually hungry.

CHORUS
Give us the truth
That’s what we need if we’re gon’ properly teach
If we gon’ seek and we gon’ properly reach.
Give us the truth
That’s what we need if we gon’ carry our cross
and if we gon’ affectively disciple tha lost.
Give us the truth
That’s what we need if we gon’ walk up in holiness and boldness and meek and lowliness.
Give us the truth
That’s what we need in this race we running
proper lessons as we wait for his second coming (for real)
Give us the truth

VERSE 2
I left tha crib
moved into the dorms
so depressed that I ventured in porn (it was a crazy thing)
I felt the disconnect from Jesus’ arms
so I ceased to write these rhythms in palms to disobey the King
I told my teachers that I was living in sin
and my bible I’ll never read it again and threw it in the closet
and anything that had to do with God
Marcus T. he was going the opposite into lifestyle
I called Phanatik and turn to the cell
And said for ministry I would go to jail ’cause I was in no position
to minister to anybody at all
cause I wasnt sure if I was a christian at that moment dog
I was skipping classes
hanging with the masses
and my days were black and grey like cigarette ashes
all I know is that I wanted to die
but suicide met me into God
then I felt Him shook me.

REPEAT CHORUS

VERSE 3
But it was obvious
God in his providence
put me with people to guide me and got me outta this
during the chapel service
a cat named Paul Washer
preached the gospel and drove me up to the Lord’s alter
and I confessed my sin
and he presed reset again
I started ova and felt like a solider for Jehovah
I called my old pastor and apologized for how I behaved
as of that day we agreed to go our seperate ways.
I met this girl named Beth who told me about a church home
first I visit, became a member, and then it was on
then the pastor gave me a stack of books
now Im back with raps and hooks
took a summer and spent three hundred dollars on tapes and books and learned from these biblical scholars
now Im back and Im walking in light
living my life
Glorifying Jesus Christ

CHORUS

Related Posts:

Give us the Truth

Give us the Truth

If you have read the ‘About me’ section of my blog, you would have known how I came about to the place where I am now and why I have decided not to go along with the tide of ‘christianity’ that is portrayed on TV and in so many churches today. It actually pains me to see so many christians  not read the scriptures for themselves and therefore swallow every spiritual junk that is fed to them on a daily basis.

Well Flame’s song ‘Give us the Truth’ mirrors a lot of the experiences that I have gone through in my christian life. Have a listen. I have provided the lyrics below. Look out for part 2 tomorrow

[Chorus]
Give us the truth that’s what we need
Lying leaders been deceivin’ us since we were seeds
Give us the truth that’s what we need
Teachers and preachers teach us the things that set us free
Give us the truth that’s what we need
Parents teach us bout Jesus before we get older
Give us the truth that’s what we need
Sin is spreading and the world is getting colder

[Verse One]
All I ever wanted was to know the truth
Seeking Jesus at 16 meaning my middle youth
Man I really hungered and had this inner thirst
Absurd the thought of me even missin’ a day of church
Man it felt like heaven, especially Bible study
I had my Bible pen and pad sittin’ next to my buddies
The Word had us open especially certain verses
Spendin’ hours in worship man it just felt so perfect
And then after the service out on the parking lot
Laughin’ and rappin’ for hours afterwards we talked a lot
Felt like your second family for me felt like my first
We lost our ties when my grandmother died I kept in hurt
Remember certain ministers inspired you to learn
You had anxiety inside and just waitin’ your turn
People announce they callin’ jumpin’ and shoutin’
That dun dunt dun dunt it was so arousin’

[Chorus]

[Verse Two]
Then that first year progressed and turned into five
Learning so much and I’m comin’ in touch closer with God
Some things were gettin’ sticky I mean real sticky
I’m trippin’ I’m wonderin’ was Jesus even really with me
Man I felt numb meanin’ I lost my feelin’
People standin’, dancin’, liftin’ hands while I was chillin’
No longer loved the sermons felt like I wasn’t learnin’
The topics taught on weren’t touchin’ my inner yearnings
And then some behavior seemed like counterfeit revival
I looked for Scriptures that supported this off in the Bible
Yet I couldn’t find it I felt blinded
I thought it was a demon in error I tried to bind it
But nothin’ happened here comes depression
Maybe when they threw the Holy Spirit that I didn’t catch Him
Did I miss my blessin’? Felt unprotected
In the midst of a war scarred without my weapon

[Chorus]

[Verse Three]
Then I left St. Louis on a tour with Cross Movement
And who would have knew it these dudes have also been through it
I shared my brokenness feelings of hopelessness
For so long faked my emotions no one even noticed it
Yet it was obvious God in His providence
Put me with people to guide me and got me outta this
And then my other brother T.R.U.T.H. began to share the same
I almost wept I saw the steps it took to bear the name
Without truth left me in utter confusion
Without truth left me with subtle delusions
Without truth no longer fought to win
Without truth drove me back into sin
The depth of this journey can’t be described in words
This is just the tip of the iceberg
But from now until my death this is what I’ll do
I’m learning standing and I’ll fight for truth

[Chorus]

CMR’s Da’ T.R.U.T.H. Statement

Following Da’ T.R.U.T.H’s apology, Cross Movement Records (CMR) have made the following statement which I fully commend:

Dear brothers and sisters in the faith,

This life is uncertain and refuses to leave us unchallenged.  The world we live in overflows with the sad stories of both sinners and unfortunately saints.  However, in the most unstable times, we can all be strengthened in this truth—that our God remains unchanged by our challenges, unaffected by our failures, and waits poised to help the repentant and contrite.  

It is with tremendous sadness and humble disappointment that Cross Movement Records must inform you regarding the suspension of the promotion and forwarding of the artist, minister, and ministry of Da Truth, aka Emanuel Lambert Jr., due to recent findings of moral failure in his marriage.  It is the expressed ambition and demonstrated intent of this label to foster Christian leadership that utilizes the platforms of an artist or musician.  While obedience to the word of God is the high standard for all who name the name of Christ, for the Christian leader, the standards and the consequences are even greater.

We at CMR plead for your prayers for our brother Da Truth whom we sincerely love.  We also ask for your prayers for his wife, his family, his Pastor, his Elders and Church during this very hard time in their lives.  Again we charge ourselves, as well as you to remember Galatians 6:1-10 as we look to not only discipline, and in due time restore, but also “bear one another’s burden’s and so fulfill the law of Christ.”  

In addition, we both thank and applaud Da Truth for his letter of confession found on his site, as well as ours.  We declare that in Da Truth’s case, in light of all the circumstances, in light of the authoritative stand by which he preached, and in the case of the Christian leader, this should be the commendable example of the responsible servant.  Though this may not be the requirement or charge of many, blessed are those who submit to the understanding that Christian leaders are accountable to the same degree that they are exalted.  Oh that the Church would witness leaders who are as courageous in the bad times, as they are in good times.  Da Truth once proclaimed (to the point of naming one of his albums) that his life was an “Open Book.”  It is CMR’s sincere prayer in the months and years to come, that the body of Christ and the world would be able to read new chapters that illustrate God’s incredible ability to rebuke, restore, reinstate and revitalize.  It is our belief that the real fruit of repentance occurs without condition or entitlement, as one patiently waits for the Lord’s refurbishment–something that an immediate and deliberate push back to the lights, stage and microphone could undermine.  

Furthermore, in recent times and similar circumstances, it has been reported and published by certain media outlets that Cross Movement Records drops artists from its label for such things as what Truth has confessed.  We wish to state for the record that this is untrue and is a misunderstanding of past statements made by us which we apologize now for not being clearer.  When we state that we are “discontinuing the forwarding” of an artist, as we have done previously and are stating currently, we mean that we are rendering the person inactive and not separated from us.  Being that we do not have total authority over all the activities of a person/artist, we are just trying to express that if someone happens to see an artist still current and active in ministry during a  label recommended and church ordered down time, that we are not involved with the acceptance and promotion of such activity.  If ever there arises a reason for CMR and Da Truth (or any of our artists for that matter) to be separated, let us state now that it more than likely will have nothing to do with matters of this sort. 

Lastly, we realize that many disagreed with our way of handling these matters in times past and many will do the same now.  Firstly, we would like to affirm that our actions and words then were, and at this present time are, not without accountability.  We have sought counsel from multiple Christian leaders and pastors who have painstakingly wrestled with us in the scriptures concerning these matters.  And though we refuse to engage in the fruitless tennis-volley style of debate through the media and over the internet, we would like to offer some of the scriptures that we have referenced.  Again, please keep in mind that it is the prerogative of this label to forward Christian leaders who also understand these expectations when they accept the platforms they are given.  Therefore, please read the following with this context in mind:  1 Cor. 5, 1 Tim. 3:1-13, 1 Tim. 5:17-24.  It is also our goal in the coming year to forward a fruitful format that will help bind those that are hurting, give understanding to those who are confused, and strengthen those who are trying to continue in the ministry for Christ.

In conclusion, with the untimely death of one of the original Cross Movement group members, Enock, aka Juan James (October 17, 2009), and the struggle to heal our brothers, 2009 has been the most trying, overwhelming, mentally, physically, and emotionally draining year for us to date.  Please continue to remember us in your prayers.  We would like to thank all those who have prayed for us and shown their support throughout this year.  It means more than can be expressed.  Though it is not our view in this matter to credit Satan for all of the adversity that has risen,  we are at the same time not ignorant of his schemes and how he would love to not only cripple leaders, but also discredit the whole of an entire Movement (past, present and future).  As before, even with all of the CMR Family’s credibility at stake, we remain resolved at CMR along with all of its artists/ministers to continue steadfastly with the mission of making the message of the Cross known to the world.  Again, we ask for your prayers as we keep our hands to the plow, heal our wounded, and worship the God of our Salvation.  We remain Christ’s and your servant.

-Cross Movement Records

¹Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. ²Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. ³And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. ⁴The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. ⁵For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 

 ⁷But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. ⁸We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. ¹⁰We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. ¹¹For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. ¹²So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. 

 ¹³It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.”^[With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, ¹⁴because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. ¹⁵All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. 

 ¹⁶Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Cor. 4)